NEURO-DIVERSITY: DEFICIT or EXCESS?

When We're Talkin' Neuro-Diversity --- Whether it is a DEFICIT or an EXCESS Depends on How You Look At It

Further, Neuro-Developmental Inflammation can come in all kinds of "PACKAGES" ---

• We need Authentic Relationships in which people feel comfortable setting and maintaining IDIOSYNCRATIC BOUNDARIES
• That is going to FEEL more "REASONABLE" if we have BIOMARKERS.

People are getting more familiar with SENSORY ISSUES:

• When I was a kid "PICKY EATING" was just "PICKY EATING" --- now it is often associated with AUTISM.
  • My poor mother was stuck with a child that routinely cried at the table if requested to try any new foods and it was quite melodramatic --- My mom --- "Give me strength just get through dinner."
  • My Dad I think as a child and even to some extent into adulthood had some of his own picky eating ---- although not to my extent --- so I was never forced to eat anything --- they tried the always popular "Just Try It Once"  --- but I rarely did.
    • I'm still the "PICKIEST EATER" in my family . . . even my kids aren't as "PICKY" as I am.

BUT there are OTHER SENSORY ISSUES with SMELL and SOUND --- and I'm often the one saying, "Give me a break."

• BUT if I don't respect those SENSORY ISSUES --- I generally live to regret it.

Now just to COMPLICATE this a little ---- DO I MASK --- yes ---- EVEN IF all the MASKS came down I wouldn't look like the person we TRADITIONALLY think of with "AUTISM."

There are PEOPLE and FACES at the TOP of the ORCHID website pretty much everyday ----

• Because that is WHAT I LIKE TO LOOK AT --- AUTHENTICALLY.
  

Kings College London
Thinking Twice About ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorder

Talk delivered by Professor Patrick Bolton, Professor of Child & Adolescent Neuropsychiatry, Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of  Psychology, Psychiatry & Neuroscience

I want to go even further with this:  AUTISM and ADHD are BLURRED CATEGORIES ---

• EVEN FURTHER --- they are NOT GOOD CATEGORIES.
• This appears to really be about COMMON GENES and MATERNAL IMMUNE ACTIVATION that can be very INDIVIDUAL.
  

If all we've got are SYMPTOM CLUSTERS AND WE DON'T KNOW ANY BETTER--- we go with SYMPTOM CLUSTERS ----

• BUT the RESEARCH is painting a MUCH MORE COMPLICATED PICTURE ---
• We're trying to get those BIOMARKERS which I think are going to involve NEURO-DEVELOPMENTAL INFLAMMATION and it's IDIOSYNCRATIC EFFECT on MULTIPLE SYSTEMS OF THE BODY ----

It's quite a tale of the INDIVIDUAL and the SOCIETY --- because no individual could figure this out by themselves ---- and what we're finding is enormous INDIVIDUALITY.