I think we're fortunate because, had they known about aspergers/autism then, they'd have done what they did with every other "disease" - institutionalized us, which would have made the problem worse if not destroyed us.
I think we're fortunate because, had they known about aspergers/autism then, they'd have done what they did with every other "disease" - institutionalized us, which would have made the problem worse if not destroyed us.
back then, you're probably right. in fact, I knew one or two quite well-heeled families who had VERY autistic kids and the reaction was to throw up their hands and find a "nice place."
a close friend of my father (and a family we all were friends with) had a kid who was as asperger as you can get. from the age of three he could tell you on what day any date occurred and, later, when he was old enough to gamble, his card- counting skills got him banned from every casino in the country. his parents ran around maniacally trying to find out "what was wrong." finally, about forty-odd years ago, a very "well thought of" psychiatrist decided he was a "highly functional schizophrenic." about fifteen years ago, my mother was talking about him and repeated the diagnosis. at that point, I'd worked with a good number of aspies and told her that the schizophrenia diagnosis was idiotic. she argued that after all, I was merely a psychiatric social worker and this guy was a big shot. I tried to explain to her that when the diagnosis was given, the entire profession was almost completely ignorant about the spectrum. I think she "humored" me because, as my mother, she knew that I could sometimes seem a little grandiose about what I "thought" I knew (notice I said "seem"...in these discussions, I was usually right).
in any event, Danny (the kid's name) managed to have a pretty nice life on his own terms, minus the neuroleptics he repeatedly rejected. of course, his father's financial legacy has been a big help, but I've heard that his gambling skills contributed to his resources a great deal.
did I ever tell you about the aspie kid I worked with who wanted to be psychiatrist and whose special skill was knowing immediately what anybody's psychological state was at a glance (disproving the common misconception that aspies are in some way "emotionally deficient.". he wanted to get into Bronx Science and did. this was about fourteen years ago, so he's probably in the middle of his residency. the only other being who possessed that particular skill was my late English Shepherd, Meg.
that was in no way meant to downplay the kid's genius...Meg's skill is not uncommon in dogs but extremely uncommon in homo sapiens.
Yeah, what I was thinking was that they'd probably not have institutionalized a child with Asperger's syndrome, they'd probably have stuck you on drugs, and not any that would have been actually helpful (or even any fun) and some that would have had long range negative effects.
they weren't medicating kids on a regular basis in the '50s and even most of the '60s. they barely had anything they'd have considered appropriate for kids back then (Dexedrine was strictly for moms, although I DID have access to my mom's and she wasn't counting them, if you catch my drift).
I think we're fortunate because, had they known about aspergers/autism then, they'd have done what they did with every other "disease" - institutionalized us, which would have made the problem worse if not destroyed us.
back then, you're probably right. in fact, I knew one or two quite well-heeled families who had VERY autistic kids and the reaction was to throw up their hands and find a "nice place."
a close friend of my father (and a family we all were friends with) had a kid who was as asperger as you can get. from the age of three he could tell you on what day any date occurred and, later, when he was old enough to gamble, his card- counting skills got him banned from every casino in the country. his parents ran around maniacally trying to find out "what was wrong." finally, about forty-odd years ago, a very "well thought of" psychiatrist decided he was a "highly functional schizophrenic." about fifteen years ago, my mother was talking about him and repeated the diagnosis. at that point, I'd worked with a good number of aspies and told her that the schizophrenia diagnosis was idiotic. she argued that after all, I was merely a psychiatric social worker and this guy was a big shot. I tried to explain to her that when the diagnosis was given, the entire profession was almost completely ignorant about the spectrum. I think she "humored" me because, as my mother, she knew that I could sometimes seem a little grandiose about what I "thought" I knew (notice I said "seem"...in these discussions, I was usually right).
in any event, Danny (the kid's name) managed to have a pretty nice life on his own terms, minus the neuroleptics he repeatedly rejected. of course, his father's financial legacy has been a big help, but I've heard that his gambling skills contributed to his resources a great deal.
did I ever tell you about the aspie kid I worked with who wanted to be psychiatrist and whose special skill was knowing immediately what anybody's psychological state was at a glance (disproving the common misconception that aspies are in some way "emotionally deficient.". he wanted to get into Bronx Science and did. this was about fourteen years ago, so he's probably in the middle of his residency. the only other being who possessed that particular skill was my late English Shepherd, Meg.
that was in no way meant to downplay the kid's genius...Meg's skill is not uncommon in dogs but extremely uncommon in homo sapiens.
Yeah, what I was thinking was that they'd probably not have institutionalized a child with Asperger's syndrome, they'd probably have stuck you on drugs, and not any that would have been actually helpful (or even any fun) and some that would have had long range negative effects.
they weren't medicating kids on a regular basis in the '50s and even most of the '60s. they barely had anything they'd have considered appropriate for kids back then (Dexedrine was strictly for moms, although I DID have access to my mom's and she wasn't counting them, if you catch my drift).