ChristinaTherese Posted May 5, 2013 Share Posted May 5, 2013 Firstly, three things: 1: Sorry for being annoying.... I didn't mean to. 2: When I say "school", I mean college and everything (friends, music, classes, etc.) related to it. Not just academics. 3: If I change what I'm saying in the middle of my reply, I'm sorry. I think while writing, and then I'm too lazy to edit.... I have AS too, along with a couple of other unrelated conditions. It's a disability. I need support with daily living because of it. I think it would be very difficult to argue that it's not a disability, since the whole point of the diagnostic criteria is that you have trouble with certain things. You could go with a more social model of disability (which I'm happy to do) and argue that the disability is caused by a society that isn't creative and adaptive enough in response to people's individual needs and impairments - but those impairments still exist. Christina, even if you are an autistic person who doesn't need any support, I'm uncomfortable with the way you react to the word 'disability', almost as though it's something offensive. Very severely disabled people can 'function just as well as anybody else at school' - at my university there is an absolutely brilliant PhD student who is completely blind and who also has rheumatoid arthritis that restricts her mobility. She is quite obviously disabled, but she is one of the best students in the department and she's won all kinds of scholarships and prizes. One of my best friends is profoundly autistic, to the point where she needs twenty-four hour care and support, but she also has her own gifts and wants to go to art college. The whole 'I'm different, not disabled!' thing is a little insulting to people who have more serious problems than you have, because it implies that there is something bad about being like them. Saying 'Asperger's disease' is factually incorrect, as it it's a neurodevelopmental disorder, not a disease. Medically they are two different things. But it's not really offensive, just ignorant and annoying. It's only offensive if you think there is something bad about having a disease. I get that people's ignorance can be frustrating, and I myself have suffered due to disability discrimination in employment and housing. It gets very tempting to want to prove yourself to these people by showing that you are not how they think. But a better approach would be to challenge what they think, showing that it isn't right to think about anybody in that way, rather than trying to demonstrate that you are different - as though they have a right to even be setting these prejudiced standards in the first place. :) I think that my reaction is just because it's such an excessively broad spectrum, so sometimes it's grating when I see things with a lens I don't like that others probably didn't mean in the first place but some people sometimes do. I definitely don't think having a disability is offensive in the first place: I've know plenty of great people who are disabled, and would never think less of them or anyone else because of that. I just react against boxes... and I've been homeschooled, and the help I've needed has been readily available, and I think that problems I've had (except for being really, really slow and bad with large amounts of people) have been accentuated so much by familial stresses that AS is really just one cause out of many. Oh, and my friends are such a diverse group anyway. But I only react against the word "disability" because I don't find that my ability to do things I actually want to do is impaired. It's just the things I don't want to do in the first place (except for being slow, and I don't necessarily want to be fast either). So, once again: :sorry: Oh, and the social model you mention above is definitely something I would accept. And, like I said, I've been sheltered/had other problems so much that this really has been the least of my problems. Thanks for sharing, Beatitude, I live with my parents. It's mostly a cultural thing in my case. I do not require assisted living, but I do need reminders, about paying bills, doing chores etc. I function better with stability and a time-table, which conflicts with my profession as a journalist. it's a complex situation, where I have to be very selective about the assignments I pick. I also get upset if I have to do something on the spot, get up and go somewhere, without being told before, since I need to mentally prepare myself. I like my trips planned. I also do not like animals that move too fast, because I cannot predict what they are going to do next. The Jerusalem sisters told me that in my case, they cannot rule out religious life, but they also cannot tell me where I might fit in. I have to figure this out myself. I fully understand the need for stability, predictability, and being slow. (I think you said the last one, although I'm not quite sure.) I've just seen that so much as just who I am (since I'm the same way), that I haven't seen it as impairing things so much as just being me. It does have to do with AS (If you people wonder why I keep using the acronym, it's because I don't actually know how to spell it fully and am apparently too lazy to use Google.) though, so I can understand what all of you are meaning. I'm sorry for being annoying. TLDR: I've been sheltered and had other problems, as well as people just plain being obnoxious sometimes, so I've grown to be irritable sometimes when I shouldn't be. I definitely understand what you all mean now that you've explained it. I'm sorry for being annoying at first, please forgive me. :sorry: Now, just carry on with the discussion that actually has more to do with the topic of the thread.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabriela Posted May 6, 2013 Author Share Posted May 6, 2013 Firstly, three things: 1: Sorry for being annoying.... I didn't mean to. 2: When I say "school", I mean college and everything (friends, music, classes, etc.) related to it. Not just academics. 3: If I change what I'm saying in the middle of my reply, I'm sorry. I think while writing, and then I'm too lazy to edit.... I think that my reaction is just because it's such an excessively broad spectrum, so sometimes it's grating when I see things with a lens I don't like that others probably didn't mean in the first place but some people sometimes do. I definitely don't think having a disability is offensive in the first place: I've know plenty of great people who are disabled, and would never think less of them or anyone else because of that. I just react against boxes... and I've been homeschooled, and the help I've needed has been readily available, and I think that problems I've had (except for being really, really slow and bad with large amounts of people) have been accentuated so much by familial stresses that AS is really just one cause out of many. Oh, and my friends are such a diverse group anyway. But I only react against the word "disability" because I don't find that my ability to do things I actually want to do is impaired. It's just the things I don't want to do in the first place (except for being slow, and I don't necessarily want to be fast either). So, once again: :sorry: Oh, and the social model you mention above is definitely something I would accept. And, like I said, I've been sheltered/had other problems so much that this really has been the least of my problems. I fully understand the need for stability, predictability, and being slow. (I think you said the last one, although I'm not quite sure.) I've just seen that so much as just who I am (since I'm the same way), that I haven't seen it as impairing things so much as just being me. It does have to do with AS (If you people wonder why I keep using the acronym, it's because I don't actually know how to spell it fully and am apparently too lazy to use Google.) though, so I can understand what all of you are meaning. I'm sorry for being annoying. TLDR: I've been sheltered and had other problems, as well as people just plain being obnoxious sometimes, so I've grown to be irritable sometimes when I shouldn't be. I definitely understand what you all mean now that you've explained it. I'm sorry for being annoying at first, please forgive me. :sorry: Now, just carry on with the discussion that actually has more to do with the topic of the thread.... You're not being annoying, CT. Quit putting yourself down! You have your views and your life experience AND your right to express those. :console: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
savvy Posted May 6, 2013 Share Posted May 6, 2013 You're not being annoying, CT. Quit putting yourself down! You have your views and your life experience AND your right to express those. :console: I second this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catholicterp7 Posted May 6, 2013 Share Posted May 6, 2013 I third it! :) Why are there so many amazing communities out there?!? Especially when I'm in waiting mode to see if I'm going to be doing an internship in the fall. :wall: Okay rant done. This looks like a beautiful group and it is a much needed ministry. They'll be in my prayers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristinaTherese Posted May 7, 2013 Share Posted May 7, 2013 (edited) You're not being annoying, CT. Quit putting yourself down! You have your views and your life experience AND your right to express those. :console: :hehe2: Okay. ETA: I really like that emoticon.... Oh, and I overanalyze everything that I say, hence the above. Not so much putting myself down, I suppose, as being way too analytical. (Blame my dad. :hehe2: ) Edited May 7, 2013 by Christina Thérèse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MIKolbe Posted May 7, 2013 Share Posted May 7, 2013 I don't know. I asked a mod's opinion but none have responded yet. :( I would say when in doubt, lean the conversation/comments away from the possible infraction, rather than seeing how close one can get to 'breaking the rule' without breaking it. If there are any specific questions, it may be best to ask a mod or admin before starting a thread. Honest mistakes happen, though, and that is understandable... In order to be safe than sorry, perhaps it is best (at least for the time being) to close this thread, and pray for blessings for members of this community. Thanks for understanding. - MIKolbe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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