I have sometimes wondered what I would have been "diagnosed" with, had today's Big Education and Big Psychiatry mentality prevailed almost a half century ago. I'm quite certain it would be some "disorder", and I'm very glad to have grown up without being labeled, counseled, and medicated.
Are you denying that autism exists?
I have three children, and one is obviously slightly autistic. She is in the top 99% of her age group for recognizing patterns and for her spatial memory, but she has social difficulties. She would be classified as gifted in public school and also put in some kind of Special Ed. Thankfully we are able to homeschool and we have positive social interactions with various small groups. When swaths of people have the exact same symptoms, it's a fairly straightforward diagnosis. And it helps greatly to know what she's feeling and how she's processing things, it doesn't hurt.
One set of grandparents told me to beat my daughter black and blue for her "bad behavior." I've been told by her other set of grandparents that she also must be demon-possessed, because she has "aspie eyes." You know what? I recognize her for what she CAN accomplish and I try very hard to strengthen her skills in those areas. And I stay away from people who have no idea how complicated the human brain is.
I know. And you hear these commercials all day long for prescriptions for all sorts of “disorders” like depression and hyperactivity. Yet so many other forms of demented behaviors we are told are normal and to be celebrated!
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You are lucky compared to children today. Many “gifted” children have been misdiagnosed as having ADHD, Autism, Aspergers etc.
Unless the people doing the evaluation have had lots of experience working with highly intelligent children with IQs of around 130 or above, they are at risk of being misdiagnosed.
That can have a huge negative impact on their development, social, educational, self image etc. Children tend to live up or down to the expectations of those around them, including teachers, families and peers.