Dr Edward Hall says autism equals shamanism

[Mia]

Not a 'natural' landscape.

Exactly right. There are fewer distractions in a natural setting and the landmarks rarely move or change.

 

[WolfSpirit]

You know Wolfspirit your name is kinda approriate for this thread.

Yeah, I suppose it is. Not an accident.

 

[Misery]

You sound like you have high intuition.

High confusion is more like it.

 

[Gift2humanity]

High confusion is more like it.

You seem like one of those people who are guided and who listen to that guidance. I hope you don’t mind but I am following you do you have a new follower.

 

[Gift2humanity]

You seem like one of those people who are guided and who listen to that guidance. I hope you don’t mind but I am following you, you have a new follower.

 

[Misery]

You seem like one of those people who are guided and who listen to that guidance.

This brings up a question that I should have asked earlier: What do you mean by "intuition" in this context? I swear everyone seems to use that word differently at random intervals.

Usually when I hear it, I think of "precognition", that sort of thing.

I'm not too sure what guided means either.

I hope you don’t mind but I am following you do you have a new follower.

That's fine.

 

[Gift2humanity]

This brings up a question that I should have asked earlier: What do you mean by "intuition" in this context? I swear everyone seems to use that word differently at random intervals.

Usually when I hear it, I think of "precognition", that sort of thing.

I'm not too sure what guided means either.



That's fine.

Your posts show me that you seem the type of person who he is and listens to their inner guidance even if it doesn’t make sense it always leads you to to the right place such as navigating forests et cetera

 

[John M]

This brings up a question that I should have asked earlier: What do you mean by "intuition" in this context? I swear everyone seems to use that word differently at random intervals.

Usually when I hear it, I think of "precognition", that sort of thing.

I'm not too sure what guided means either.



That's fine.

Intuition is knowing a thing without understanding how you know it.

 

[SimonSays]

Intuition is knowing a thing without understanding how you know it.

Yes, no thinking required and yet it is there
Intuition seems like a slight step below insight.

 

[zozie]

As a psychology student, I have no problem declaring that (Western) psychology is stuck in the stone age. That's an exaggeration, but meant to illustrate how other scientific fields, as problematic as they are, still somehow make headway and confront their axioms from time to time.

The things described here like intuition and metaphysical experiences and "uncanny" abilities to connect with nature and animals, or to navigate, all of that sounds fundamentally human. So I agree with earlier sentiments about us being an older kind of human, less modern, more primal perhaps, and as such, much more connected to the rest of the earth around us.

I spent a few years convinced that I was psychic because of how much information I pick up around me. Didn't sit well with my degree in philosophy, so I called myself a "critical psychic". Now I just call it human, which term seems to carry extra weight these days, as people and machine fuse more and more.

 

[John M]

My perception is that the evolutionary path the human brain has taken began with our brains possessing something akin to edict memory, a very limited ability to perceive the environment as separate from itself and difficulty viewing time as linear. As our brains evolved and hyper-specialized in verbalization, the language center (the mind) began to suppress the older brain. It must generalize memories in order to communicate effectively. It must perceive itself as separate from the environment to better manipulate it just as it must also view time as linear for language to make sense as its the linear order of words and other symbols which contribute to complex communications.

The old brain, though it may be suppressed by the mind, is still present. From my perspective it makes sense that some autistic people are more likely to experience more 'old brain' as our language centers aren't delineated in the same way as NTs. We possess just as much 'old brain' as a normal person but some of us are less likely to suppress it due to how are brains are designed.

 

[SDRSpark]

Just a warning: some people think that all autistics by definition are spiritually gifted or other things along that nature, and use that as an excuse for not offering autistics support services or therapies that would genuinely benefit their lives, and lead the them being able to participate more in society they way they want to. They would infantalize us on the principle of the priority of spiritual principles (and this crosses various religious and spiritual practices), and don't see us as people any more than the 'curists' do.

I'm not saying that some autistics don't have a greater connection to nature, or some spiritual level of whatever form, because some do seem to. I'm just saying that this principle can be taken to the extreme, as can so many of the other beliefs out there. (autism related or not.)

Ouch, yeah, this happened to me. I don't really want to get into how it really mucked everything up for me, but the consequences were fairly devastating. (Of note the person mainly responsible for doing this was unrecognized autistic themselves. I don't blame them one bit for what happened.)

 

[Streetwise]

FYI, the preferred term in Canada is "First Nations". (I know, it's confusing with each political country having a different term decided upon by it's aboriginal population)

in the U.S. it seems to be by tribal name Navajo are very adamant but they call that land(USA) turtle island

 

[harrietjansson]

I know I have a deeper connection with nature and animals than I do other humans.

I have questions about this. For me personally animals such as dogs have always been difficult. I just don't really know why. I've mostly met nice dogs but still...Humans seem easier to be with than animals.
What is it with animals that you find to be easy?
What kind of animals are we talking about in your case?

Just a warning: some people think that all autistics by definition are spiritually gifted or other things along that nature, and use that as an excuse for not offering autistics support services or therapies that would genuinely benefit their lives, and lead the them being able to participate more in society they way they want to.

Who are those people? All I know is that some people talk about how one can use the autism (not refering to autistics who need to use helmets) in a positive way as well. Aren't most people who say that people with eg asperger issues don't need help actually saying that asperger's doesn't exist? I mean, there is a tendency to see certain issues as issues that should just go away if you try hard enough. Many autistics have this view as well. I had that view.

I spent a few years convinced that I was psychic because of how much information I pick up around me. Didn't sit well with my degree in philosophy, so I called myself a "critical psychic". Now I just call it human, which term seems to carry extra weight these days, as people and machine fuse more and more.

we are just humans. I hate when people refer to asperger's (or high functioning autism) as a superpower. Sure we have our strenghts but why call it a superpower? And what about Greta Thunberg and her Skolstrejk för klimatet. Isn't that what people call "special interests" or obsession? Where is the superpower?
Many people talk about being aware of your weakness(es) as a superpower and I agree. What do you think?

 

[SDRSpark]

Who are those people? All I know is that some people talk about how one can use the autism (not refering to autistics who need to use helmets) in a positive way as well. Aren't most people who say that people with eg asperger issues don't need help actually saying that asperger's doesn't exist? I mean, there is a tendency to see certain issues as issues that should just go away if you try hard enough. Many autistics have this view as well. I had that view.

In my direct experience it was "there's nothing wrong with you, you're just different/gifted/etc" and genuinely believing that all my issues were due to some spiritual gift rather than an underlying condition (autism) and all of the social difficulties that went along with it, so much needed intervention was denied to me for years.

I don't think anyone realized the extent of my social difficulties. In fact even I didn't realize it at the time, and I'm now looking back on my childhood like "woa...that was really really bad actually".

 

[SimonSays]

In my direct experience it was "there's nothing wrong with you, you're just different/gifted/etc" and genuinely believing that all my issues were due to some spiritual gift rather than an underlying condition (autism) and all of the social difficulties that went along with it, so much needed intervention was denied to me for years.

Yes. For me, while some spiritual aspects were real, on a physical level, missing the underlying conditions, all the social difficulties, and whatever intervention might have been given, made it so much harder to go through childhood.

I did find shamanic practices later in life, long before the word 'autism' or Asperger's was in my vocabulary, so there is some truth to it, at least for me. But I wonder how different my life might've been had I been understood when it could have made a difference? I'll never know.

 

[Ronin82]

I have questions about this. For me personally animals such as dogs have always been difficult. I just don't really know why. I've mostly met nice dogs but still...Humans seem easier to be with than animals.
What is it with animals that you find to be easy?
What kind of animals are we talking about in your case?

I find animals easier because their ways of communicating are more open and honest. If a horse pins his ears, or a dog snarls, ya know to stay away. I've been working with both dogs and horses for such a long time, and learning universal body language cues and facial micro-expressions, that I've started seeing how ALL animals communicate physically and leaving the verbal out completely. I have a degree in psychology, but my individual studies have all included animal behavior and communication. Animals don't lie, and they are SO MUCH SMARTER than we give them credit for. When I treat them like an intelligent equal, I find they accept me into their social circle much more readily. Wish I could figure out how to do that with humans, but humans lie so much without even realizing it! It also helps to be wired as a communication specialist, as I am. I see expressions, movements, and sense emotional energies that others aren't aware of, and I've developed my sensitivity, expertise, and timing to be able to communicate with animals on their level in real-time. Took a LOT of practice. I'm starting to work on incorporating my knowledge when dealing with humans, but there are SO MANY variations in gestural and physical communication "rules" that its LITERALLY different for every person. Animals are so much easier than humans for me!

 

[harrietjansson]

I find animals easier because their ways of communicating are more open and honest. If a horse pins his ears, or a dog snarls, ya know to stay away. I've been working with both dogs and horses for such a long time, and learning universal body language cues and facial micro-expressions, that I've started seeing how ALL animals communicate physically and leaving the verbal out completely. I have a degree in psychology, but my individual studies have all included animal behavior and communication. Animals don't lie, and they are SO MUCH SMARTER than we give them credit for. When I treat them like an intelligent equal, I find they accept me into their social circle much more readily. Wish I could figure out how to do that with humans, but humans lie so much without even realizing it! It also helps to be wired as a communication specialist, as I am. I see expressions, movements, and sense emotional energies that others aren't aware of, and I've developed my sensitivity, expertise, and timing to be able to communicate with animals on their level in real-time. Took a LOT of practice. I'm starting to work on incorporating my knowledge when dealing with humans, but there are SO MANY variations in gestural and physical communication "rules" that its LITERALLY different for every person. Animals are so much easier than humans for me!

I guess I am too verbal for animals. With animals you only have body language and tone of voice. With humans you use words as well. Animals force you to take out the animal in you. You have to be more feeling based. Sounds kinda hard when you think about it. It sound interesting and something I wanna do.
I am an emotional being with a rational soul.
Where to start?

 

[harrietjansson]

In my direct experience it was "there's nothing wrong with you, you're just different/gifted/etc" and genuinely believing that all my issues were due to some spiritual gift rather than an underlying condition (autism) and all of the social difficulties that went along with it, so much needed intervention was denied to me for years.

I don't think anyone realized the extent of my social difficulties. In fact even I didn't realize it at the time, and I'm now looking back on my childhood like "woa...that was really really bad actually".

I have never heard of people saying things like that. You must have had very interesting people around you

 

[harrietjansson]

"“To be autistic means you can become a shaman. Your autism is your license to begin practicing if you would decide to follow a Red Path. Red Paths don’t come quickly, they come through experience. When you stop seeking wisdom is when you begin to get a little wiser.”"
oh no! not more misinformation! Does that guy even know what autism is at all?