Forums
New posts
Search forums
What's new
New posts
New profile posts
Latest activity
Internet Search
Members
Current visitors
New profile posts
Search profile posts
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Search forums
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Forums
Parent Support Forums
General Parenting
Janna's post has me thinking...
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="BusynMember" data-source="post: 88957" data-attributes="member: 1550"><p>Meg, you are 100% right. HOWEVER, (you can laugh at me if I'm ignorant about Australia) I'm guessing you have much better help there for disabled adults than we do, although we are REALLY making progress. My son will do well in a group home environment or maybe assisted living, but he will need his environment controlled. That might horrify some parents because we are TOLD to want our kids to be self-supporting, independent adults, but that would be so stressful and probably a failure for Lucas who demands repetition and prodding. BUT...living in an assisted living arrangement, Lucas will be very happy. He's a contented kid with a big heart who goes with the flow. If you ask if he cares about having autism, he shrugs and says, "A little." I don't see any of the anguish I had when I was a kid--I used to look through encyclopedias to find out if I was crazy, why I couldn't sleep or eat, why I thought of hurting myself, why I couldn't break out of the blackness no matter what I tried. The raging was unpredictable and uncontrollable to me, even on medications, until I was in my 30's. Bipolar destabilizes your entire person unless you are fortunate enough to find good medications (then you pray they keep working). Most auties consider their autism a different way of thinking, of perceiving (at least the higher functioning ones that I know). Now there are auties who are also mentally ill, frustrated, and also try to kill themselves. But some don't. My son is a happy autie. I know many happy auties. The throes of bipolar disorder are difficult, your life is difficult, your happiness is a gift that you take when you have it, and you hope it doesn't morph into mania because then you're TOO happy and you may quit your medications, etc. Both disorders involve challenges. There is no doubt about that. However---I'm on medications for life. Forever. Have been since age twenty-three, and not all of them helped me enough to stop my suicidal thinking. My son is medication free and doing fine. My own personal preference, which I don't expect anyone but ME to have, is that I'd much rather be happy living in a group home than not living in one and being unable to get out of bed because I can't stand how I feel. They are apples/oranges diagnoses unless they are co-morbid. Bipolar is a psyschiatric disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is a neurological misfiring in the brain, but not a mental illness. They really aren't a lot alike, although they can appear similar to doctors who don't know how to look for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Again, this is NOT saying "My disorder is better than YOUR disorder." I'm not like that. I acknowledge the really true anguish of everyone. And we all have our own perceptions too. These are mine only.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="BusynMember, post: 88957, member: 1550"] Meg, you are 100% right. HOWEVER, (you can laugh at me if I'm ignorant about Australia) I'm guessing you have much better help there for disabled adults than we do, although we are REALLY making progress. My son will do well in a group home environment or maybe assisted living, but he will need his environment controlled. That might horrify some parents because we are TOLD to want our kids to be self-supporting, independent adults, but that would be so stressful and probably a failure for Lucas who demands repetition and prodding. BUT...living in an assisted living arrangement, Lucas will be very happy. He's a contented kid with a big heart who goes with the flow. If you ask if he cares about having autism, he shrugs and says, "A little." I don't see any of the anguish I had when I was a kid--I used to look through encyclopedias to find out if I was crazy, why I couldn't sleep or eat, why I thought of hurting myself, why I couldn't break out of the blackness no matter what I tried. The raging was unpredictable and uncontrollable to me, even on medications, until I was in my 30's. Bipolar destabilizes your entire person unless you are fortunate enough to find good medications (then you pray they keep working). Most auties consider their autism a different way of thinking, of perceiving (at least the higher functioning ones that I know). Now there are auties who are also mentally ill, frustrated, and also try to kill themselves. But some don't. My son is a happy autie. I know many happy auties. The throes of bipolar disorder are difficult, your life is difficult, your happiness is a gift that you take when you have it, and you hope it doesn't morph into mania because then you're TOO happy and you may quit your medications, etc. Both disorders involve challenges. There is no doubt about that. However---I'm on medications for life. Forever. Have been since age twenty-three, and not all of them helped me enough to stop my suicidal thinking. My son is medication free and doing fine. My own personal preference, which I don't expect anyone but ME to have, is that I'd much rather be happy living in a group home than not living in one and being unable to get out of bed because I can't stand how I feel. They are apples/oranges diagnoses unless they are co-morbid. Bipolar is a psyschiatric disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is a neurological misfiring in the brain, but not a mental illness. They really aren't a lot alike, although they can appear similar to doctors who don't know how to look for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Again, this is NOT saying "My disorder is better than YOUR disorder." I'm not like that. I acknowledge the really true anguish of everyone. And we all have our own perceptions too. These are mine only. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Forums
Parent Support Forums
General Parenting
Janna's post has me thinking...
Top