Autism Epidemic or Autism Overdiagnosed?

Autism is Complex disorder that can be easily misdiagnosed by well-meaning professionals. What is behind surge in autism epidemic/explosion? "Detroit experts say autism is overdiagnosed" - Associated Content. Moreover, Time Magazine alluded to Jenny McCarthy's son never being autistic and having landau kleffner syndrome..could that explain why he "recovered" after he took seizure meds? Some experts say yes. And what about Donna Williams? The high functioning adult who has written books and who was just recently diagnosed with DID (disassociative personality disorder) aka multiple personality disorder. How is possible an autistic person has a multiple personality disrder in the clinical sense? Investigations into autism diagnosis for profit and gain are needed. Dare journalists pursue this? How many fake cases are out there pretending to be autistic? Public is being grossly misled as to what authentic autism really is. Autism isn't cured in a few years, if it's ever cured. Yet, these stories swamp the market. Follow the money. And Amanda Baggs? She is considered a complete FRAUD by anyone who understands real autism. Indeed, her background shows she did LSD and other drugs that scrambled her mind. As for Dr. Gupta from CNN, it is shocking this doctor was fooled by an obvious fraudlent case feigning autism. This is a major failure in journalism. See this site on Baggs: http://abaggs.blogspot.com/
And critical thinking. How can we effectively treat autism if we are swamped with misdiagnosed autistic cases shown to us by an ill-informed media? How many journalists have actually researched what real autism is? And compared that to what they are being told is autism? Yes, there is a spectrum, but there is a radical difference between autism and other things that can look like autism. Example, back in 1990's, when my son was first presenting as autistic, my son was tested for everything under the sun before an official diagnosis of autism. Everything that could look like autism was ruled OUT before autism label permanently applied. Seems this isn't the case these days.

Now, we find professionals so ignorant as to what real autism really is, they just slap the label on every kid that stacks blocks, flaps his hands a few times or averts an occasional gaze. More and more children with Nonautistic motor stereotypies, ADHD, OCD and Rett's Syndrome are commonly misdiagnosed as autistic. this is NOT helping people on the autistic spectrum and CONFUSES autism research. No wonder autism experts aren't sure, don't know and are forever baffled.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• autism
• DSM-5
• diagnosis
• epidemic
• rooted
• in
• misdiagnosis
• severe autism
• misdiagnosed
• autistic
• children
• adults
• Huffington
• Post
• autobiographies
• self-diagnosing
• autistics
• overdiagnosed
• ASD
• mislabled
• mislabeling
• truth in media
• heritage foundation
• Thomas
• Sowell
• top
• stories
• investigative
• journalism
• health
• medical
• controversy
• debate
• American
• Psychiatric
• Association
• investigation
• Autism Spectrum

[PennyDreadful1]

Is there any proof that Amanda Baggs is a fraud? Im not saying she isnt but. But accusing someone of being a fraud is pretty serious.

[kgaccount]

@PennyDreadful1 Yes, there is plenty of evidence all over web. It's true, she's a hoax.

[kgaccount]

@PennyDreadful1 Baggs talked growing up. No speech delays.Potty trained on time

Went to college and didn't stim when others knew her back in the day. She spoke and had friends...even an autistic girl she wrote about and admired. It all changed for her after Amanda took LSD for months and smoked weed. After that she was found digging in ground looking for mind control devices. Police took her to an institution. She was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenic and multiple personality disorder

[kgaccount]

@PennyDreadful1 It's amazing to me and many others that Baggs's background IS not checked nor known by so many people. People who went to school with her have posted on web. There are pics of her, not taken down of course, that showed her very different than she is now. She's a sad case of drug induced severe mental illness with aphasia and she thinks she's autistic or pretends she is. Very sad. Very disturbing.

[HroseG]

Aspergers was actually founded the same time as classic autism. It just didn't reach America until the 90's. People with aspergers aren't taking away from those with LFA. People with aspergers don't really get support either. I hope you aren't thinking you are not getting support over aspies.

The media is wrong. On one hand they demonize autistics on the other they show aspies. I was moderately autistic as a child, adolescent and even though I was diagnosed later with aspergers...

[kgaccount]

@HroseG Well said, and no I don't think aspies are taking away from LFA. If anything, the aspies are often great advocates for persons with LFA.

[BrainDeadIntellect]

The difference with aspergers and autism is that people with autism are caught up in their own world, but with aspergers that's not true. And because of this the way they function and the way they learn is much different. People with aspergers tend to be verbal while those with severe or profound are much more non verbal. And that's why I get mad when aspergers people are considered to have autism, because they are treated and approached in a non-helpful way to them and autistic individuals.

[WeatherMondacicci]

I have Asperger's myself and I am not happy about them changing it in the DSM-5 to merge it with the Autistic Spectrum Disorders. A LOT of the criteria for Asperger's is going to be taken out. Such as the narrow interests which is a HALLMARK of Asperger's

[hofertbob]

I 100% agree with you. You are an amazing woman. I was misdiagnosed with ADD and when I switched schools recently and it was soooo much better. Social and other mental differences are being over diagnosed. Can I ask you to look up Waldorf schools and their philosophy? This may be good for you to see what people believed and this helped me. PS I'm only 13 but I understand you and wish you the best!!!

[omgbaby1]

well said. You are a great mom.

[DaggelDutch]

I have PDD NOS, but I never view myself the same as aspergers or classic autism. I do recognize things from those forms that I have, but I don't think it's the same at all. I also don't like to tell the whole world I have it because I'm affraid they will see me as somebody with classic autism while I don't have that. I'm also affraid they would automaticy see me as some kind of mentally disabled person or a five year old or something.

[DaggelDutch]

I have PDD NOS, but I never view myself the same as aspergers or classic autism. I do recognize things from those forms that I have, but I don't think it's the same at all. I also don't like to tell the whole world I have it because I'm affraid they will see me as somebody with classic autism while I don't have that. I'm also affraid they would automaticy see me as some kind of retard or five year old or something.

[249mranswer]

The reason why autism is so complex nowdays is because doctors make it so confusing in the first place and i am not saying that autism isnt real but come on you here teachers and parents are always saying that when you have a person or a child that is labeled with high function autism and aspergers syndrome that they have problems with eye contact comunicating and social interactions having problems with talking when mentally they can talk in most cases

[Anglynn74]

I meant to add, my 5 yr old son started kindergarten 2 mo ago & has had an issue w/ crying in class & has trouble callming down. Because of this my husband & I were brought in for a "behavioral assessment intervention" w/ 5 other people at the school including a special ed teacher, they're on the track taht he may have something wrong. They're nitpicking everything from the way he holds his pencil to how his arms move when he runs....I'm trying to find out if I have any legal recourse.