Autism/adhd Etc

[nailit]

Was watching a news item around a friends re: ADHD and autism. Never even heard of theses 'conditions' 30yrs ago. Where have they suddenly sprung from?

[Baldric]

https://www.healthline.com/health/adhd/history

[Baldric]

https://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/what-does-autism-mean#1

[ummmm]

It's not sudden. Years ago they would have been considered as naughty or stupid.

[Mamyalynne]

It's mainly thanks to experiences within my family that I realise now just how many people I have known on the Autistic Spectrum (which is wide) throughout my life.

[cassa333]

My daughter is an Aspie but doesn’t have ADHD.

Historically ADHD was just ‘naughty boy’ syndrome but as with everything it has been given a name and ‘treatment’ programme.

[woofgang]

cassa, girls can have ADHD too, and there is a definite difference between a child with ADHD and a naughty child.

[Buenchico]

ADHD was first recognised as a condition (but without that name) in 1902. It first appeared in a manual detailing mental disorders under the name of 'hyperkinetic impulse disorder' in 1968. It became 'ADD' ('attention deficit disorder') in a new edition of that manual in 1980, with the 'H' (for 'hyperactivity') being added in some, but not all cases of ADD.

Source:
https://www.healthline.com/health/adhd/history

We were referring pupils to the school psychological service, in cases of suspected ADHD, when I was teaching back in the 1980s.

The term 'autism' was coined in 1911 but it wasn't until the 1940s when it came to be used to refer to the emotional and social development of children. However at that time it was (wrongly) linked to schizophrenia and it wasn't until the 1960s before it was recognised as a condition in its own right.

Source:
https://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/what-does-autism-mean

However at that time the prevalence of autism wasn't fully recognised, with the condition being regarded as rare. These days, charities such as the National Autistic Society cite 'more than one in a hundred people' as being a reasonable estimate of the number of people who're on the autism spectrum but many people believe that the figure could be much higher (possibly at around 5% of the population).

Trying to work out how many people are on the autism spectrum is complicated by the lack of clear definitions of exactly what 'autism' is. Some experts take the view that everyone is on the autism spectrum in some way or other, with some people just being a bit further along it than others.

[woofgang]

Nailit, they didn't spring from anywhere, its just that people realise that behaviours thought due to naughtiness or stupidity actually have a clinical reason. It has happened with many physical and cognitive illnesses. A key one for me was IBS. When I was a child it was thought that "bilious attacks" just happened, or even that they could be blamed on the child for being greedy over sweets and so on. Fortunately for me (but not for her) my Mum used to get it too so while she didn't know what the problem was, she knew it wasn't greed.....actually 30 years ago would have been the 90's and both ADHD and Autism were known about and diagnosed then, as well as Aspergers. I think what has changed is recongnition and acceptance that many of these things are not binary but on a spectrum and the problems that can be helped don't have to be at the far end of the spectrum.

[Baldric]

Nice one Chris, look back to 1853 and 1854 ;o)

[Old_Geezer]

As a kid I recall taking a library book out on autism. Not that recent ;-)

[spathiphyllum]

Things like ADHD imply that there is a normal level of attention that can be given to a task or situation which in reality.. that's balderdash now isn't it.

Autism, well that certainly didn't just "Spring up".

[ummmm]

But generally most people have similar attention spans.

[spathiphyllum]

I think there are a lot of factors such as upbringing, gender and age which will affect the attention span.. It's entirely subjective I think yes there may be a general consensus of what regards as normal but I think every girl has a better attention span than most boys.

Also, autism and ADHD in girls is wildly undiagnosed

[roopower]

I went on a course about autism when I was a teachers assistant. According to the lecturer I am on the autistic spectrum because I like to keep my records and CDs in alphabetical order.

[spathiphyllum]

That doesn't surprise me. We're all on the spectrum to some extent.

[douglas9401]

If you monetise it, they will come.

[andy-hughes]

cassa - // … but as with everything it has been given a name and ‘treatment’ programme. //

Would you prefer that advances in recognition of mental health conditions did not take place, and people who could be helped to provide a useful contribution to society, to say nothing of being happier, were simply left to suffer?

[ummmm]

I think the opposite, Andy.

[Barmaid]

The problem with these diagnoses is that they were routinely used by people to describe badly behaved children when all that was required was some parental guidance and discipline. People who genuinely have conditions such as autism and ADHD - particularly at the end of the spectrum where it has a significant impact on their everyday functioning - have really suffered as a result of the terms being over used to excuse bad behaviour.

[sunny-dave]

An excellent post from BM - saved me some typing.

I'd just like to add that the extra educational input that is achieved by getting your child 'statemented' with either ADHD or Autism is being ruthlessly exploited by a worryingly large number of parents - this increases the number of false diagnoses and dilutes the service provided to the children who do have genuine needs.