I want to be cured.

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Although that is true with regard to correlation, we have more than correlative evidence of there being some benefits to the condition. The relationship between AS and savant syndrome is strong enough to indicate a positive link rather than mere correlation.

Imo it's an oversimplified view to say that a cure is good (tm) or bad (tm). Anything that we do to a body (or to a brain) has outcomes and generally speaking, not all of the outcomes are good. We would need to weigh the specific risks involved in any "cure" imo on a case by case basis. A person who is on the spectrum but doing well in their professional life may find that as an individual the risks are not worth the potential benefits. This is not an "anti-cure" position, but it's not an "anti-autism" position either. There's no way to weigh the pros and cons of a "cure" without knowing the specific benefits and risks involved. For that we need to have a tangible, studied "cure" that we can compare to. Anything prior to that is fairly useless in terms of speculation.

Couple of thongs: Close to having a technology in the medical field means we may see some progress in the next 50 years, but not have it perfected... which is better time than NASAs version of the near future. NASAs version of the near future according to an article that I once found on their website claims they plan on having antimatter fusion hybrid rockets in the near future, and with their description of the near future, that is a probable event. In the medical field, the near future is not 10 years from now, it is more like within the next century we might get there based on current rate of technological advanNcement.

Next thing: I have heard one medical reasercher state that if it were not for degenerative disease and cancer, people would likely live to approximitly old age before the body would weaken enough to be easily killed by something. This life expectancy is not an unrealisitc probability. People do not die of old age. If you do the research, they die of degenerative causes, where the body gets worn out, such as alzheimers and dimentia, and heart failure. Otherwise, they die of defects or disease. The degenerative aspects can be prevented with stem cell treatment when the technoloy is developed that far. We can currently repair damaged organs from a dead host to the point that a damaged organ can be used for transplant. Todays technology does not allow for a person, without family history of degenerative failures in their organs, to live long enough for them to die of old age. Something else kills them prematurly. It is impossible for someone to truly die of old age.

As for almost dying from a slight defect. My 13 yold brother has outlived his life expectancy by 12 1/2 years already. He was born with roughly half a brain, producing no red blood cells, and not having enough grey matter to maintain his body. Somehow, by the grace of God, he is normal for someone who would be high functioning in special ed. Should he have lived past 6 months, according to the doctor that is his pedeatrician as well as the leading specialist in the field of DBA, which is what prevents him from producing red blood cells, he would be in a wheelchair, with being able to utter a sound of any sorts highly unlikely. On a side note: This kid took part in a confidence builder thingy where people had to walk forward into an arrow that would snap in half. His arrow shattered into 12 peices. The man upstairs seems to really like this kid for saome reason, as he defies all current medical logic. MRIs of his brain taken at age 5 suggest he shouldn't even be alive. His pediatrician was not willing to let him go on ritalin over the fact that so little was known about what it might do to him, because of his unique scenario. This kid eventually went on the medication simply as a trial to see if it would help him and started on a very very low dose. He is now on it in its proper dose as he has shown improvements on it. The doctor is still not sure of what long term effects it may have given how unique his scenario is. Any changes in his medication tend to take a long time to get approved because he is so different that eveything must be taken into account, and the doctor has to actually think really deeply about all possible effects. Any medication he is on is either being tested on him to see if he should be on it, or he definitly needs to be on, such as his iron chelation for the fact that he would otherwise die of iron poisoning from insanly high iron count due to increased iron levels from transfusions. If you do not agree with chelation for his case, you have obviously not done any research on the long term affects of having regular transfusions.

Medical advancement takes a long time to occur, and point is, being able to make more sophisticated organs may be possible in the later half of this century, but it is not possible today, and might not be possible tomorrow, or the day after, but will be if the human race lasts long enough, which unless a global apocalypse happens, we are likely to make that avancement soon, maybe not in my lifetime, but soon.

That actually makes a lot of sense... the information I had read previously on the subject was probably skewed. :) Still... it's kind of hard to argue against curing blatant episodic and often quite disturbing hallucinations with no perceived benefit.

I think that's one of the single most well written forum posts I've read.

Never.

A cure, to me anyway, is a slap in the face for all our hard work. It's like saying the only way we can be treated as 'worthwhile people' or 'deserving of respect' is to be just like the rest of the world. Why can't I be 'worthwhile' now? Why can't they look at me, really look at me, and see me for who I am as I am? If that is the world that they want us to assimilate into then I want no part of it.

If the only way for us not to be seen as broken or ill is to shove pills down my throat then I don't want them.


This is a majority rules case. The majority of people are NT therefore NTs are considered 'normal'. What if AS was 'normal'? What if there were more of us?

How many NTs would really take a cure to become like us? To be 'normal'?

I respect that it is your decision -and it should be. But what about Autistics who are minors whose parents will make the choice for them? What if they 'cure' their child who really has all the potential in the world to be independent and learn how to do things for themselves? Is it fair to take that choice away from someone?

Realistically, people like us will be safe from this because we're mostly of age (I assume) to make medical decisions for ourselves, but it will most likely end with us. Those in the world who see autism as a deficit will make that choice for their children and those who choose not to will probably be made to feel like they're troublemakers. Why give funding for programs when there's a cure? Why put on awareness conferences if there's a simple cure?

All our effort in social classes all those hours wasted.

Conversation and acceptance is a two way street. The NT world has to remember to try hard too, not just us. We can't carry this weight alone -we can't be the only ones to work hard. Both sides must pull their weight.

Besides, I don't see the NTs coming out with an ‘Autism to English’ dictionary either -why are we the disabled ones? They don't understand us either. I think it's amazing that one side is disabled for not understanding but the other is normal for it.

What needs to be cured here is ignorance and intolerance, if I may be cliché.

I don't want a cure, I'm happy as I am and I will never allow someone else to take away a part of me like that.

I do agree with what you've said about people acknowledging us as worthwhile now...

But just to be persnickety, I would have to say that given how important conformity seems to be to NTs (and the fact that conformity is the better part of the "social skill" we lack), that a larger number of NTs would take a "cure" to become like us than the other way around, if our positions were reversed and AS were the dominant neurotype.

Good point. I had thought about that when I was writing too. I dunno, I hope some of them would stand up and beg the question of 'normalicy'...

I already tried to point out that normal is a relative term but nobody seemed interested to go more towards the core of the matter about curing the real problem.

Right ... encouraging neurodiversity since, well... yeah, even though it may not be very helpful to us as individuals in an NT-dominated world right now, AS-style honesty is a good thing imo! Is it really such a good thing to say that a society that is two-faced is inherently better than one with honesty like ours? So perhaps a bit more honesty in the world is a good thing in general. This is not a general condemnation of NT society -- I personally dislike all the lies and wish they would stop that's true, but I'm not saying these people are bad, just different. Maybe it's not such a bad thing to encourage people to accept those who are different either.

curebies

Technically, you're right about that. I used common terminology. Still, the medical industry doesn't REALLY want to solve those problems. If they did, almost every disease would be GONE! Cancer is not REALLY a disease, but a cell going haywire in a way that they will tend to do over time. They tend to respond to the same growth factors as normal cells, but don't function right, and have a goal of reproducing. The same sort of thing causes things like type II diabetes melitus, and radiation sickness. Most cancers are caused by having the same tissue damagaed over and over again. If the normal system could just keep going forever, the new cells would be replaced quickly and maybe cancer wouldn't even be noticed. dementia doesn't REALLY exist per se, it is a term given to the symptom of diseases such as alzheimers. Alzheimers is a chemical breakdown. Unlike cancer, it seems to have an agent that starts destroying brain cells. vCJD is the same way. Even the end results in the brain look similar. Personally, I believe that if we stopped ingesting aluminum, alzheimers would decrease. Still, there are other factors that I don't think are known yet.

As for heart failure? Well, the regenerative system isn't perfect. Apparently what happened with me is that 1 or two cuspids got slightly damaged and, when it healed, the two fused together. That caused the pressure to go against my aorta, and cause it to rupture. So it isn't something that an antidegenerative solution would necessarily fix, or could have prevented.



He IS getting support for the RBC. As for not having enough grey matter, I have heard of people surviving with little more than a brainstem. Granted, they were vegetative, and had to be fed, but they could breath, etc....



As I said, I know iron can be very poisonous. The National Institute of Health in the US says, and they say that this is international, that the guidelines are that it should only be for LOW RISK, or long term transfusions. So even they seem to agree it isn't a good idea overall. They also have guidelines on when, and the tests that should be done. I don't know why it wouldn't be metabolized normally, but they indicate that it may not be, and so long term recipients need chelation. One guideline is for people receiving at least 2 units per month for at least a year. Otherwise, it should be done if it is LOW risk. I don't know if I would say god likes him because of his survival. When I elected to have surgery to save my life, I basically hoped I would die. I said yes ONLY because I didn't want to end up a vegetable, or close to it. I figured the surgery was more likely to either save me from that fate, or kill me. I WAS happy when I figured that I was the same mentally.

BTW the link I refer to is:

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articl ... id=2516534



Yeah, it may happen. I wouldn't say SOON, but it may. Heck, they once may have said that MY operation was impossible. I know it took a lot of effort, and used involved things that they probably didn't even dream of 60 years ago. I read that the first doctor to do it sewed an artificial aorta on a sewing machine! Who would have thought? The first artificial heart recipient died of a blood clot. After some cows almost died of a bleeding disorder, they decided to use the cause as a rat poison. One person tried to kill himself with the rat poison, and they ended up using it to prevent future clots. Who would have thought such events would happen to allow me to type to you now? Still, artificially made drop in replacement hearts that work the SAME way are obviously far more complex. Nobody is going to sew them on a sewing machine.

Yeah, I agree that normal hasn't been pinned down. Maybe, someday, we'll have a better definition.

At my age, it's probably too late. My dad at my age was in upper management, pulling down some serious money, and had a lot of friends. I seem to be going in the other direction (but the state of the world has something to do with it too)

If, indeed, the reason for Autism is a different wiring in the brain, then the cure is going to be very delicate and a long way off. Still, I don't want them to stop trying.

I think that Callista is right, we can hope for a cure for some conditions but for some conditions it is like playing the lotto.

I recall that when the 'AIDS' virus HIV was discovered that some people thought that the identification of the virus would lead rapidly to a cure and/or vaccine. But about 20 years later neither exist.

I think that the idea that we can rewire our brains, wake up and be NT is a far fetched idea. I suspect that the shock to the system of suddenly changing from having an autistic brain to a NT brain would drive many people over the edge.

To suddenly have everything which I have had lived with for more than 20 years altered and changed in a matter of hours into something alien to me would be a very disturbing experience.

The mitigation of the most tiresome symptoms might be welcome, but that is not a cure. If feeling the cold more than a NT was a symptom of AS, then a wool jumper (worn on top of a cotton shirt to stop the itching) would be a reasonable treatment for an aspie who lives in a cold place. This treatment is not a cure it is a reasonable mitigation treatment which does not have lots of nasty side effects.

I fear that with the current state of the art with brain surgery that the costs will greatly outweight the postive effects.

Yes, I do.

Most of the people on this forum will take exception to your wish, however.

The irony being that they're all doing so from a position of not knowing how much the cure would improve their lives.

You'll see a full range of reactions to your pro-cure (curebie) stance - from denials that life for AS'ers is any worse than it is for NT's ... to denial that a cure is even possible (which posterity will show to be untrue - I'd say within 15-20 years God willing) - and everything in between.

Human nature is such that an affront to the ego as great as AS cannot be simply shrugged off.
It generally evokes deep-seated and long-lasting reaction that profoundly influences a person's perception of what they are and their intrinsic worth.

Optimists such as you and I, hope for a cure.

Pessimists tend to retreat into fatalistic acceptance and like to focus their efforts upon making the best of things.

The bereavement process often involves very real and lasting anger, frequently manifest as stubborn oppositionality and intransigence - generally directed against a supposedly anti-AS world.
These folk generally tend to take an oppositional stance to anyone they regard as abusing AS rights - even against curebies.

It's important that you don't allow your optimism to be extinguished by all the anger, despair and pessimism surrounding AS - for it's fundamentally worthwhile curing this deeply incarcerating affliction.

What if your hope for a cure is also a reaction to an "affront to your ego"? After all, being part of a disadvantaged social group is exactly that--the whole world telling you you are inferior. It is like a black person bleaching his skin white to try to get rid of the disadvantages of being black, because he has bought into the idea that his skin makes him inferior...

Oh, you say, "black is not a disability". Oh? And what is so horrible about something being a disability? Why should a disability be got rid of at the first possible instant? I can understand, maybe, a purely physical disability, though many people with physical disabilities would not get rid of those either; but something that is so fundamentally part of how you think... that doesn't seem at all like something you would want to shed lightly.

Autism is in how your brain is connected. Get rid of those connections, and you also get rid of memories, preferences, relationships... everything from before. To rearrange those connections, you would have to erase the brain like you'd reformat a hard drive; and then you'd have to re-learn everything. You'd be like an infant all over again, without the benefits of the young person's unusually fast brain development. You'd almost certainly lose twenty or more IQ points. Neurotypical, maybe, but probably borderline mental retardation. Really want to pay that price?

You might look for a cure that only treats symptoms; but guaranteed it will have side effects--probably strong ones. I'm guessing the usual psych-med effects, probably massive weight gain, sedation, slower thoughts, blunting of emotion. And those could be every bit as disabling as Asperger's.

Either way, you won't magically get a date, get the perfect job, or become popular. The only way to get what you want is find ways around the obstacles and go for it. There is no magic pill. Everything has side effects. Something as fundamental to the brain as autism will have MAJOR side effects if somebody tries to cure it.

Optimism is one thing... wasting your life hoping for a cure is quite another. Optimism of that sort is what gets people hoping they will make a diet pill that magically makes them skinny without any work, instead of going for a walk.

What you've got isn't optimism; it's defeated pessimism. It's saying, "I can never have what I want because Asperger's is holding me back. I can never be who I want. I can never do what I want to do. Therefore, my only hope is to wait for a magic pill, because I can't do it on my own."

That's crap. You can. People have in the past and they will again and if you want to be one of those people you're going to have to accept your autism and work with it instead of sticking your head in the sand and hoping that somebody will magically make things perfect for you. Stop trying to brute-force your way through your autistic traits; stop trying to "overcome your autism"; and start working with what you've got. Feeling sorry for yourself is either a sign of depression--get help--or else completely useless.

You're funny. Assuming that everyone that disagrees with you is doing so out of nothing more than ignorance...

...and calling people who are happy with themselves pessimists...

...and automatically discounting the very real possibility that AS is fundamentally beneficial to society just because you haven't figured out how to deal with it...

...The irony is priceless.