love2read Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 When I first saw the I Am Autism video I was disturbed, but didn't give it much thought other than that I hated it and wasn't going to share it with friends who didn't know much about autism. It seemed like it was a good idea that went in the wrong direction by dehumanising children with autism. Yesterday a friend sent me this critque which I found very enlightening. http://holysoulsherm...monically-evil/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdalley Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 What a horrible video! It is so far off base with what my boys are dealing with.... my kids are NOT demonically possessed. Their autism is not as doom and gloom as this video claims. This makes me furious! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiguirre Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I found this quote interesting: The video, Bell said in an interview, is a personal expression by Mann and Cuarón, each of whom has a young child with autism. "They are at that stage of life where they are grieving and unsure what the future holds," he said. Read more: http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1935959,00.html#ixzz2MadIQcRr The guys who made the video (an Oscar winning director and a grammy nominated songwriter) both have small children with autism. That explains the tone, imho. In ten years, they might be making a very different video when they've gotten some sleep, their kids aren't climbing everything in sight and they can actually go to a restaurant without an escape plan. My attitude has certainly changed immensely over the last 10 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Celia Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 It's just personification... nothing about exorcism or demons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Yes, this video is going to get the goat of anyone who subscribes to the pessimistic "it's all just genetic and there is nothing you can do about it" POV regarding autism. If, by contrast, you believe that ASD is a biomedical condition that hopefully someday will be cureable, you may think the video is hyperbolic but not inherently problematic. My DD is not her autism any more than a child with another biomedical condition is that condition. She is a child with ASD, and I do hold out hope for the future that the research Autism Speaks is funding will lead to a cure for her and everyone else suffering from ASD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdalley Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Yes, this video is going to get the goat of anyone who subscribes to the pessimistic "it's all just genetic and there is nothing you can do about it" POV regarding autism. If, by contrast, you believe that ASD is a biomedical condition that hopefully someday will be cureable, you may think the video is hyperbolic but not inherently problematic. My DD is not her autism any more than a child with another biomedical condition is that condition. She is a child with ASD, and I do hold out hope for the future that the research Autism Speaks is funding will lead to a cure for her and everyone else suffering from ASD. For my family it is genetic. I can trace it back to pre Civil War Era. I'm not at all pessimistic about my boy's futures. I don't want to fix them because I don't believe they are broken. Neither do they - nor the therapists and Doctors that help them learn to adapt. My Great Uncle was a Naval Engineer with two undergrads and a Masters from MIT. He was not the most socially adept but he certainly had a very good and full career, life and marriage. I wish that people who were so dead set on a cure could at least extend some common courtesy and respect to those of us who are ok with the fact that some cases of autism are genetic. That our kids are not broken and neither are we. I have no personal use for any 'advocacy' agency that thinks of my children as broken - less than - human beings. They are not. They are as they were made. Their problems are no more or no less than anyone else. The things about autism that have given them struggles have also given them unbelievable gifts. I wouldn't change a thing about any of the three of them. Or my brother. Or myself. Or my husband. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 My DD is sick and it infuriates me when certain higher-functioning individuals "on the spectrum" want to downplay the very real suffering that she is going through. She is NOT okay and I SHOULDN'T have to just accept or worse, celebrate her condition. The severity of her symptoms varies from day to day, and on her good days, I can see the person she was meant to be in the absence of her condition. This is why I and her biomedical physician are fighting so hard to find the treatment(s) that will help her triumph over her autism. Maybe my DD will never be fully restored to health, but nothing infuriates me more than those who reject a search for the cure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I wish that people who were so dead set on a cure could at least extend some common courtesy and respect to those of us who are ok with the fact that some cases of autism are genetic. That our kids are not broken and neither are we. My son's asd is genetic. we have done the DNA testing and he has one of the inherited mutations associated with asd. (I think those who think a one size fits all genetic "cure" are naive. there are at least four forms of genetic mutation as well as a couple that are bacterial that I know of.) how those forms manifest are also different and some children can have the same mutation and be more affected than another child. I don't want him to have out-of-control meltdowns, extreme frustration because some things are so incredibly hard for him - but easy for his peers and he sees that as something is wrong with him, regular nightmares . . . those things do not help him have a good life. I will work to replace what his body doesn't make - and he is a much happier and more functional child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiguirre Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 I have no personal use for any 'advocacy' agency that thinks of my children as broken - less than - human beings. They are not. They are as they were made. Their problems are no more or no less than anyone else. The things about autism that have given them struggles have also given them unbelievable gifts. I wouldn't change a thing about any of the three of them. Or my brother. Or myself. Or my husband. I can understand your position and it fits my experience with Geezle. It doesn't fit GW at all. He is minimally verbal and has severe behavioral issues that will make it impossible for him to have anything close to a normal life. He'll need sheltered employment, a group home and a guardian for his entire life. He IS broken. That makes me sad, but it's our reality. I don't know the story of the men who made the video, but if their children are as disabled as GW, I don't think they were overly pessimistic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandelion Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 I watched the video but did not read the associated article/critique. My overall reaction to this video was negative. My son has Asperger's, and is high-functioning. Based on my own experience, I'm not sure it's helpful to parents to separate their child's autism from the child, as the video seems to encourage. Personally, I prefer to just treat my son as a whole individual. But if this video is helpful to those with severely autistic kids, and gives voice to their pain, then it has served a purpose. I don't know what it's like to have a severely autistic child. A parent who does may watch this video and have a completely different reaction. ETA: I'm assuming the whole demonic possession/exorcist theme comes from the article. I did not get that vibe from the video. I'm already in a pissy mood today, so I'm thinking that reading about conjectured connections between autism and demonic possession, even if they're purely metaphorical, isn't going to help my frame of mind. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elizabeth Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 Several family members have Aspergers. This is one of the most horrific pieces of bull**** gonzo fatalistic malarkey I have yet had the discomfort of watching. Thank God a man of the cloth is calling this what it is. Horsepuckey meant to terrorize, further traumatize and shake already stressed families to the core. For the record our high functioning Aspergers include two Anglican priests and a Brigadier General. Don't feed the fear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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