A's major tic is nail biting. Fingers and toes, he does not discriminate. He becomes fixated on it to the point that we've had bloody fingers and practically missing toenails. And did I mention, he hates band aids? Many of those in A's life don't see this part of him.
There are so many things that go unseen in the world of A. Because of this, I often hear that "he must be high functioning" or "he looks like he is doing well".
A has his moments when he can "pass". Pass you ask? Yup, pass for being a neurotypical kid. From the moment he wakes, to socializing in school, to getting through homework without help or a complaint. He can pass.
Ask us at 2am when he is wide awake watching TV for hours if he is doing well though.
When he sits in the back seat of my car talking to his big brother and repeats one word, so softly you can barely hear it, over and over and over. That's his Palilalia (click here to learn more about it). I listened to the name Christopher over and over for a good 30 seconds this morning.
When he tells me he doesn't want to live anymore because of his "stupid autism", I am not seeing a high functioning little boy.
No, he may not be in a wheel chair so his disabilities may go unseen to the average person. But they are there, he lives with them day in and day out.
Why must we separate those with Autism into "functioning" categories? When we do this, we are just creating another label in a world where we are judged by these labels. That "high functioning" kid doesn't need as much therapy because he's barely autistic, right? Or maybe you'd assume that the non-verbal child on the spectrum is "low functioning" because they can't communicate? Or can they?
When people can't necessarily see a disability, it's like they need a word to define the degree of the disability.
Bottom line is high and low functioning labels are pointless. Acknowledge that every autistic individual has their own sets of strengths and weaknesses and focus on getting them the support to deal with both
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