I typed out a beautiful long response just to have it deleted when I hit post.?
But I did notice on there people didn't seem to understand the difference. High functioning autism is when the person is better able to get along in society. Aspergers is even more functioning than that. Low functioning is when they're completely dependent, sometimes they can't talk, still need diapers even as adults..
My teen is autistic, not high functioning, not low functioning. He is autistic. That's who he is.
People assume that being called high functioning means that he doesn't need understanding and help as well. Obviously his needs differ greatly from another autistic person, be them high or low functioning.
The other thing is he IS autistic. Not he has autism, not a massive difference to some. All the difference in the world to me.
I see it in my head like a radio gauge on clock radios. Where the dial can be set at any point. Then at the high end there's another section that's a different color, and that's where the aspergers people are, and can fall into different parts of that spectrum too
My daughter just got labeled on the "severe" side of autism. Honestly at first I cried. But after speaking to all her therapist they told me not to worry and that it will change. It's just a label and with it she's entitled to more therapy by the county.
My daughter is autistic. Not high functioning. Not low functioning. Just autistic.
My nephew is autistic. His mom was told he was very low functioning, that he would never talk. Never connect with other people. Would never potty train.
One day I was sitting in their living room and he ran in, jumped into my lap and pulled my arms around him. He initiates tag with ds1, and the two of them will play together for hours. He talks, sings, and gives smarta$$ answers when people ask dumb questions lol. He's almost completely potty trained. And he is the smartest kid I've ever seen.
I used to work in what we call here "integration classes" but we don't use the terms spectrums and high and low fonctionning so I was lost. There is 4 different type of CLIS (integration classes) here and children's are moved to one from an other, according to their ability at the moment (Sorry if I don't make much sense)
I don't think labeling (high/low/med) harms autistic people at all. There IS a difference between a low functioning autistic person and a high functioning autistic person. THIS is exactly why I fear the "is he autistic" conversation I'm about to have with our pedi. My son is smart, he's fairly independent for his age, and only has a few signs that other family members continuously point out. If he is autistic I don't want him to feel limited or be labeled and put into classrooms based strictly on the word "autistic". The kids who are low functioning and NEED to be in special education genuinely need to be there. But the kids who are considered high functioning sometimes don't. I don't want people to judge or limit any child based on one diagnosis. Now if extra help is needed (as with all kids) absolutely get the help, but if it's not don't limit the child by grouping all autistic kids into the same category, they all need different things based on their specific case so the high/med/low is important.
Nicki I find it interesting that you prefer to say he IS autistic rather than he has autism.
Same as someone who has bipolar. They are not the disease. It is simply something they suffer from. If you had cancer would you say I AM cancer? No. I have cancer. If you had Alzheimer's would you say I AM Alzheimer's? Nope. You have Alzheimer's. Same as autism. By saying he IS autistic you are saying that he is the disease. He isn't.
Anyways, the labels do no harm. It's simply for diagnosis. You don't have to go around saying your child is high or low functioning.
Autism isn't a disease. Autistic people aren't diseased. Most autistic people prefer identity first language, but most allistic people ignore that "for our own good" or something.
Here's the thing. Most autistic people don't fit into that box of low functioning or high functioning. The people those that are considered hf, arent allowed to be autistic and are expected to act allistic all the time, which can easily lead to anxiety disorders, depression, meltdowns, and regression. They lack the accommodations they need because they appear too "high functioning" to need them. They dont get a say in important issues and discussions that effect them because they're dismissed as too "high functioning".
On the other hand, those deemed to be on the low end of the spectrum are treated like children, or worse, like objects that cant think or feel. They are treated like tragic hopeless cautionary tales that need to be eradicated from the world. Allistic people speak over them when they are capable of communicating for themselves, but more often than not they aren't seen as real human beings. They are seen as too "low functioning" to have an opinion. (And no, person first language isn't the solution to any of this)
But what about those who can be put in both categories depending on the environment or the task, or the energy the individual has at that moment? Well, then they are facing all of those problems.
Functioning labels don't help autistic people. Period.
Cami Ssende·
Sorry cenedra I destroyed your answer (before having time to read it) by editing my post ?
deleted-user·
Ahh bloody hell woman!??
I said something like it was gone real quick after that revelation and it's a good thing I'm up until stupid o'clock these days or I'd miss it ?
deleted-user·
They're all useless labels that harm autistic people.
deleted-user·
I typed out a beautiful long response just to have it deleted when I hit post.?
But I did notice on there people didn't seem to understand the difference. High functioning autism is when the person is better able to get along in society. Aspergers is even more functioning than that. Low functioning is when they're completely dependent, sometimes they can't talk, still need diapers even as adults..
Cami Ssende·
Thank you @stray! But what's the difference between high, low functioning and spectrum then?
deleted-user·
I don't think they're useless labels they really help me to understand
deleted-user·
They're all on a spectrum. Low func is on one end, high is on the other. And people can sit anywhere on the spectrum.
deleted-user·
I agree with pp. I find the labels pointless.
My teen is autistic, not high functioning, not low functioning. He is autistic. That's who he is.
People assume that being called high functioning means that he doesn't need understanding and help as well. Obviously his needs differ greatly from another autistic person, be them high or low functioning.
The other thing is he IS autistic. Not he has autism, not a massive difference to some. All the difference in the world to me.
deleted-user·
I see it in my head like a radio gauge on clock radios. Where the dial can be set at any point. Then at the high end there's another section that's a different color, and that's where the aspergers people are, and can fall into different parts of that spectrum too
deleted-user·
My daughter just got labeled on the "severe" side of autism. Honestly at first I cried. But after speaking to all her therapist they told me not to worry and that it will change. It's just a label and with it she's entitled to more therapy by the county.
My daughter is autistic. Not high functioning. Not low functioning. Just autistic.
deleted-user·
My nephew is autistic. His mom was told he was very low functioning, that he would never talk. Never connect with other people. Would never potty train.
One day I was sitting in their living room and he ran in, jumped into my lap and pulled my arms around him. He initiates tag with ds1, and the two of them will play together for hours. He talks, sings, and gives smarta$$ answers when people ask dumb questions lol. He's almost completely potty trained. And he is the smartest kid I've ever seen.
Cami Ssende·
I used to work in what we call here "integration classes" but we don't use the terms spectrums and high and low fonctionning so I was lost. There is 4 different type of CLIS (integration classes) here and children's are moved to one from an other, according to their ability at the moment (Sorry if I don't make much sense)
deleted-user·
I don't think labeling (high/low/med) harms autistic people at all. There IS a difference between a low functioning autistic person and a high functioning autistic person. THIS is exactly why I fear the "is he autistic" conversation I'm about to have with our pedi. My son is smart, he's fairly independent for his age, and only has a few signs that other family members continuously point out. If he is autistic I don't want him to feel limited or be labeled and put into classrooms based strictly on the word "autistic". The kids who are low functioning and NEED to be in special education genuinely need to be there. But the kids who are considered high functioning sometimes don't. I don't want people to judge or limit any child based on one diagnosis. Now if extra help is needed (as with all kids) absolutely get the help, but if it's not don't limit the child by grouping all autistic kids into the same category, they all need different things based on their specific case so the high/med/low is important.
deleted-user·
Nicki I find it interesting that you prefer to say he IS autistic rather than he has autism.
Same as someone who has bipolar. They are not the disease. It is simply something they suffer from. If you had cancer would you say I AM cancer? No. I have cancer. If you had Alzheimer's would you say I AM Alzheimer's? Nope. You have Alzheimer's. Same as autism. By saying he IS autistic you are saying that he is the disease. He isn't.
Anyways, the labels do no harm. It's simply for diagnosis. You don't have to go around saying your child is high or low functioning.
deleted-user·
Autism isn't a disease. Autistic people aren't diseased. Most autistic people prefer identity first language, but most allistic people ignore that "for our own good" or something.
Here's the thing. Most autistic people don't fit into that box of low functioning or high functioning. The people those that are considered hf, arent allowed to be autistic and are expected to act allistic all the time, which can easily lead to anxiety disorders, depression, meltdowns, and regression. They lack the accommodations they need because they appear too "high functioning" to need them. They dont get a say in important issues and discussions that effect them because they're dismissed as too "high functioning".
On the other hand, those deemed to be on the low end of the spectrum are treated like children, or worse, like objects that cant think or feel. They are treated like tragic hopeless cautionary tales that need to be eradicated from the world. Allistic people speak over them when they are capable of communicating for themselves, but more often than not they aren't seen as real human beings. They are seen as too "low functioning" to have an opinion. (And no, person first language isn't the solution to any of this)
But what about those who can be put in both categories depending on the environment or the task, or the energy the individual has at that moment? Well, then they are facing all of those problems.
Functioning labels don't help autistic people. Period.