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How do *you* define autism in the shortest way possible?
- Thread starter marc_101
- Start date
Thank you all. I also asked ChatGPT for the shortest description of autism. Gave me two after more prodding:
"Autism is a developmental disorder impacting social interaction, communication, and behavior."
"Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by challenges in social interaction, communication, and repetitive behaviors."
And for Asperger's:
"Asperger's syndrome is a form of autism characterized by social difficulties and repetitive behaviors, often without significant language delays or cognitive impairments."
"Autism is a developmental disorder impacting social interaction, communication, and behavior."
"Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by challenges in social interaction, communication, and repetitive behaviors."
And for Asperger's:
"Asperger's syndrome is a form of autism characterized by social difficulties and repetitive behaviors, often without significant language delays or cognitive impairments."
Here is my not as short as desired definition:
Autism is primarily a perception difference from the majority of the population. How a person perceives their world is their basis of understanding and their framework for their scope of imagination and reality. How you perceive anything is dictated by the physical neural network of you mind. The perception of every living being is called it’s Umwelt.
The umwelt of every living being is unique. Like snowflakes, there are no two alike. Just as with snowflakes, there are a zillion variables that composes one’s umwelt. Being labeled autistic is when your umwelt consists of enough characteristics that matches a significant number of items on an autism definition check-off list.
Some items on the list include:
I try to avoid derogatory terms such as “disorder”. I consider my autism personal and find such terms insulting. Also, the term “disorder” is a comparison to the general public. That does not necessarily make it true. There are many established “facts” in our general population that are gross misperceptions. I find the “disorder” comparison conflicting when we have many highly intelligent, highly capable individuals that are defined as autistic; such as Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Marie Curie, Nikola Tesla and many more autistic people that we owe the technology of our time to. While I know they suffered for the social differences of autism, I would not call any of them defective.
Autism is primarily a perception difference from the majority of the population. How a person perceives their world is their basis of understanding and their framework for their scope of imagination and reality. How you perceive anything is dictated by the physical neural network of you mind. The perception of every living being is called it’s Umwelt.
The umwelt of every living being is unique. Like snowflakes, there are no two alike. Just as with snowflakes, there are a zillion variables that composes one’s umwelt. Being labeled autistic is when your umwelt consists of enough characteristics that matches a significant number of items on an autism definition check-off list.
Some items on the list include:
- Perception of the world. Autistics can see things that the general population does not and vice versa. While both perceptions are correct, it can be very disturbing, making the autistic person feel like they are living in the “Twilight Zone”. Their perception is correct, but doesn’t match the general populations.
- Differences and magnitudes of senses, including sensitivity to touch, light, sounds, smells, taste, etc.
- Differences and magnitudes of sensitivities to social experiences, such as sensitivity to conform. Sensitivity to events inducing PTSDs.
- Social blindness and social anxiety.
- And many, many more.
I try to avoid derogatory terms such as “disorder”. I consider my autism personal and find such terms insulting. Also, the term “disorder” is a comparison to the general public. That does not necessarily make it true. There are many established “facts” in our general population that are gross misperceptions. I find the “disorder” comparison conflicting when we have many highly intelligent, highly capable individuals that are defined as autistic; such as Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Marie Curie, Nikola Tesla and many more autistic people that we owe the technology of our time to. While I know they suffered for the social differences of autism, I would not call any of them defective.
Fish trying very hard to climb trees.
That's my attempt. Probably a bit too abstract?
That's my attempt. Probably a bit too abstract?
I've been trying to define it since before I knew it was autism, and every time I try I get a little bit closer but still no cigar.
So what exactly is Autism?
That’s a really difficult question to answer because the answer contains complexities that only other autistic people can fully understand and relate to. The simple answer is that autism is a type of neuro-divergence. Literally a different brain structure, one that results in various forms of hypersensitivity. The senses of sight, touch, sound, taste and smell are often heightened or enhanced to different degrees.
That seems pretty simple and easy to cope with on the surface but psychologically it becomes quite complex. Try looking at the sun with your naked eyes for a minute, yes this will damage your eyes. You will get tired and dizzy and you’ll have to spend a couple of days in a darkened room to allow your eyes to recover.
For autistic people most of our senses are heightened, bright flashing lights and neon signs cause some of us the same type of pain and damage. Our hearing is that sensitive that just the noise of large crowds of people talking cause some of us similar pain and damage. For many of us the senses of touch taste and smell are equally as sensitive. After too much exposure we need time without sensory input in order to heal.
Try to put that in to the context of going to a party with a group of friends. I want to go with my friends, I want to have fun with them and I want to be a part of the group, but I know it’s going to hurt me and that I will suffer for it afterwards. I also know that trying to explain this to my friends will be misunderstood and that they will think I’m just looking for excuses to not join in with them. They will think that I don’t like them.
Wearing false faces seems to be a necessary tool used to get along in society but we find navigating all this information difficult to follow, and tiring. What seems to come naturally to so many of you takes a massive amount of brain power for us to keep up with, it tires us out. I get along OK with most people, I can work with them and talk to them all day and I feel no getting worn out by them, and there’s some that can burn me out in about fifteen minutes.
Another issue that is the same for many of us is the way in which our brains process information, because of the heightened senses our brains are receiving and processing a lot more information at once than most people. When in a crowded situation most people seem to be only able to hear the others that they are talking to, I hear all the noises around me all at once. I’m unable to filter out the surrounding sounds like other people do.
I’m a very good communicator when talking to one or two people, and I really do get along very well with people from all walks of life. When there’s three other people trying to keep track of the conversation starts taking more of what I’m capable of, I start to get a little slower in responding and joining in the conversation.
Get four or five other people all talking at once and I’m no longer part of the conversation. By the time I’ve come up with a comment the conversation has moved on and what I have to say is no longer relevant. It’s not that I don’t like anyone or that I don’t want to join in, I just can’t keep up and it tires me out trying.
So what exactly is Autism?
That’s a really difficult question to answer because the answer contains complexities that only other autistic people can fully understand and relate to. The simple answer is that autism is a type of neuro-divergence. Literally a different brain structure, one that results in various forms of hypersensitivity. The senses of sight, touch, sound, taste and smell are often heightened or enhanced to different degrees.
That seems pretty simple and easy to cope with on the surface but psychologically it becomes quite complex. Try looking at the sun with your naked eyes for a minute, yes this will damage your eyes. You will get tired and dizzy and you’ll have to spend a couple of days in a darkened room to allow your eyes to recover.
For autistic people most of our senses are heightened, bright flashing lights and neon signs cause some of us the same type of pain and damage. Our hearing is that sensitive that just the noise of large crowds of people talking cause some of us similar pain and damage. For many of us the senses of touch taste and smell are equally as sensitive. After too much exposure we need time without sensory input in order to heal.
Try to put that in to the context of going to a party with a group of friends. I want to go with my friends, I want to have fun with them and I want to be a part of the group, but I know it’s going to hurt me and that I will suffer for it afterwards. I also know that trying to explain this to my friends will be misunderstood and that they will think I’m just looking for excuses to not join in with them. They will think that I don’t like them.
Wearing false faces seems to be a necessary tool used to get along in society but we find navigating all this information difficult to follow, and tiring. What seems to come naturally to so many of you takes a massive amount of brain power for us to keep up with, it tires us out. I get along OK with most people, I can work with them and talk to them all day and I feel no getting worn out by them, and there’s some that can burn me out in about fifteen minutes.
Another issue that is the same for many of us is the way in which our brains process information, because of the heightened senses our brains are receiving and processing a lot more information at once than most people. When in a crowded situation most people seem to be only able to hear the others that they are talking to, I hear all the noises around me all at once. I’m unable to filter out the surrounding sounds like other people do.
I’m a very good communicator when talking to one or two people, and I really do get along very well with people from all walks of life. When there’s three other people trying to keep track of the conversation starts taking more of what I’m capable of, I start to get a little slower in responding and joining in the conversation.
Get four or five other people all talking at once and I’m no longer part of the conversation. By the time I’ve come up with a comment the conversation has moved on and what I have to say is no longer relevant. It’s not that I don’t like anyone or that I don’t want to join in, I just can’t keep up and it tires me out trying.
Yep, that's a good one.
Or a fish trying to ride a bicycle - a device designed by humans. I feel this out of place when trying to live in a society designed by the human majority. A society design that does not work for me any more than a bicycle works for a fish.
If you are referring to my post regarding a fish and society design; please notice that I never used the word "wish". I do not wish to take myself out of mainstream humanity. I do however struggle for my social blindness and difficulty in a society that does not match my umwelt. Acknowledging that struggle does not suggest any "wishes".
Besides, I have been autistic - I have been struggling with this mismatch - for 71 years. Any bewaring has diluted a long time ago.
Ghostinthemachine
Well-Known Member
Pre diagnosis - adapted life
Post diagnosis - authentic life
Post diagnosis - authentic life
You've heard of people having a screw loose upstairs? Well, imagine there's a set of twenty or thirty screws in one area. If most of them are loose, you get severe autism, and can't function independently. If only a few are loose, the brain can re-wire itself around the problem, but according to which screws were loose, you get a huge variety of work-arounds.
Levitat0r
Well-Known Member
Well, the root of the term is "auto", which would mean "self", right? So, it's a term for people who are turned inwards on themselves. To me, the neurology of it is really irrelevant, since I'm not a doctor. I would rather know what it means to be that way.|
Personally, I feel like I have to do every detail of everything intentionally, but that's not how normal people communicate. There is a lot of stuff they do subconsciously, and if you don't do the same, then you come off as someone who is less spontaneous. They end up seeing you as an awkward and calculating person who overthinks everything and tries too hard, whenever you're exerting yourself to be outgoing. When you're not exerting yourself to reach out, they see you as a robot. Either way, you come off as lifeless and artificial. Oh, well. Sorry. They distrust you and they don't like you because you lack fluency at stuff they can't even define or describe.
