Asperger Syndrome Tied To Low Cortisol Levels 156
caffiend666 writes "According to a Health Day article, low levels of a stress hormone may be responsible for the obsession with routine and dislike for new experiences common in children with a certain type of autism. 'This study suggests that children with AS may not adjust normally to the challenge of a new environment on waking,' study researcher David Jessop, from the University of Bristol, said in the news release. 'This may affect the way they subsequently engage with the world around them.'"
WTF? (Score:3, Insightful)
I thought Asperger's was usually linked to anti-social techies, but working in the IT business is damn stressful.
How can this every be correct?
Re:WTF? (Score:5, Insightful)
You think it is a coincidence your coworkers usually work in dank and dimly lit cubicles with no human contact? That they startle whenever anyone approaches? That they always bitch about the poor conditions at the rare and always uncomfortably awkward staff meetings, but no one ever actually attempts to change it? You're seeing it *EVERY DAY*
Re:WHAT? (Score:4, Insightful)
On a more personal note, while I have not been tested for it, there has been a suspicion among my family and doctors that I have Asperger's Syndrome. This thread's parent mocks, but I would not want to be "cured" if I indeed have it.
neurological, not behavioral (Score:5, Insightful)
If I'm reading them correctly, the studies being quoted (BTW, here's one of them [sciencedirect.com] if you have ScienceDirect) are NOT saying that Asperger's can be cured or prevented by altering a child's exposure to stress. They're saying Asperger's brains have a different neurochemical reaction to sudden changes than ordinary brains do.
1: This may (or may not) point toward changing how Asperger's kids are trained to deal with stress.
2: More interesting to me, this may point to targeted pharmaceuticals able to provide long-term remission.
3: This may just be a side effect of Asperger's, and the actual cause is somewhere else entirely.
Re:WHAT? (Score:2, Insightful)
In other words, "I've got X" (where X is something that basically makes you a 'tard) but I'm brilliant because 1% of brilliant people possibly have X.
Well I'm left handed!
Something Awful's definition (Score:3, Insightful)
Hmm, I always thought it was contagious and this was how it was contracted:
http://i.somethingawful.com/u/elpintogrande/july07/aspergersdefinition.gif [somethingawful.com]
Re:WHAT? (Score:5, Insightful)
but how much MORE effective would you be if you could talk to real people like you talk to slashdotters?
More effective in what regard? More effective in deciding whether my current blouse is of the right color to go with my jeans? More effective at promoting myself at the waterhole? More effective in speaking 25 languages fluently? Face it, they teach the same in economics class: spending more effort on activities that are not part of your core business will always be to the detriment of said core business.
Besides, the way I see it, Asperger's syndrome is not a lack of vocal skills but a lack of a sense of "urgency" when it comes to smalltalk (without the capital). That has both pros and cons, and I'm happy with it. But then again, I'm also a big proponent of sociodiversity (the way things are going, maybe one of the last), so me considering myself "perfectly sane" isn't really much of a measure.
How much more could you contribute if you could function in "management" type discussions..
Not. We already have too much people that are incapable of producing something of value.
Re:This article makes it sound as if AS was bad (Score:4, Insightful)
As someone who manifested many Asperger's symptoms as a child, I remember thinking all the time, "It would be obviously better if everyone did X, but they don't, because they're stupid." And you know what? None of my insights did anybody a damn bit of good. Aspies are great at pushing forward some fields (such as computing,) but they fail badly at fields that require influencing other people. RMS is only a partial exception to this.
One example: Aspies are more ethically daring basically because they don't recognize a lot of the small-scale pain they cause. It's easy for them to see the social big picture because they don't see the social small picture. They don't hesitate to call for large changes because they don't understand the cost of the social and cultural disruption that large changes cause, or they dismiss them as irrelevant. Calling for change doesn't make it happen. You need people who can make changes happen by hacking the culture. For instance, Ghandi came up with a theory of nonviolent resistance that meshed perfectly with Hindu culture, while at the same time making it open to all Indians. Then Martin Luther King, Jr. adapted ideas from Ghandi and elsewhere to a completely different cultural context.
An Aspie in MLK's place would have said, "Look, these Indian guys totally kicked ass with this approach, and I know we're black and Christian but we just need to forget about that because this stuff FUCKING WORKS. I mean, this is so OBVIOUS and I can't believe you guys are getting hung up on the fact that these ideas seem a little alien. They make perfect sense in a Hindu context, and if you're interested in that I can recommend some scriptures. If you're not going to bother understanding it, then just SHUT THE HELL UP and let the smart people talk. What the hell is wrong with you fucking dickhead morons? I give up. I can't make it any more obvious than I already have. Why don't you just go and play basketball and be cool and have sex and all that stuff that's so much more important than the FREEDOM OF OUR RACE. Idiots."
Aspie-type people make valuable contributions to society (and I have to believe this or I'd just off myself) but Aspies are impotent in the face of many important problems. Sometimes the right guy for the job is someone who is really unattractive from a geeky point of view -- like a slick, charismatic, self-aggrandizing, womanizing minister.
Perhaps they are cortisol sensitive (Score:3, Insightful)
And you work on research to find other ways to increase Cortisol production.
Rather than cortisol deficient. Perhaps "normal" levels simply cause particular anxiety.
Re:neurological, not behavioral (Score:4, Insightful)
Or perhaps it's primarily our society which is fucked up. I know, I know just medicate them, it's easier.
Re:Article (Score:5, Insightful)
It's odd the amount of geeks that seem eager to be diagnosed with Aspergers... as if that excuses their perceived failings, allows them to blame it on a condition they have no control over... or perhaps it simply is a badge of being a 'true' geek.
Even worse, the popularity of Asperger's as a self-diagnosis among geeks prevents them from getting a better grasp on their problems. Many other causes can produce similar symptoms, and even when a diagnosis of Asperger's is accurate, it isn't the last word on a person's mental health. An Aspie can have other psychological problems.
For instance, I had long thought I might be an Aspie, and when I ended up in therapy, I waited to see if my therapist mentioned it. (On my first visit, I spotted a couple of books about Asperger's on her bookshelf, so I figured she would be a good check on my self-diagnosis.) After several visits she did mention that my description of my childhood experiences sounded like I could have Asperger's, and she knew an authority on Asperger's who could screen me. At the time, my health insurance wouldn't cover the screening (a couple thousand bucks,) so I basically asked, is the screening worth it? She said it would be interesting to have a more expert opinion on whether it was really Asperger's, but:
This from a therapist who had books about Asperger's on her shelf and who suggested I get screened for it without any prompting on my part. Clearly she was interested in Asperger's and knowledgable about it. She just didn't think it was that important for my further development.
Contrast that with the many geeks who (without any professional diagnosis) use Asperger's to wholly define their past experience and future potential.
Re:as a parent of a 15 yo son with Aspergers... (Score:2, Insightful)
Meh, it is a spectrum disorder. Probably a large percentage of the entire population is on there somewhere.
Funny, people with AS are the ones more likely to not want other people to have it because they feel they are special and want it to stay that way. It is an aspie trait. Also if anyone is going to correctly self diagnose it would probably be someone with AS.
Personally, if I could get rid of it I would. Although there are benefits, they do not outweigh the drawbacks... not by a long shot. I want to be happy and live in the real world with the fake, stupid, normal people. I am tired of being a mutant, I want the cure. Put me in the Matrix... ignorance is bliss.
Self examination is not a bad thing. Whatever it is called, if you have problems then at least it is something else to look into which might lead you to a path that can help.
Re:This article makes it sound as if AS was bad (Score:2, Insightful)
Got any kind of citation for that? 'Cause it sounds just like the bullshit the ADHD camp of the "neurodiversity" movement (AKA the "let's impede treatment by redefining ourselves as fine!") spouts, and just about every single piece of actual evidence points in the opposite direction.
-A person with ADHD who's sick of the "let's declare ourselves specially gifted against all evidence" movement
Re:Article (Score:3, Insightful)