Posted on 10/20/2025 12:10:02 PM PDT by nickcarraway
The diagnostic categorisation for autism is so broad that families of profoundly autistic children are being left behind, says the mother of a 7-year-old nonverbal daughter.
When I tell strangers that my daughter is autistic, their questions are often so far from my reality, it’s painful. Does she have a unique talent? Special interests? They picture a child who excels at puzzles. But my daughter hasn’t shown an interest in toys since she was 20 months old and is unable to tell me what she wants to be for Halloween or when she grows up. I fear illnesses like strep throat because she cannot tell me she’s in pain.
It’s difficult to have a national conversation about a condition that includes Elon Musk, Greta Thunberg and also my 7-year-old nonverbal daughter, who will likely need 24/7 care for the rest of her life. That’s why families like mine want a distinct diagnostic category for our children that clarifies our challenges and what we need from the medical community. In 2021, a Lancet commission report on the future of autism research and care introduced the term “profound autism” for individuals requiring round-the-clock care, with an IQ below 50 or minimal verbal ability or both. Just over a quarter of people with autism would qualify.
(Excerpt) Read more at channelnewsasia.com ...
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” the term “profound autism” for individuals requiring round-the-clock care, with an IQ below 50”
I thought that was considered severely retarded.
Now they call it autistic? More leftist language shifting?
Parents with kids who have just about anything wrong with them can now say, “He’s on the Autism Spectrum.” Retarded? Nope, Autism. Late talker? Nope, Autism. Seizure disorder? Nope, Autism. Stutterer? Nope, Autism.
It seems to me that the medical profession has tended to broaden diagnoses to include a wide range of conditions in order to associate them with many diseases. Autism is one such example, but there are others. Natural skeptic that I am, I can’t help but wonder if this tendency has more to do with making money than actual medicine.
I noticed this years ago. Over the years they’ve changed the definition of Autism so much it makes me believe theres no such thing as Autism. It’s a diagnosis which means they don’t know.
Our former daughter-in-law decided to find a therapist who would declare our granddaughter autistic, probably in the hope of getting in on the trend. Totally ridiculous, we thought, but there are plenty of therapists out there who will gladly supply the diagnosis.
I have no doubt that part of the increase in diagnosis of autism is the medical profession corruption of creating mental health diagnostic results that will professionally and financially benefit the practitioner providing that diagnosis - your kid has autism, but I can help them.
Before that, an IQ from 51-75 was classified as a moron, from 26-50 was an imbecile and 25 or lower was an idiot. But it stigmatized people and made them feel bad.
I've got a nephew who is autistic and has an IQ in the 130+ range. Mrs. May has a point here. Kids can't get the kind of help they need unless we can determine what kind of help they need.
Yes. This is part of the problem. The kid who is shy is autistic, the kid who does not read non-verbal cues is autistic, the kid who stammers is autistic, the kid who sits and rocks and can not communicate is autistic and so is the kid who is mechanically inclined but finds other school work boring.
These are all different problems, they all have different roots and all have different things that can be done about them but they are all the same.
And that is not even figuring in the fakes for money and the fakes for some sort of weird social status.
“On the spectrum” is as silly as ADHD, and CDO (that’s OCD with the letters in the right damn order).
My son is having this battle with his ex over the labeling of their 5 year old son. He was a late talker, but now he’ll talk your ear off and has an amazing vocabulary. He’s not interested in the “normal” things for a 5 year old - he’d rather go to a nursery and pick out plants than go to a toy store, and he’d rather watch youTubes about space that watch Paw Patrol. He does have his quirks...finds it hard to make and keep eye contact, and still must be coached through normal interactions (saying hello, goodbye, thank you), so - having had three of my own - I’ll admit he is a quirky kid. But the therapists and social workers take each of his quirks and check them off on the “autistic” checklist, and the ex-wife pursues labels for him as though they were medals. I think it’s a bit of Münchausen syndrome, that she thinks her obsession with it proves that she’s a better parent. In truth, the boy is so much happier when he is with his dad, and I think he should be allowed to be himself.
Grandma and I have decided there is no way anything good can come of the situation in which our granddaughter finds herself. We are at least grateful it was not our son’s choice to create the mess.
Which probably means I have all of them.
Seriously.
Autism was not heard of when I was growing up, if you couldn't hack it 8n school they had special schools for those kids.
I have a friend with two autistic children, one, her son is profoundly autistic, totally non-verbal, is incapable of doing even the basics of daily hygiene by himself and requires 24/7 care. As an adult that is almost impossible to obtain.
Her daughter is severely autistic but has limited verbal skills and can handle most of her daily hygiene needs with a little help. Her problem is she is very aggressive and violent in her behavior, so she also needs 24/7 care for her safety and the safety of others. There is, interestingly, places that provide care for her, though they are not easy to find.
I can attest to the fact that those who push the autistic agenda are not working for her kids. They want the kids that they can do pretty photo ops with. Kids like her son and daughter are to be used only to bump up the numbers, not as examples of people who need help.
In the proper order? OCD stands for (O)bsessive (C)ompulsive (D)isorder.
twins?
When I was growing up in the 40’s and 50’s, for better or for worse the universal cure for “autism” symptoms was dad’s belt.
One thing was for sure, Dad’s belt could focus the mind like nothing else.
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