Education Are The Reason For Autism, Bipolar Disorder And Add?

[JoeRoccoCassara]

Autism, asperger's syndrome, OCD, Bipolar Disorder, ADHD and ADD aren't necessarily genetic like Down Syndrome or flat out retardation, and aren't the result of missing chromosomes and such, they are environmentally induced epigenetic brain disorders. In recent years these (environmental) disorders have particularly been increasing in children, as education as become more and more grueling as material keeps being added to the curriculum. The Board of Ed keeps dumping new material into the curriculum like they just don't care that we don't need to complete that much dribble. The whole education system is out of date, no wonder teachers keep getting called to the carpet, high schoolers keep dropping out, and schools are economically failing in America. I say we close school until we figure out how to bring it to terms with the technological and cultural changes the world has made in the last two decades.

 

Personally, the reason that I left college was because I was failing miserably, not because I couldn't work hard and overcome the stress, but because it was clearly impossible to complete the material when the teachers can't even figure out how to integrate it into their course curriculum properly.

 

As for the topic of discussion which, for some reason, I put into the topic title; I was diagnosed with a two of those disorders and I feel like I never even had them, I just responded poorly to school, because once I graduated, my behavior improved, until I decided to go to college, and my attitude started up again.

 

I know I might not know what I am talking about, but I think that someone here might could either shoot my theories in this topic down or confirm them. Either way I learn more on the subject.

 

Forgive the disgustingly illiterate topic title, I will think twice before writing my next one.

Edited March 16, 2012 by Anti-money

[maddog]

Autism, asperger's syndrome, OCD, Bipolar Disorder, ADHD and ADD aren't necessarily genetic like Down Syndrome or flat out retardation, and aren't the result of missing chromosomes and such, they are environmentally induced epigenetic brain disorders. In recent years these (environmental) disorders have particularly been increasing in children, as education as become more and more grueling as material keeps being added to the curriculum. The Board of Ed keeps dumping new material into the curriculum like they just don't care that we don't need to complete that much dribble. The whole education system is out of date, no wonder teachers keep getting called to the carpet, high schoolers keep dropping out, and schools are economically failing in America. I say we close school until we figure out how to bring it to terms with the technological and cultural changes the world has made in the last two decades.

Personally, I know these afflictions or disorders (as they are often represented) are not due to "missing anything". Each has their own bent. One similarity with all of them is that the normal behavior of the neural nets in the brain do not collaborate as they are expected. I do not know of Bipolor Disorder (other than it is some sort of lobe inbalance). For the rest:

 

Autism: Collaboration between neuron near neighbors are impared.

 

Asperger's syndrome, ADHD and ADD have what Autism has with the addition Collaboration farther apart is enhanced.

 

ADHD & ADD impulsivity is increased with ADHD the attention span resolution is shortened many times (to a few seconds).

 

Asperger's has the above as well with the drive to be curious about all kinds of things. To ignore what is not interesting and go hog wild with what is.

 

OCD (Oppositional Compliance Disorder) or (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) -- [why does Psychiciatry have one Acronym mean two different things??!??] - both are like Asperger's yet opposite (OCD1 is a contrarian, OCD2 is focused on only one aspect over others).

 

I have read on this subject because, I found out I also suffer (if that is even the word) from two of these. In 2005, I was diagnosed by the Amen Clinic in NPB, CA with three aspects of ADD (Dr Amen has written a book where he describes ADD as being in 6 flavors). I have three of them 1, 3, 5 (I describe them below).

 

1. ADD know popularly as ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder).

2. ADD (conventional/normal on we all know).

3. This one is where the Amygdala is on Adrenalin. You begin to worry about worrying for example. I am at my worst when I take my final exams for example.

4. This is the one mentioned in the book Terminal Man (emotions become uncontrollable).

5. Ring of Fire (this is where your thought race ahead and you are inundated with data).

6. I forget what this one is (I don't have it).

 

The second thing I found out last year when I was tested while in Pittsburgh that I have Asperger's as well (mild form - if there is such a thing). The odd thing is here I am not the typical Asperger guy. I look people in the eye all the time. I will be the first one at the party to have found out what everyone does, believes or whatever before most people have talked with three people. I am liked by most people I meet and only hated by a few. Boy though do I rub some people the wrong way. My wife says I have absolutely no social skills, yet I had enough to charm the pants off her?!

 

Like you (somewhat) I have had problems in school. Mostly I was bored and found my own ways to learn. In fact I can learn a lot faster if allowed to do at my own pace. in 7th grade math we were allowed to study at our own rate. I finished the book in 6 weeks and was given permission to go to the library to find other material where I found books on Topology and taught myself that a vest was not really in side your jacket. In college freshman I took a level of classes that all the guidance counselors said that I would flunk. I was on the Dean's list. Later on in college I learned that if I worried, that my test performance would be horrible.

I didn't quite make grad school. I often put stuff together without even reading the directions, deducing what goes where by looking at the parts.

 

So for the ADHD, I receive medication that I got from the Amen clinic.

 

Personally, the reason that I left college was because I was failing miserably, not because I couldn't work hard and overcome the stress, but because it was clearly impossible to complete the material when the teachers can't even figure out how to integrate it into their course curriculum properly.

 

As for the topic of discussion which, for some reason, I put into the topic title; I was diagnosed with a two of those disorders and I feel like I never even had them, I just responded poorly to school, because once I graduated, my behavior improved, until I decided to go to college, and my attitude started up again.

 

I know I might not know what I am talking about, but I think that someone here might could either shoot my theories in this topic down or confirm them. Either way I learn more on the subject.

 

Forgive the disgustingly illiterate topic title, I will think twice before writing my next one.

I would say you might do better if you knew more about what you had. There might be a solution. Seek assistance at getting to the bottom of it.

 

maddog

Edited August 30, 2012 by maddog

[CraigD]

Autism, asperger's syndrome, OCD, Bipolar Disorder, ADHD and ADD …

The disorders Transhumanist mentions are not all part of the same “spectrum” of neurological and behavior disorders, so shouldn’t be lumped together when discussed, so I’ll break them into relate groups in this post.

 

Autism, Asperger’s syndrome, and a third disorder recognized in standard psychological diagnosis as PDD-NOS, are believed to be related physical brain disorders, so are termed “autism spectrum disorders” (ASDs). They’re characterized by difficulty in learning language, social skills, and repetitive, stereotypical behavior, especially involving arranging objects in stacks and lines.

 

Bipolar disorder, known in the past as manic depression, is a mood disorder characterized by experiencing periods of feeling emotional high (mania) alternating with periods of feeling emotional low (depression). It’s believed to be unrelated to ASDs.

 

Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder characterized by feeling afraid for long periods, especially feeling that bad things will happen to you if you don’t perform precise rituals, such as opening and closing doors specific numbers of times.

 

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a behavior disorder standardly classified into 3 kinds:

• Predominantly inattentive, characterized by difficulty staying on task, especially reading and writing in a school setting. Although since 1994 the term is not recognized in the current DSM, it was and still is commonly referred to as Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
  
• Predominantly hyperactive-impulsive, characterized by difficulty keeping still and quiet and waiting ones turn
  
• both inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive, a combination of these two
  

 

Before talking much about these disorders, I think it’s a good idea for everyone to recognize the standard terms, diagnostic criteria, and suspected caused for them, by reading and comprehending at least the wikipedia articles I’ve linked to above.

 

[ASDs, OCD, Bipolar Disorder and ADHD] aren't necessarily genetic like Down Syndrome or flat out retardation, and aren't the result of missing chromosomes and such, they are environmentally induced epigenetic brain disorders.

Empirically (via twin studies, etc.) some of these disorder, such as the ASDs, clearly are heritable, some are not. Although the genetics and epigenetics of the disorders that appear heritable are not well-understood, and appear to be complicated, involving many genes and/or epigenetic factors, research progress in is ongoing.

 

Although the term epigenetic lacks a clear consensus definition at present, I think it’s important to understand that as identified by most definitions, epigenetic factors are usually heritable, not caused after birth by ones physical or social environment. Although there’s a whole industry built around claims that disorders such as autism are caused by external influences, such as routine childhood vaccinations, these claims have been extensively investigated, and found to be without empirical or scientific merit.

 

There’s ample credible, though tentative, scientific evidence that profound neurological changes can be caused by external substances, both via obvious causes, such as brain injuries, and possibly subtle ones, such as T. gondii infections.

 

In recent years these (environmental) disorders have particularly been increasing in children, as education as become more and more grueling as material keeps being added to the curriculum.

While this hypothesis makes sense for some disorders, and is supported by many therapists and clinicians, it doesn’t for others.

 

ADHD is, in large part, a diagnosis specific to how children react to school, or less commonly, adults to academic, professional, or social settings. The characteristics identified as criteria for diagnosis a person with ADHD are present to some extent in all people – we all sometimes have difficulty concentrating, socially appropriate waiting patiently and quietly for our turns, etc. So, while heritable predispositions and learned behavior and attitudes are a factor in the disorder, changes in teaching methods and school curriculum (especially teaching coping skills), and professional and social policies and norms can worsen of alleviate a given individual’s ADHD.

 

ASDs, on the other hand, are believed to result from pre-natal developmental abnormalities, and, to meet diagnostic criteria, must be observed (or be likely to have been present) prior to 3 years of age, before most children diagnosed with it are in any sort of “grueling” school environment. So, while teaching special coping skills to autistic children is important for their long term happiness and health, school can’t be reasonably deemed a cause of ASDs, because ASDs appears in children before they begin school.

 

My personal familiarity with ASDs is second hand and informal. I have several friends who worked as teachers and program designers for special education schools for children with ASDs. My wife and son worked for several years as assistants in one of these schools.

 

In the early 1990s, Asperger’s Syndrome, an ASD, appeared in English language literature. My ASD specialist friends learned about it in professional seminars, and shortly after informally diagnoses it in, and explained it to, me. While such informal diagnoses need to be taken skeptically – almost anybody who “sound smart” tends to be informally diagnosed as an “Aspie”, even when, as in my case, he shows few other characteristic matching the diagnostic criteria (I’m social, like physical contact, etc) – one traits of mine led me to conclude that their diagnosis of me has some merit is that I have a significantly sub-normal ability to identify people who I know personally or publically from their faces. Though it’s not obvious to most people, I tend to visually ID people by characteristic such as height, build, clothing, jewelry, etc. rather than by recognizing their faces. I’m nearly clueless in games and test involving matching public figures with photos of their faces.

 

Autism (which, had events unfolded differently, might have been named “Kanner’s syndrome) and Asperger’s syndrome have a fascinating history, much to do with the psychologists who discovered and popularized them, and the impact of WW2 on their careers and availability of their writing – Kanner immigrated to the US in 1924, so was fairly unaffected by the war, while Asperger suffered through the thick of it, actually losing much of his writing and his assistant and sister when the school they started near the end of WW2 was bombed. Asperger’s work, which he published mostly in 1944, wasn’t rediscovered, and its relationship to Kanner’s and later autism researchers recognized, until 1981.