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- Hacker News
- so, like a vacine against autism, rather than the impossibility of it bieng caused by one? instantly?by metalman
- I’ve always just viewed autism and the spectrum as the next step in our evolution. It’s not neurotypical vs spectrum anymore. I just think less and less people are neuro “typical”
- Rapamycin - how strange. The Mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR) gene/protein regulates cell growth in some not well understood way.
Maternal inflammation also aligns with autistic people being extra sensitive to negative feedback. Maybe if you are born in a world of disease you are supposed to be extra cautious of everything.
by inigyou - This is interesting, it may be a type of thing I'd be curious about at some point. I don't think it's possible to undo the general way my brain is organized (badly), but I'd be curious to see if I'd get any benefit anyway.
(I seem to be a rare type of autistic, because while I can reliably find all three other major types, it has been very difficult for me to find more of my own :/)
by LoganDark - by sublinear
- I have ASD Level 1, and I definitely don't want to be "cured." I feel like autism has basically given me significantly stronger reasoning, pattern recognition, and systemizing abilities in exchange for being socially a bit weird and awkward and eccentric. I recognize that this is the perspective of someone who is high-functioning but I strongly enjoy having autism.by stonyrubbish
- > The effects of rapamycin are temporary, and repeated dosing loses efficacy, making rapamycin, itself, an unlikely candidate as a broadly-used treatment.
- Cycling is possible
- Being autistic myself, I feel conflicted about trying to "cure autism"
Every day is challenging because I have to manage my energy, mask in social situations and at work, etc
On the other hand, I like who I am and I'm also very good at what I do because my brain is structured the way it is. I can imagine a society that is structured in a way, where I don't need the accommodations I'm currently dependent on
If the negative impacts I'm experiencing are a consequence of the how we've structured our society, then I don't think it's autistic people who need to change to fit in
Of course there are much more severe cases than me where autistic people need much more support and have severe learning disabilities, where it could be a huge improvement to quality of life
If it was possible to fully trust that a hypothetical "cure" would only be used in these severe cases, I might be excited about a potential breakthrough, but historically this unfortunately haven't been the case
by Scandiravian - i liken it to ADHD medicine. if you give it early in life then people often end up using it and benefitting from it. Later life diagnoses see people not take the medicine because their condition has become their person and changing that feels like it changes them too much from themselves.
Ultimately its all about being able to manage your life. If you run into troubles due to some condition it can cause to want a drug for it, but if you can manage often it can feels wrong to take it.
- > If it was possible to fully trust that a hypothetical "cure" would only be used in these severe cases
Isn’t it like the Ozempic? Some take it, some don’t.
by f6v - Anecdotally, I watched parents of autistic children become ghosts/shells of who they were. It seemed like much higher divorce rates, and towards the kids reaching highschool just single, burnt out mothers barely holding things together with no social life and their world reduced to just their kid(s).
The cure shouldn't just be up to the kids, but to the invisible caregivers who give up way more than average parents.
by _DeadFred_ - The flip side - I don't think there's a single upside to the ASD traits I have, I don't like myself, and I would absolutely love to know what it feels like to not have ASD.by drcongo
- I see this sentiment often, but only when it comes to autism. How is this different from other disorders, disabilities, illnesses?
You could make the exact same arguments for blindness. Every day is challenging, difficulties are mostly a consequence of how we've structured society, it's other people who should accommodate those who have different needs, etc.
This narrative seems to originate from, and is perpetuated within online autism communities. I think it's great that people feel content with the way they are but I don't understand the animosity towards a mere suggestion that a cure should exist.
I'm familiar with the history behind it and I'm on high alert when someone ventures into eugenics, however I firmly believe that we should be looking for a cure, just like we do for every other illness and disorder.
by dns_snek - I'm autistic myself. I don't want a "cure" but I would like to have something that could help me reduce some of the harder aspects of life.
Right now I'm on anti anxiety drugs, which whilst mostly affective, have sided effects that kind of suck. I'm lucky my wife and daughter love me very much, and I've always been someone who wanted to push myself a little further to get outside or do new things.. mostly because my daughter is also autistic and I want to be a good example of "small steps" ... But it was so hard with no medication that I eventually had a full blown autistic burnout, where therapy, time off work, and eventually medication helped me get back to work.
Yes I want society to be more accommodating to us, but that doesn't stop the multitude of micro-aggressions I suffer daily just trying to navigate life, relationships, work, etc. If something could help remove those, I'd be forever grateful.
I do not however want the way my mind works to change.
Keep the positive, remove or dull the negative.
by intothemild