Differentiating between mental illness and neurodevelopmental conditions?

[Mary Anne]

Thank you

Sorry, I worked all day, and just got to this now.

 

[Echo]

Let's see if I can throw my two cents on the table, intelligibly, at 2 in the morning......

Like others here, I don't wish to call my peculiar brain wiring "disordered." And I suppose you could say I have that luxury. I don't spend all day screaming, ripping my hair out by the fistful, or talking to fire hydrants. Similarly, there are people with mild bipolar or mild schizophrenia that live their lives in ways that aren't necessarily seriously "disordered," either.

Defining "normal" is really a sociopolitical issue, so we'll just say that everyone exists on their own spectrum of neurologically-influenced behaviors. Whether they be considered neurotypical, OCD, bipolar, schizophrenic, depressive, anxious, ADHD, autistic, etc..

THIS is how I personally see neurodiversity.

With everyone on some spectrum, no one person better, or worse, and all unified by this fascinating, diverse, and flawed organ in our skulls swimming in a electrochemical soup.

Whether it be genetic, or culturally ingrained (I suspect it's a bit of both), our minds seem geared to sort things by a simple code of duality. "This is GOOD./This is BAD." Whereas, (as many people have theorized) if we could give our species some clinical distance, maybe by watching ourselves from outer space, we might ALL seem disordered in one way or another.

Or maybe just homogeneous. Human. Strange. Irrational. Flawed.

They say traits become worthy of the term "disorder," or "illness" when it disrupts daily life... but I know plenty of highly dysfunctional neurotypical people who don't have the added burden of carrying around either term.

I'm hoping things evolve, over time, and we change our language to reflect respect for all people. When I was a child, people threw around terms like "retarded" and "crippled." Now we see terms like "differently-abled" and "intellectually challenged."

Because we're all worthy of basic human respect, the labels we use for our particular traits should reflect that respect. Aspie is fine with me. Autist is great. I can live with that. And just because I say I hate the word "disorder," it doesn't follow that I don't struggle with certain things. I definitely do. But I don't see most neurotypicals struggling any less. They just struggle with different things.

What our culture values then becomes the issue at hand. For instance, throughout time schizophrenics were often respected seers and shamans in their communities. I was once asked if being highly introverted was a "disorder." By the majority-rule standards of our extroverted society, it would seem so, but to call it that is absurd....

 

[Mary Anne]

Let's see if I can throw my two cents on the table, intelligibly, at 2 in the morning......

Like others here, I don't wish to call my peculiar brain wiring "disordered." And I suppose you could say I have that luxury. I don't spend all day screaming, ripping my hair out by the fistful, or talking to fire hydrants. Similarly, there are people with mild bipolar or mild schizophrenia that live their lives in ways that aren't necessarily seriously "disordered," either.

Defining "normal" is really a sociopolitical issue, so we'll just say that everyone exists on their own spectrum of neurologically-influenced behaviors. Whether they be considered neurotypical, OCD, bipolar, schizophrenic, depressive, anxious, ADHD, autistic, etc..

THIS is how I personally see neurodiversity.

With everyone on some spectrum, no one person better, or worse, and all unified by this fascinating, diverse, and flawed organ in our skulls swimming in a electrochemical soup.

Whether it be genetic, or culturally ingrained (I suspect it's a bit of both), our minds seem geared to sort things by a simple code of duality. "This is GOOD./This is BAD." Whereas, (as many people have theorized) if we could give our species some clinical distance, maybe by watching ourselves from outer space, we might ALL seem disordered in one way or another.

Or maybe just homogeneous. Human. Strange. Irrational. Flawed.

They say traits become worthy of the term "disorder," or "illness" when it disrupts daily life... but I know plenty of highly dysfunctional neurotypical people who don't have the added burden of carrying around either term.

I'm hoping things evolve, over time, and we change our language to reflect respect for all people. When I was a child, people threw around terms like "retarded" and "crippled." Now we see terms like "differently-abled" and "intellectually challenged."

Because we're all worthy of basic human respect, the labels we use for our particular traits should reflect that respect. Aspie is fine with me. Autist is great. I can live with that. And just because I say I hate the word "disorder," it doesn't follow that I don't struggle with certain things. I definitely do. But I don't see most neurotypicals struggling any less. They just struggle with different things.

What our culture values then becomes the issue at hand. For instance, throughout time schizophrenics were often respected seers and shamans in their communities. I was once asked if being highly introverted was a "disorder." By the majority-rule standards of our extroverted society, it would seem so, but to call it that is absurd....

Dear Echo, you said it PERFECTLY! The best way I have ever heard. Thank you. Great huge tightly comforting cyber ((((((((hugs))))))))))

 

[Echo]

Dear Echo, you said it PERFECTLY! The best way I have ever heard. Thank you. Great huge tightly comforting cyber ((((((((hugs))))))))))

Thank you so much, Mary Anne! For the validation and the hugs.

 

[Lisa Scanu]

Personally I believe the 2 are different but can go hand in hand. As mentioned Aspergers is present at birth but when it goes undiagnosed a person who is struggling to understand themselves etc can then go on to develop anxiety and depression. This was my case. I spent many years suffering mental health problems. It was only when visiting a psychiatrist that Autism was suggested. I was sent for all the tests and to my shock I was diagnosed with Aspergers.

 

[Jenisautistic]

I believe that mental illness is different from a developmental disability because not only does it develop late but many times it also is a person that has a ironic social and mental advantage over those with developmental disability now this does not apply to all people with mental heath disabilities many people such as people with anxiety but with mental conditions such as scitzofrania and bipolar disorder the person usally has eather had normal or has social stability although the may have some challenges they have the abilty to be how do I put this their often times have the normal skills and an easier time then those on the spectrum if they can be good at managing their symptoms

specifically in those two disorders be able to recognize there symptoms and help deal with them or need help which I must emphasize people with developmental disability don't necessarily need to manage their symptoms because for the most part they are not harmful. while are development is slow that is a natural born thing and not necessary a symptom but just something that people need to be aware of and slow or limited development may be different however it I something we can learn to improve deal with accept and embrace that we learn differently, and it dose not mean we are not smart.

we however more vulnerable naïve and have a very hard time deciphering though bullying domestic violence and abuse. we can be more fragile and can be taken advantage of more easily. it is also more difficult to find and keep work and deal with school as well as understand the word and be independent .