As the mom of an autistic son who was what I call a wrecker (like Wreck-It Ralph) I completely understand.
I was diagnosed with autistic tendencies as a child. I didn't talk till I was 5 and I managed to get a masters and have a successful counseling practice. My 14 year old son is minimally verbal. He can state his needs but he can't talk much about stories and can only share a little bit about his day. He can do chores, take care of himself, regulate his behavior and for him the wreck it stage was something he fortunately outgrew. I also have an 11 year old daughter who was diagnosed with autism but now seems to have grown out of it and I wonder if her speech delays were the result of being severely dyslexic. All of this is to say that autism is so complicated and the developmental course can vary so much, and what treatments work with one kid may not work with another kid. I think with genetic studies and metabolic studies we'll eventually be able to classify autistic types better but we're not there yet.
In college I did ABA with kids with autism and saw what severe and profound looks like (and I agree completely that it doesn't work, in my son's case he didn't like to be manipulated). Because of this there were things I liked about the neurodiversity movement for me personally as someone with high functioning autism but I struggled with it not meeting the needs of families with kids who were more severely impaired. And in retrospect I think it was a bad idea lumping it all on one spectrum. People who are high functioning and can hold down jobs are going to feel insulted when people say that autistic people can't do X, Y, Z, yet people who have family members with severe and profound autism (and those with severe and profound autism) need to be able to talk about their experiences.
Because we currently do have the spectrum model, I do think people with high functioning autism should take it less personally when family members of those with severe and profound autism talk about their experiences. And I think the neurodiversity movement has failed those families.
I am currently having my son tested for Cerebral Folate Deficiency and am hoping to get some answers. I wish I had heard about it sooner because I do have some of the genetic markers, and I think that if it weren't for the neurodiversity movement I might have. Another failure.
Finally, my maternal grandparents had four kids. None had an autism diagnosis or documented learning disabilities. They had six grandkids, and one of them had an autism diagnosis and three of them had documented learning disabilities. There are currently 4 great-grandkids and all four of them have an autism diagnosis and documented learning disabilities including one with severe and profound autism. This has really led me to reconsider whether there is something environmental going on. Hormone disruptors, plastic pollutants, PCOS, I don't know for sure. But if definitely needs more research.
Toxins given to one generation amplify subsequent generations. The first generation may be minimally affected and the next more so, etc. This was found from animal studies.
While her story and research may not be relevant to you, there are major studies that have been out for a very long time outlining the dangers of giving supraphysiologic doses of estrogen to biological males, and supraphysiologic doses of testosterone or other androgens to biological
females, meds that are synthetic androgens and anabolic steroids, so they are classed as a Schedule III controlled substance, but none of these medications required parental consent. They are all off-label as the FDA has not tested either for use as treatment for gender dysphoria. As expected, results are not pretty when a child is rushed through the transition process.
When the uterus and cervix start to atrophy on T, that doesn't just mean they shrink, making walking upright difficult. It also means necrotic flesh, disease and infection, perhaps even risk of sepsis if the doctors don't get to it quickly enough. Higher risk of heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis, bone fractures and more debilitating and deadly reactions that we do not yet know of because no one bothered to study the impacts of testosterone in such high doses on females before irresponsibly giving the green light.
Aside from morbid vaginal and uterine atrophy, they also face a much higher risk of cancers, hip dysplasia, cardiovascular, renal, hepatic problems, incontinence, no sex drive, inability to have intercourse, internal bleeding, internal ingrown hairs, an odor. Those are all common, according to the scientific data provided by those who have not been tied to received federal funds through super-pacs. I have a link, it’s in my notes and I can’t find it but if you’ll actually read it, I’ll look for it. It has statistics for basically everything surrounding this topic, with ethical cited sources for each.
As the mom of an autistic son who was what I call a wrecker (like Wreck-It Ralph) I completely understand.
I was diagnosed with autistic tendencies as a child. I didn't talk till I was 5 and I managed to get a masters and have a successful counseling practice. My 14 year old son is minimally verbal. He can state his needs but he can't talk much about stories and can only share a little bit about his day. He can do chores, take care of himself, regulate his behavior and for him the wreck it stage was something he fortunately outgrew. I also have an 11 year old daughter who was diagnosed with autism but now seems to have grown out of it and I wonder if her speech delays were the result of being severely dyslexic. All of this is to say that autism is so complicated and the developmental course can vary so much, and what treatments work with one kid may not work with another kid. I think with genetic studies and metabolic studies we'll eventually be able to classify autistic types better but we're not there yet.
In college I did ABA with kids with autism and saw what severe and profound looks like (and I agree completely that it doesn't work, in my son's case he didn't like to be manipulated). Because of this there were things I liked about the neurodiversity movement for me personally as someone with high functioning autism but I struggled with it not meeting the needs of families with kids who were more severely impaired. And in retrospect I think it was a bad idea lumping it all on one spectrum. People who are high functioning and can hold down jobs are going to feel insulted when people say that autistic people can't do X, Y, Z, yet people who have family members with severe and profound autism (and those with severe and profound autism) need to be able to talk about their experiences.
Because we currently do have the spectrum model, I do think people with high functioning autism should take it less personally when family members of those with severe and profound autism talk about their experiences. And I think the neurodiversity movement has failed those families.
I am currently having my son tested for Cerebral Folate Deficiency and am hoping to get some answers. I wish I had heard about it sooner because I do have some of the genetic markers, and I think that if it weren't for the neurodiversity movement I might have. Another failure.
Finally, my maternal grandparents had four kids. None had an autism diagnosis or documented learning disabilities. They had six grandkids, and one of them had an autism diagnosis and three of them had documented learning disabilities. There are currently 4 great-grandkids and all four of them have an autism diagnosis and documented learning disabilities including one with severe and profound autism. This has really led me to reconsider whether there is something environmental going on. Hormone disruptors, plastic pollutants, PCOS, I don't know for sure. But if definitely needs more research.
Thank you very much for this, it's extremely informative
Toxins given to one generation amplify subsequent generations. The first generation may be minimally affected and the next more so, etc. This was found from animal studies.
the brains can also be influenced by other endocrine disruptors and toxins.
It's about time toxicology is brought to the surface in this gender discussion.
While her story and research may not be relevant to you, there are major studies that have been out for a very long time outlining the dangers of giving supraphysiologic doses of estrogen to biological males, and supraphysiologic doses of testosterone or other androgens to biological
females, meds that are synthetic androgens and anabolic steroids, so they are classed as a Schedule III controlled substance, but none of these medications required parental consent. They are all off-label as the FDA has not tested either for use as treatment for gender dysphoria. As expected, results are not pretty when a child is rushed through the transition process.
When the uterus and cervix start to atrophy on T, that doesn't just mean they shrink, making walking upright difficult. It also means necrotic flesh, disease and infection, perhaps even risk of sepsis if the doctors don't get to it quickly enough. Higher risk of heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis, bone fractures and more debilitating and deadly reactions that we do not yet know of because no one bothered to study the impacts of testosterone in such high doses on females before irresponsibly giving the green light.
Aside from morbid vaginal and uterine atrophy, they also face a much higher risk of cancers, hip dysplasia, cardiovascular, renal, hepatic problems, incontinence, no sex drive, inability to have intercourse, internal bleeding, internal ingrown hairs, an odor. Those are all common, according to the scientific data provided by those who have not been tied to received federal funds through super-pacs. I have a link, it’s in my notes and I can’t find it but if you’ll actually read it, I’ll look for it. It has statistics for basically everything surrounding this topic, with ethical cited sources for each.
I’d love to read that link.