Neurodiversity

[violaine]

[QUOTE=Spirit Dancer;43908]Temple Grandin, Ph.D., is the most accomplished and well-known adult with autism in the world. Now her fascinating life, with all its challenges and successes is being brought to the screen. HBO has produced the full-length film Temple Grandin, which premieres on Saturday, February 6th on HBO. She has been featured on NPR (National Public Radio), major television programs, such as the BBC special "The Woman Who Thinks Like a Cow", ABC's Primetime Live, The Today Show, Larry King Live, 48 Hours and 20/20, and has been written about in many national publications, such as Time magazine, People magazine, Forbes, U.S. News and World Report, and New York Times. Among numerous other recognitions by media, Bravo Cable did a half-hour show on her life, and she was featured in the best-selling book, Anthropologist from Mars.

Dr. Grandin didn't talk until she was three and a half years old, communicating her frustration instead by screaming, peeping, and humming. In 1950, she was diagnosed with autism and her parents were told she should be institutionalized. She tells her story of "groping her way from the far side of darkness" in her book Emergence: Labeled Autistic, a book which stunned the world because, until its publication, most professionals and parents assumed that an autism diagnosis was virtually a death sentence to achievement or productivity in life.

Dr. Grandin has become a prominent author and speaker on the subject of autism because "I have read enough to know that there are still many parents, and yes, professionals too, who believe that 'once autistic, always autistic.' This dictum has meant sad and sorry lives for many children diagnosed, as I was in early life, as autistic. To these people, it is incomprehensible that the characteristics of autism can be modified and controlled. However, I feel strongly that I am living proof that they can" (from Emergence: Labeled Autistic).

Even though she was considered "weird" in her young school years, she eventually found a mentor, who recognized her interests and abilities. Dr. Grandin later developed her talents into a successful career as a livestock-handling equipment designer, one of very few in the world. She has now designed the facilities in which half the cattle are handled in the United States, consulting for firms such as Burger King, McDonald's, Swift, and others.

Dr. Grandin presently works as a Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University. She also speaks around the world on both autism and cattle handling. At every Future Horizons conference on autism, the audience rates her presentation as 10+.


(as stated on her website http://www.templegrandin.com/)

just found your post-

great minds

ox

[violaine]

http://aspergersquare8.blogspot.com/...-document.html


The Checklist of Neurotypical Privilege

I have never been asked to prove that I am neurotypical.

I am allowed to use the word “we” without being accused of trying to speak for all neurotypical people.

I can share my opinions publicly without fear of being accused of not really being neurotypical.

I can assume that police officers will not become alarmed at my natural body language, and find it necessary to subdue me in advance of any wrongdoing.

I can reveal to my boss and coworkers that I am NT, without fear of losing my job.

I can assume that most restaurants, theaters, stores and other places I would like to go will not be so loud or brightly lit or crowded that I will become unable to function at a basic level.

I can easily find other NT people in movies or on television shows that are not explicitly about being neurotypical.

When people realize I am neurotypical, they do not ask me if I am like a particular character they have seen in a movie.

I do not have to fear that important decisions about my life will be made by autistic or other non-neurotypical people, just because I am neurotypical.

I am not expected to alter or suppress my natural ways of moving, interacting or expressing emotion in most circumstances.

If I fail to alter or suppress my natural ways of moving, interacting or expressing emotion, I do not fear public ridicule or exclusion because of this.

When seeking medical care, I am not expected to reveal that I am NT.

When attempting to purchase health insurance, I do not fear I will be rejected because I am NT.

The majority of people who make the laws of my nation share my neurology.
I am never or rarely asked to explain what it means or what it is like to be neurotypical.

I can talk about my life without being asked what I think may have caused me to be neurotypical.

If I have a medical problem, I do not worry that my doctor will dismiss it as part of my neurotypicality.

If I am happy with the way my mind works, no one questions this or argues that most people with similar brains would prefer to be different.

People don’t usually confuse me with another neurotypical person, or expect me to take responsibility for what the other person has said.

I am not assumed to be incapable of empathy or compassion.

[Andrew, Jr.]

Violaine,

You are lucky. I feel like I have to explain everything under the sun online. In real time, no - never. I think it is because I am lousy with words.

[AtLast]

I am so glad to see this thread! I know that I am not the only person that may have misread or interpreted online communications due to someone having a neurological issue (I don't like using disorder). I have a nephew with Asberger's that has certainly had a lot of negative stuff thrown at him and been very misunderstood. Certainly know a few stroke victims/survivors as well as other brain injured people.

Thinking a lot (for myself to pay attention to) about how it can be very difficult to communicate online anyway, but, if someone has a neurotypal dimension involved, it could be all the more difficult.

So, thank you all for making me aware!

[violaine]

asperger spectrum wiring = atypical / AT

non.spectrum wiring = neurotypical / NT

mostly, i think of others as being on a spectrum somewhere with something [hay! issues, quirks, ways of processing info, experiences, et c. cannot exclusive to me! ]- & so i believe people can meet in the middle to "see" each other-

however, when something happens - and it does/will !! it can be so small, and terribly clear to me, yet the "thing" whatever it is, causes confusion elsewhere, i realise, how a "whatever file" at times is just going to be necessary - between AT/NT ; NT/NT ; and AT/AT !