AS - disability, disorder, condition, difference, other!

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Society has Conditioned me to feel that I am Different which has depressed me to the point of Disabling my confidence and seeking to find common ground with Others who share similar experiences.

Society has Conditioned me to feel that I am Different which has depressed me to the point of Disabling my confidence and seeking to find common ground with Others who share similar experiences.

Yes, and there are associated groups to consider when campaigning for human rights etc. (rights that often have legislative backing anyway, but are simply not being enforced.) These include disability and mental health groups and charities. The problems experienced by those on the autistic spectrum should be considered within this broader context in addition to its specific context.

There is a charity in the UK called Mind, a mental health charity. It has an information library on all such issues, including legal, which overlap with the ones we experience.

Mind has a Guide to Advocacy advising how to challenge discrimination,

a report on a discussion on changes needed in psychiatry,

a description of its campaign to end discrimination,

a programme combining mental health and environment projects,

a page on UK mental health statistics, showing just how prevalent such issues are in the general population; yet mental health remains a stigmatized area.


There is also a leaflet produced by the Department of Health on Medications Management, describing good practice.


I hope the above material can provide a useful point of reference with regard to advocacy and discrimination from the mental health perspective. This can be generalized to other areas since it overlaps with disability and autism/AS issues. It's often the case that, although there are many guidelines produced as a result of human rights and other legislation, including for autism, service users are forced to demand their rights via lengthy complaints procedures and other processes (which I'm currently in the midst of.) The mental health system is bad enough, but the autism/AS one is non-existent in many areas. Change will only come gradually, and until then, those similar to me will have serious accessibility issues that are not being addressed.

Being here at WP has been a steep uphill learning curve, and the wisdom of your words is obvious to me.

The new draconian mental health laws:
In the US, over the past decade, ominous and severely dangerous laws have quietly [secretly?] passed in the majority of states--which everyone should know about. However, I believe the public is being blind-sided. It is doubtful more than 25-30% of the public has absorbed the shock of these recent laws. Only 1 out of every 5 or 6 American citizens are SAFE from these draconian legal procedures, due to residing in one of the 8 states without them. 42 states have laws governing Involuntary Outpatient Commitment, also known as Assisted Outpatient Treatment. To be clear---This means you can be court ordered to undergo treatment against your obviously stated wishes, at any point in time, even at the behest of a mere social worker..or government agency..or privatized service provider. It is a tool of social control which belies democratic process and makes a mockery of respect for individual freedom.

I contacted both CCHR and Mind Freedom operating here in the US for more information about these laws. Both groups are purportedly vehemently against psychiatric abuse. CCHR wouldn't respond and Mind Freedom was unwilling to help with my request. I believe this is due to the fact that they have been legally and otherwise intimidated, and are gun shy regarding those with whom they choose to share information. Intimidation is rampant, and protections are being swept under the carpet. But for both organizations to be fearful of discussing the legal framework under which we live....is very strange in a democratic country... As you said, outlier, our rights often have legislative support but--for some strange reason complicit with pharmaceutical industry funding--these rights aren't being enforced/protected. From my research, I learned that in January 2007, a U.S. District Court Judge issued a restraining order so the link couldn't be posted on websites about Eli Lilly & Co.'s intentional withholding of information as to the LETHAL side-effects of Zyprexa.. This is only the tip of the proverbial iceberg..


Pragmatically speaking....we have no choice. And to admit disability--is probably the first step in seeking a proper remedy for disenfranchisement and discrimination.

**
Thanks for the excellent links. Putting the Soul Back into Psychiatry really nails it for me. Here are some quotes from that article:

"How does psychiatry relate to users of psychiatric services? What does it have to say about the direct experience of mental distress? How do psychiatrists relate to alternative modes of treatment and to other professions and services? Is psychiatry capable of operating across the cultural, religious and spiritual boundaries of a diverse society?"

Psychiatry, culture and spirituality are bound together as a single concern--this is key.

"Some people might want traditional psychiatry or psychology. Whereas the next person might want a clairvoyant ghost specialist or Maori drumming."

**

What has me intensely concerned is-- the aforementioned laws disregard the personal wants and needs expressed by individual citizens and disenfranchises their ability to speak on their own behalf......so that they are forced to undergo very debilitating procedures and permanently incapacitating drugs---totally against their will. According to the United Nations, this trend is sweeping our globe and they are also concerned. As recently as January of this year, they are taking actions to encourage repeal of laws that deprive disabled people of their rights. If this is slightly more subtle than the horrors of a Nazi Concentration Camp...it is because the globally expedited deprivation of our freedom may not have sunk in yet.

January 26, 2009-- Annual Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and Reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General

Last edited by alba on 26 Apr 2009, 1:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I'm saying its a disability no matter what anyone says.

disability disorder condition different.
I'm disabled. My life is disordered. I'm in this condition. I'm different.

....It's all the same to me, though I'm iffy about the "condition" one, for the simple fact that it doesn't sound/feel right to me. But I don't care much any way or another.


It's all just autism to me.

I just voted for DISABILITY, primarily because the United Nations has vowed to protect the disabled from unjust laws and practices.....and because they are supporting other agencies doing the same.

As some have said, being different may be politically as well as factually correct...but it doesn't give us as much clout in demanding accessibility, services, a healthy lifestyle in which we can thrive, job protection, and freedom to pursue happiness in our own way.

Disabled? Speak for yourself.
There are NO negative side effects(other than the label) from my 'Aspergers'. I do not ever throw tantrums. I socialize very well, have no troubles at all with eye contact, recognizing faces, anxiety or anything big, and have lots of friends, I have an obsession with animation, one of which got on national television, and I already know what to do for a career, which is become an animator. That is encouraging me to finish High School and do well, make enough money to go to Vancouver Film School, get some jobs animating and eventually move to california and try to get a job at Pixar.
If you call that disabled, then I don't know what abled means.




I also hate getting special treatment from this so called Aspergers. I never get why people want better for just themselves.
I hate getting singled out, in a negative way and positive. Both the same for me.

I'd definitely go with the answer difference. I absolutely hate it when people act like having aspergers is something to be ashamed of (yes I've had people act that way that know I have it). As if I'm mentally disabled. It's a difference....that's all. I'm not less intelligent, maybe a little clueless but not less than someone that's neurotypical.

I relate to that quote a lot.
I could have said this ten years ago.



I don't know about no negative side effects in my case.
I've certainly always had issues socialising and great physical environment observation skills.

Most negative side effects for me were aggravated by the labeling and people treating me as though I were "diseased".



Exactly, when I excel at what I love alone, I'm not disabled.
However, if I have to socially interact with a crowd of people in a complex cooperative way that's outside my experience, I struggle.

I'm definitely abled.
As for disabled, I'm not really: lots of people would now disagree that I was disabled given my high ability in other areas. Many wouldn't even notice or even care.

As for whether or not I'm disabled...I'm not sure.
How great does the need have to be?