Sometimes, I think the categorization of people as normal and not normal is very vague. The not so normal looking people do have some exceptional qualities which the so-called normal people do not have and if this is the case, are some people really not normal? I got a chance to listen to this wonderful TED talk, titled ‘The world needs all sorts of minds’, by Ms. Temple Grandin who is a very famous Animal Scientist. As I was listening to her, all these thoughts were crossing my mind as I could observe a change in my perspective about autism.
Autism or ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) is a developmental disorder according to medical science and it did not become a very easy subject to study till 20th century but it was not that earlier generations did not have this disorder. People did suffer, but could not go through proper diagnosis or treatment. Autism is characterized by restricted social interaction, repetitive behaviors, restrictive social communication, difficulty in flexibility of thought and organizing that is they suffer in terms of social imagination.
In spite of being diagnosed as incapable in all these above-mentioned areas, these people hon some exceptional qualities. ASD is usually diagnosed at an early age in children and all these symptoms becomes quite prominent from an early age. Though the severity of symptoms might be of varying degrees.
Looking at the positive side, autistic children are exceptionally good in certain areas and have their own fields of strength, namely, they have specialized knowledge in a particular area, they have good spatial and visual memory, they are methodical and organized, they are more focused, they have greater ability to understand abstract concepts and have an edge in problem solving or logical reasoning. How can we say that these people or children are having some disorder? The only thing is that they perceive things differently and in an exceptional way!
We all as normal people have lot of distractions in life and we are prone to so many things that shake our will power and cause disturbances in achieving our goal but being diagnosed as suffering from a neurological disorder, Autistic people or children are very special and exceptional performers. Few more to add to the list are Steve Jobs (Former CEO of Apple), Bill Gates (Co-Founder of Microsoft Corporation), Charles Darwin (Naturalist, Geologist and Biologist), Albert Einstein (Scientist and mathematician), Susan Boyle (singer), Lewis Carrol (Author of ‘Alice in wonderland’). All these names rule the world and had been diagnosed as Autistic. Hence, the talk by Ms. Temple Grandin, ‘The world needs all sorts of brains’!
Yes, we have all these people from different fields and they had been exceptional. So, people let’s embrace and understand the needs of these special children as I am sure many of you must have come across an autistic child as this is the third most common developmental disorder that children suffer from.
So, next time you come across an autistic child, appreciate and recognize the special characteristics of that child and treat him or her as normal by becoming a part of their special world.
August 15, 2020
Blog link of Navpreet Brar
-
-
Navpreet Brar, Blogger
navpreet.kuku@gmail.com
Disclaimer : The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the writer/author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of Babushahi.com or Tirchhi Nazar Media. Babushahi.com or Tirchhi Nazar Media does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.