Neurotransmitters Flow in this Autism Mind

Grief as an emotion can impact the autistic community in very different ways

In this article, Hari discusses his own moving experiences with grief after the recent loss of both of his grandparents and how grief as an emotion can impact the autistic community in very different ways.

As well as being a Neurodiversity Inspired Science and Engineering Fellow, Hari is a Ph.D. neuroscience student at Vanderbilt University, a graduate of UC Berkeley, a PD Soros Fellow, a Fellow at the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation, a non-federal member of NIH's Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee, and on various boards including Duke University's ACE and The Brain Foundation. He is a Public Voices Fellow of The OpEd Project.

You can read the full article here: https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/giving-voice/202402/the-spectrum-of-loss-grief-through-the-autistic-lens

Power dynamics of ABA

https://autisticselfadvocatesagainstaba.wordpress.com/2020/04/13/problematic-and-traumatic-why-nobody-needs-aba/?fbclid=IwAR3aeHROwIEr2uaRmsw7i1oBuOy90Cln8cMgi_nJ4bZGT87VckcUhTUoOqA

Some points that resonated in this article.

The problem with reinforcements.

"tablet time” is used as reinforcement. This is a problem because many autistics rely on their tablets for communication. Many autistics are non-speaking, and to take away their means of communication is one reason increasingly aggressive or “challenging” behaviors persist — they are not being heard or understood and the only way left to communicate their discomfort, pain, or any other needs has been taken away."

The loss of childhood.

"A child is typically expected to participate in 25-40 hours of ABA therapy each week; that is 5-8 hours a day of repetitive, uncomfortable, or potentially painful demands and broken down tasks, of few or no breaks, of being presumed incompetent, and of not having adequate accommodations.

Lack of training and quality control.

"Many ABA practitioners are Registered Behavior Technicians (RBT)s, which any 18-year old with a high school diploma could be by taking a 40-hour training and passing an exam."

Long term trauma and PTSD

"A survey of 460 autistic adults and caregivers of autistic children evidenced that 46% of those who participated in ABA therapy met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD, and 47% of those meeting this diagnostic threshold experienced severe symptoms (Kupferstein, 2018)."

Yet, still touted as the gold-standard EBT

"Yet ABA is still widespread throughout the United States and it is recommended under the premise of being an effective evidence-based practice. However, there is weak evidence that ABA is an effective behavioral treatment. Rated on the GRADE system the quality of evidence is low to very low (Reichow, Hume, Barton, & Boyd, 2018). In fact, “of the 58 studies done on Lovaas’ ABA therapy, only one was found to meet the U.S. Department of Education’s standards for scientific evidence."

There is some irony in the hashtag. Today is

#RandomActsofKindnessDay

On this day, we tweet and we post.

Hashtags to flaunt, kindness to boast.

A day to be kind, as if it's a task.

"Do good deeds," our social feeds ask.

But why, oh why, do we need reminders?

Is kindness so rare, that we wear blinders?

Shouldn't it weave through our daily thread,

Not just on days when hashtags are spread?

Should kindness not be our everyday quest?

Compassion the core of our heart's daily vest.

Lives have worth, without the #sign.

Kindness not staged for a digital reaction.

But the essence of our daily interaction.

For those on the spectrum the range of mourning is even wider and complex

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/giving-voice/202402/the-spectrum-of-loss-grief-through-the-autistic-lens

Hari, This is a VERY important piece. When our Dad died in 2017 (he was an amazing autism advocate), both my brothers on the spectrum dealt with his death very differently, and yes of course, they are very different from each other. Brother 1, who has profound IDD, had a very delayed mourning. He may have thought his father was going to come back. Finally a year+ after Dad's death, we had an additional memorial. This one reality hit him. He stopped eating, drinking, tons of crying ... it took around 6 weeks for the extreme mourning issues for him to subside. Brother 2 never once wanted to be seen shedding a tear. That had and has been very tough for all of the remaining siblings (there are six of us) and my mother to watch. So yeah, everyone of us handles grief differently. For those on the spectrum the range of mourning is even wider and complex. Thank you for sharing your wise insight and I am so sorry for your loss of both of your grandparents.

Helping Autistics adapt their approach to grief is crucial

"Understanding & helping autistics adapt their approach to grief is crucial, allowing them to process loss in a way that respects their unique experiences & needs." @HariSri108

https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/giving-voice/202402/the-spectrum-of-loss-grief-through-the-autistic-lens

Psychology Today: "Autistics often process emotions and sensory inputs differently, and intense emotions like grief can be particularly overwhelming." Here's what everyone needs to know.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/giving-voice/202402/the-spectrum-of-loss-grief-through-the-autistic-lens

Memories

This memory popped up in my feed today.

This was my first semester at The Daily Californian, when I wrote a weekly column with editors Chantelle and Dohee.

Understudied experiences of autistics

Hari, You’re doing a truly spectacular job thoughtfully articulating so many understudied experiences that leaves expert and novice reader alike more informed, more grounded, and moved.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/giving-voice/202402/the-spectrum-of-loss-grief-through-the-autistic-lens

FCAI Fellow Publishes Article in Psychology Today regarding grief in the autistic community

FCAI NISE Fellow Publishes Article in Psychology Today Regarding Grief in the Autistic Community

Frist Center for Autism and Innovation Neurodiversity Inspired Science and Engineering Fellow Hari Srinivasan has published a new article in Psychology Today about the impact of grief on the autistic community.

In this article, Hari discusses his own moving experiences with grief after the recent loss of both of his grandparents and how grief as an emotion can impact the autistic community in very different ways.

As well as being a Neurodiversity Inspired Science and Engineering Fellow, Hari is a Ph.D. neuroscience student at Vanderbilt University, a graduate of UC Berkeley, a PD Soros Fellow, a Fellow at the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation, a non-federal member of NIH’s Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee, and on various boards including Duke University’s ACE and The Brain Foundation.He is a Public Voices Fellow of The OpEd Project.

You can read the full article here: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/giving-voice/202402/the-spectrum-of-loss-grief-through-the-autistic-lens

Understanding Mental Time Travel and Autism

A PlainSpeak Plain Language version for Lay Reader

What is Mental Time Travel (MTT)?

MTT is our brain's amazing ability to think back to past events or imagine what might happen in the future. For example, you might think back to a fun birthday party or imagine what your next vacation will be like. MTT helps us move through time in our minds, so we can remember, plan, and dream.

How Do Scientists Measure MTT?
Scientists have a way to measure this ability called the MTT Task. In this task, people are given words like "graduation" or "vacation" and asked to either remember something from their own life or imagine something in the future. For example, you might think of your own graduation day in the past or imagine what a future vacation could be like.

Scientists use this task to understand how well people can remember specific events from their lives (like their own birthday) or think about events that could happen in the future (like planning a holiday). This helps them learn more about how our brains work when we think about the past and future, especially in people with different conditions like aging or mental health issues.

MTT and Autism: What Do We Know?

Scientists are starting to learn that autistics might think about the past and future a little differently. Some autistics might find it hard to remember specific personal events or to imagine detailed future plans. This could be because of differences in how their brains work when recalling memories or imagining the future.

But it's important to remember that everyone with autism is different. Some may find these tasks easy, while others may find them more challenging. By studying how autistics use MTT, scientists hope to learn more about how they think about time and how we can better support them.

Future research could look at

How Autistics Remember: Understanding how autistics remember personal events and how this might be different from others.
Imagination and Planning: Learning more about how autistics imagine the future and plan for it.
Brain Studies: Using special brain scans to see how the parts of the brain involved in MTT might work differently in autistics.

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Versions of this post: [MTT PlainSpeak For the Lay Reader], [MTT For the Academic/Science Reader], [A Simple Definition of MTT]

Related Posts: [Autism Theories], [Sensorimotor], [Neuroscience of Autism]