Olli temple3/18/2023 ![]() ![]() I know that I will not be able to do certain things in my life. I know that there are many differences among us. Would they feel like they are better than me without the supports that allowed them to succeed? The same goes for other autistics who call themselves “high-functioning”. Imagine if she had not had the supports that allowed her to build the machine. ![]() She was able to develop the “squeeze machine” to relieve her anxiety and focus on her academic life. This certainly helped and she could focus her energy on improving her skills. Many people supported her and I believe money wasn’t a major problem for her family. She is a brilliant woman and her contributions to the profession she chose are important.īut she was also privileged. We know some of her challenges and how she dealt with them. Grandin’s life has been discussed, turned into a movie and “inspired” many. How about the rest of us, the ones who don’t fit her favored category?ĭr. In the interview, she mentions how we should include and give opportunities to all “high-functioning” autistics. I have also read an interview with Temple Grandin, the most famous autistic with a “high-functioning” label, where she seemed to think very little of people like me. They often introduce themselves as “high-functioning”. I wish they could understand autism better.īut why do some people who experience many of the same issues I do, the difference being possibly the willingness of neurotypicals to accommodate their needs, why do they use language as if they are “superior autistics”? Parents don’t want this child to be seen as “so disabled”. Or maybe the child does not experience some issues that make everyday things more challenging. They want reassurance that their children can “overcome” certain “issues”. I think I know why parents of young children need to use the “high-functioning” label. I do see a more serious problem when autistics themselves use this classification, usually an autistic calling himself “high-functioning”. Some of them understand our arguments and are very supportive. Having to educate neurotypicals on what functioning labels mean can be tiring but I have seen progress. But the majority of them don’t really listen to us and keep using labels that classify us as “not so bad”, “bad”, “terrible” and “pitiful”. Some people do listen and change how they use the words. There is also a deal of disrespect, when our opinions are not as valued because of how we look or act. By the time we type something, the talkers have moved on. ![]() It is hard, being non-speaking, to respond to the use of such language during conversations, especially when those conversations include a lot of neurotypicals. Not to mention the lack of understanding and lack of empathy directed at us. Functioning labels get in the way of assessing needed supports and they create a culture of presumption of incompetence. They know they are pointless and useless. Most autistics I know dislike the functioning labels. They learn to doubt themselves and they are told to get over it. They are trapped, and any autistic trait they show, any extra help they might need, is met with skeptical looks and scorn. This is also true when labeling some autistics “high-functioning” only because they look like what is said to be “normal” and can act more like non- autistics. The assessment is incomplete and based on parameters that were created for non-autistics, by non-autistics, not taking into consideration the neurological differences of autistics. It happens to a lot of autistics like me. Maybe that’s why the “low-functioning” label stuck. I also need a lot of help with things that are considered simple by most people. ![]() But I am still non-speaking and I look very disabled. I taught myself to read and I am a writer. I am here, I have an independent mind, a fairly independent life. The “experts” said I was “too low-functioning to learn”. Doctors and “experts” were convinced that I would never make any progress in life, that my parents were better off sending me away so they could have one. I am one of those autistics who were said to be hopeless. ![]()
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