Just some thoughts on animals, us, and NT's

[smith2267]

People make a lot more sense to me when I think of them as I do animals.
Let me explain. I spent about half my life preparing for a career involving animal care and science. In the process I have come to understand animals. They are like and not like me. They feel the same emotions, probably stronger than I do. They feel pain, hunger, and fatigue, all of which I have experienced to some extent. However, they are not like me--for example, they are frightened by firecrackers, or they like to be in a herd, or they scent mark, or any other number of such things.
I can feel the need to alleviate their pain or hunger, because I have felt these things, and I believe the basis of morality is recognizing that others are like you, and deserve to be treated the way you would want to be treated.
But I understand the differences between myself and other species. For example, I like solitude, but I appreciate that it makes my dog anxious.
I have always had problems with people, because I thought of them as like me--we are the same species, after all. But they constantly do things that make no sense to me. Now that I understand how different we are, I have found it helps me greatly to think of them as another species. They are homo sapiens sapiens, and I am homo sapiens autisticus . I don't get mad at a cat for being different than me. So I should not get angry at neurotypicals for being different than me. Even when I think they are doing something stupid or pointless.

 

[Donein]

I like animals, always have. As a child I had cats and dogs, but my sicko father gave most of them away when we weren't looking. I have two dogs now and love them dearly. I'm a NT. Do you think that what I just typed is stupid?

 

[smith2267]

I like animals, always have. As a child I had cats and dogs, but my sicko father gave most of them away when we weren't looking. I have two dogs now and love them dearly. I'm a NT. Do you think that what I just typed is stupid?

No. But I could tell you were NT. I accept your nature. You talk differently than I do, but so does my cat.

 

[Donein]

Well let's agree to be friends even though we are different? I have an adult daughter and she loves to meow. She is AS but won't embrace that. She yells denial when I tried to tell her. When she was younger, they diagnosed her with ADD. She loves to find cat things on the computer and post them. She does this a good part of the day. She just got married and recently got a new old cat. Her old friend from college couldn't take care it, so now she has a lovely long haired cat.

 

[smith2267]

Well let's agree to be friends even though we are different? I have an adult daughter and she loves to meow. She is AS but won't embrace that. She yells denial when I tried to tell her. When she was younger, they diagnosed her with ADD. She loves to find cat things on the computer and post them. She does this a good part of the day. She just got married and recently got a new old cat. Her old friend from college couldn't take care it, so now she has a lovely long haired cat.

Yep. we can all get along. If you were curious, the differences in communication style were: free and copious sharing of information about yourself that was only tangentially related to my topic. To us, you guys seem like chatterboxes.
Please note, I am not complaining. That was the point of the thread: that I accept you as a different animal

 

[CHASP]

I don't know if we can generalize about the chatterbox thing. A lot of that "copious sharing . . .only tangentially related" is just what many AS people, including myself have to watch out for. There are different kinds of AS "animals" --or is it all autism now, as the new guide tells us. (By the way, I can't see anything in a person's post that would offer diagnositic information, but I can spot a nonNT when I meet one. And NT's can spot me.)

 

[Donein]

Yep. we can all get along. If you were curious, the differences in communication style were: free and copious sharing of information about yourself that was only tangentially related to my topic. To us, you guys seem like chatterboxes.
Please note, I am not complaining. That was the point of the thread: that I accept you as a different animal

Yes but if you didn't have us NT chatterboxes then noone would be doing any talking. I have found over the years when I share my reality/life, some other people come out of their shyness and talk. So couldn't this be a good thing.?

 

[Donein]

When you say you can be spotted. Here in America most people aren't spotting a darn thing. I'm on forums where NT's are taking their loved ones in to doctors to get diagnosed and the doctors don't even know much about aspergers. If your living in America, nobody cares. We are the Denial country. We don't help our special needs, we ignore, deny ... Lot's of the AS's here over drink to numb the pain of their difference. My dad was one of these.

 

[Donein]

Yep. we can all get along. If you were curious, the differences in communication style were: free and copious sharing of information about yourself that was only tangentially related to my topic. To us, you guys seem like chatterboxes.
Please note, I am not complaining. That was the point of the thread: that I accept you as a different animal

Are you sure that you don't share because you have been hurt by us NT's? Maybe the talking about animals has gotten you more acceptance . Maybe when you talk about yourself and your feelings, you have been criticized, so therefore you don't try anymore.

 

[smith2267]

Are you sure that you don't share because you have been hurt by us NT's? Maybe the talking about animals has gotten you more acceptance . Maybe when you talk about yourself and your feelings, you have been criticized, so therefore you don't try anymore.

No mostly it's an innate difference in communication style. I'm not very garrulous around people I like and trust either. We aren't broken neurotypicals. We're something different.
We get hurt by NT's, make no mistake, but it is as a result of our difference, not a cause of it.

 

[smith2267]

When you say you can be spotted. Here in America most people aren't spotting a darn thing. I'm on forums where NT's are taking their loved ones in to doctors to get diagnosed and the doctors don't even know much about aspergers. If your living in America, nobody cares. We are the Denial country. We don't help our special needs, we ignore, deny ... Lot's of the AS's here over drink to numb the pain of their difference. My dad was one of these.

That is only half true. They seldom spot us as having an ASD. But they ALWAYS spot us as being different or weird.

 

[Loomis]

Are you sure that you don't share because you have been hurt by us NT's? Maybe the talking about animals has gotten you more acceptance . Maybe when you talk about yourself and your feelings, you have been criticized, so therefore you don't try anymore.

Autistics do not use nonverbal communication the way NTs do. We expect words to communicate information. NTs take huge liberties with words and information. That is OK but it shows how differently our brains are wired. Keep in mind we are about 1 percent of the population. If a NT were placed among 100 auties they would be considered abnormal.