Konstantin Nikkari

Photo by Polina Kovaleva

What is autism and who is an autistic person

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Konstantin Nikkari
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ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), autism spectrum disorders, and Tourette’s syndrome are all developmental neuropsychiatric illnesses. They are congenital or appear in early childhood. ADHD and autism spectrum disorders share a symptom profile comparable to Asperger syndrome. ADHD is a relatively less common disorder in the population (3%), and autism is even rarer (1%). Please note that autism can also, and often is, being diagnosed in adults, not just children. Autism is typically diagnosed in both men and boys. According to Kähkönen and colleagues, the significantly lower incidence of women with autism is attributable to diagnostic criteria based on the symptom picture of boys in 2020, as well as qualitative differences in the symptoms of girls and boys.

Classification

Autism spectrum disorders are wide-ranging developmental disorders. The Finnish Medical Association Duodecim’s Käypä Hoito, an expert summary on the diagnosis and treatment effectiveness of individual diseases, classifies these disorders in the ICD-10 index. The World Health Organization (WHO) maintains this list, which classifies health conditions, including fatal diseases. Each country belonging to WHO uses the ICD classification for national disease statistics. The ICD-10 lists childhood autism under code F84.0. Other examples include F84.2 for Rett’s Syndrome, a rare disorder mostly affecting females and causing severe cognitive and physical impairments, and F84.5 for Asperger’s Syndrome, characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction and non-verbal communication, alongside restricted and repetitive behaviours and interests, without a significant delay in language or cognitive development. This information is from the Autism Parenting Magazine website.

Syndrome characteristics

From early childhood, autistic people often have difficulties with social interaction, limited routine activity patterns, abnormalities in imaginative functions, and sensory regulation issues (Kähkönen 2020). Depression and anxiety symptoms affect more than half of people with autism. Similarly, learning and sleeping issues are prevalent. Depression can also emerge as a concomitant psychiatric condition if a person has repeated failures in their lives. In the book of Kähkönen et al. 2020 is written that persons with autistic symptoms who seek therapy have their autism entwined with a complexity that includes environmental pressures and psychological difficulties. They frequently mention loneliness, trouble in social circumstances, sadness, interpersonal disputes, inability to regulate rage, employment challenges, frustration with independent living, and sleep problems. Furthermore, it is common for parents of young autistic adults to disclose their child’s characteristics such as angry outbursts, a lot of routines, retreat from social contacts, a lack of motivation, procrastination, not taking care of himself, and sleep issues.

Sensory sensitivities

Another intriguing characteristic of autistic people is their hyper- or hyposensitivity (Banich 2020). In terms of meaning, hyper and hypo are opposites. A heightened or exaggerated reaction to sensory stimuli is referred to as hypersensitivity. Hypersensitive people can easily become overwhelmed by intense odours, tastes, textures, bright lights, and loud noises. Situations or surroundings that they find overly stimulating are often avoided, or they may take protective measures if forced to enter the surroundings. For instance, wearing tinted lens-glasses indoors or using noise-canceling headphones in a noisy area. Conversely, hyposensitivity denotes a diminished or understated reaction to sensory inputs. Hyposensitive people can need stronger or more intense stimuli in order to react to them or even notice them. Strong tactile experiences, like as rough play or tight hugs, may be what they seek out, making them less sensitive to pain than normal people are, as well as less aware of or receptive to startling noises or bright lights.

Challenges in information processing

The incapacity to process information is the fundamental issue with autism. An account from a patient undergoing treatment clarifies this incapacity. As soon as psychotherapy began, the autistic person emphasised how happy he was that someone finally understood how he thought and solved difficulties. He expressed his relief at being with a professional, since he had never met someone who could relate to him. It seems of sense that effective psychotherapists need to be aware of the differences in the way autistic people mentally absorb everyday events. Kähkönen et al. 2020 claim that “defective mind theory” is related to how autistic people handle social and non-social situations—or are unable to do so. For example, an autistic person might believe a friend knows their needs and expects support in a nervous situation, even if this was never communicated. When the friend fails to provide support, the autistic individual might think the friend did this on purpose, leading to a broken relationship.

Why autism happens

“Obsession with baseball statistics.” Ha! That is, according to Bahich et al. 2020, a repetitive and fixated narrow interest which can be a sign of an autistic person. I type ha! as I know multiple men, mostly men, who are narrowly fixated on ice hockey or football statistics. And, they are not autistic, but rather like to (unconsciously) activate their brains in one narrow subject which is familiar for them. That is a something where they don’t need to study or learn new unknown habits, and at the same time these statistics provide enough stimuli and variation to the familiar data that the brain feels attraction to the subject. I then wonder how obsessed you must be that the criteria of you being autistic is met. I don’t know, but surely addictive ice hockey statistics are not the cause for autism. What then is it? 

Although the precise aetiology of autism is unknown, research suggests that a mix of genetic and environmental factors is most likely to be to blame. Given that autism tends to run in families, genetic variants and mutations may be important. Pregnancy-related environmental factors include advanced parental age, drug exposure during pregnancy, and difficult deliveries. Going back to Bahich’s book, I appear to find that autistics have areas in the brain which are partially or completely dysfunctional. Let’s try to understand this.

ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), autism spectrum disorders (ASD), and Tourette’s syndrome are all developmental neuropsychiatric illnesses. They are congenital or appear in early childhood. ADHD and autism spectrum diseases share a symptom profile comparable to Asperger syndrome. ADHD is a rare disorder in the population (3%), and autism is even rarer (1%). It is also found in adults. Autism is typically diagnosed in both men and boys. According to Kähkönen and colleagues, the significantly lower incidence of women with autism is attributable to diagnostic criteria based on the symptom picture of boys in 2020, as well as qualitative differences in the symptoms of girls and boys.

Classification

Autism spectrum disorders are wide-ranging developmental disorders. The Finnish Medical Association Duodecim’s Käypä Hoito, an expert summary on the diagnosis and treatment effectiveness of individual diseases, classifies these disorders in the ICD-10 index. The World Health Organization (WHO) maintains this list, which classifies health conditions, including fatal diseases. Each country belonging to WHO uses the ICD classification for national disease statistics. The ICD-10 lists childhood autism under code F84.0. Other examples include F84.2 for Rett’s Syndrome, a rare disorder mostly affecting females and causing severe cognitive and physical impairments, and F84.5 for Asperger’s Syndrome, characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction and non-verbal communication, alongside restricted and repetitive behaviours and interests, without a significant delay in language or cognitive development. This information is from the Autism Parenting Magazine website.

Syndrome characteristics

Autistic people struggle with social contact, have limited routine activity patterns, have abnormalities in imaginative functions, and frequently have abnormal sensory modulation (Kähkönen 2020). Depression and anxiety symptoms affect more than half of people with autism. Similarly, learning and sleeping issues are prevalent. Depression can also emerge as a co-occurring psychiatric condition if a person has repeated failures in their lives. In the book of Kähkönen et al. 2020 is written that persons with autistic symptoms who seek therapy have their autism entwined with a complexity that includes environmental pressures and psychological difficulties. They frequently mention loneliness, trouble in social circumstances, sadness, interpersonal disputes, inability to regulate rage, employment challenges, frustration with independent living, and sleep problems. Furthermore, it is common for parents of young autistic adults to disclose their child’s characteristics such as angry outbursts, a lot of routines, retreat from social contacts, a lack of motivation, procrastination, not taking care of himself, and sleep issues.

Sensory sensitivities

Another intriguing characteristic of autistic people is their hyper- or hyposensitivity (Banich 2020). In terms of meaning, hyper and hypo are opposites. A heightened or exaggerated reaction to sensory stimuli is referred to as hypersensitivity. Hypersensitive people can easily become overwhelmed by intense odours, tastes, textures, bright lights, and loud noises. Situations or surroundings that they find overly stimulating are often avoided, or they may take protective measures if forced to enter the surroundings. For instance, wearing sunglasses with tinted lenses indoors or using noise-canceling headphones in a noisy area. Conversely, hyposensitivity denotes a diminished or understated reaction to sensory inputs. Hyposensitive people can need stronger or more intense stimuli in order to react to them or even notice them. Strong tactile experiences, like as rough play or tight hugs, may be what they seek out, making them less sensitive to pain than normal people are, as well as less aware of or receptive to startling noises or bright lights.

Challenges in information processing

The incapacity to process information is the fundamental issue with autism. An account from a patient undergoing treatment clarifies this incapacity. As soon as psychotherapy began, the autistic person emphasised how happy he was that someone finally understood how he thought and solved difficulties. He expressed his relief at being with a professional, since he had never met someone who could relate to him. It seems of sense that effective psychotherapists need to be aware of the differences in the way autistic people mentally absorb everyday events. Kähkönen et al. 2020 claim that “defective mind theory” is related to how autistic people handle social and non-social situations—or are unable to do so. For example, an autistic person might believe a friend knows their needs and expects support in a nervous situation, even if this was never communicated. When the friend fails to provide support, the autistic individual might think the friend did this on purpose, leading to a broken relationship.

Why autism happens

Photo by Robo Wunderkind.

“Obsession with baseball statistics!” Ha! That is, according to Bahich et al. 2020, a repetitive and fixated narrow interest which can be a sign of an autistic person. I type ha! as I know multiple men, mostly, who are narrowly fixated to ice hockey or football statistics. And, for sure they are not autistics, but rather like to activate their brains in one narrow subject which is familiar for them. That is a something where they don’t need to study or learn new unknown information, and at the same time these statistics provide enough stimuli and variation to the familiar data that the brain feels attraction to the subject. I then wonder how obsessed you must be that the criteria of you being autistic is met. I don’t know, and surely addictive ice hockey statistics are not the cause for autism. What then is it? 

Although the precise aetiology of autism is unknown, research suggests that a mix of genetic and environmental factors is most likely to be to blame. Given that autism tends to run in families, genetic variants and mutations may be important. Pregnancy-related environmental factors include advanced parental age, drug exposure during pregnancy, and difficult deliveries. Going back to Bahich’s book, I appear to find that some neurologically intact people who have autism have partially or completely dysfunctional brain regions as their cause. Let’s try to understand this.

Given the severe social impairments exhibited by autistic children, it is not surprising that numerous researchers studying autism have looked at the brain systems involved in social cognition. When approached, autists may scream as if being assaulted upon. They might act as if other people are pieces of furniture or looking throught them as if they didn’t exist. When participants were asked to mimic emotional facial expressions, autistic individuals’ premotor areas were not as extensible as did control participants. This effect is called broken mirror theory (Iacoboni and Dapretto, 2006: Oberman and Ramachandran, 2007). It is believed that the mirror neuron system is not operating normally in autism. Additionally, their incapacity to recognise certain facial cues—like gaze direction—that are particularly helpful for social interaction is related to the broken mirror. In a study, the control group and autistics were looking at the picture of faces which were either looking at a target or gazing off in a different direction. To which nonautistic participants showed a pattern of brain activity in the superior temporal sulcus that was sensitive to the gaze direction while autistic participants did not (Banich, 2020).

A task sensitive to gaze direction activates superior temporal sulcus in control participants but not autistic particapants (Banich 2020).

Conclusion

I hope this essay helps you and me understand the basics of autism. It only scratches the surface of what autism is and who is affected by it, and doesn’t really address the question of why certain individuals are born with autism. Please do create a curiosity on this topic because, in my opinion, autistic people may be very helpful if they discover their niche in society. They generally do badly in social settings, but I think they do well in fields like gaming, graphic design (art in general), the stock market, and engineering. It is essential to assist them in discovering their position and career. And what I have learned so far that jacks of many trades are not the highest paid professionals in our society but rather the people who are solid pro’s with tens of thousands hours spends e.g. analysing baseball, are.

For more information, consider reading my post about whether to use “autistic person” (identity-first) or “person with autism” (person-first) when talking about someone with autism spectrum disorder. 

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