Autism partially curable

Autism is a neurological disorder/ difference , where the brain is wired up differently. It is not caused by mineral deficiencies before birth , and saying this untruth could cause mother's to feel guilty . It is part of who someone is , and can not be cured.

ah yes but the brain's wiring can and is affected by many things during the time spent inside the mother....

I don't see the point in messing with a child that is yet to be born. The effects could be inverse.

- Chadders.

I do not want to be cured of my autism . I want to be accepted for who i am.

drifter5 you *couldn't* be "cured" of your autism. I think that you miss the point. The reason you don't want to be cured of it is because it has shaped and help define who you are - and this is also why you can't be cured of it, because your brain's setup is finalized.

Babies/Children whose brains are still developing however potentially could receive treatment for autism/as. And that is something worthy of support. I'm quite accepting of my Aspergers Syndrome, but if and when I have a son or daughter I pray to God they won't be afflicted as I am. And if there was a detection mechanism and subsequent treatment in the event they were, I'd be signing at the dotted line.
Reconcile that with the fact that I don't hate myself or see myself as being sub-human and possibly you realise the alternate angle here.


cheers
-cc

createcoms said:

drifter5 you *couldn't* be "cured" of your autism. I think that you miss the point. The reason you don't want to be cured of it is because it has shaped and help define who you are - and this is also why you can't be cured of it, because your brain's setup is finalized.

Babies/Children whose brains are still developing however potentially could receive treatment for autism/as. And that is something worthy of support. I'm quite accepting of my Aspergers Syndrome, but if and when I have a son or daughter I pray to God they won't be afflicted as I am. And if there was a detection mechanism and subsequent treatment in the event they were, I'd be signing at the dotted line.
Reconcile that with the fact that I don't hate myself or see myself as being sub-human and possibly you realise the alternate angle here.


cheers
-cc

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Consider the fact that God often uses affliction to draw us closer to Himself. Our spiritual growth is far more important, than personal happiness, as Christians. Is trying to change someones character and personality truely accepting them as they are ? We are made the way we are by God for a reason. I see so many positive aspects to being autistic. God loves me just as much whether i am autistic or not. I have nothing against people taking social skills classes if they want to, or having "treatment " for problems that may bother them, e.g. taking anxiety tablets, help for depression, etc. What i do not support is lack of acceptance of differences in people, and trying to brainwash / force others
in to thinking a different way to what comes naturally to them.
We are all equally valuable to God.

I think that it is a form of bullying to try and force an autistic child to act in a " normal" way, e.g force him to give eye contact when he is not comfortable with it.

Who in this thread is suggesting that sort of action?

Please actually try to read more carefully what I am saying.

Again, the idea of "curing" an adult person who is on the Autistic Spectrum is NOT what I'm suggesting and is neither a good thing or plausible.


But treating a baby or child who has been detected as having an Autistic "disorder" is very much something which will allow that child a higher quality of life. Now you can tell me that if you are born with ten legs and no arms (I'm using outward genetic defects here to make the point clearer, so be mindful of the analogy) that you are happy to be that and don't want to be cured, God still loves you etc etc. Thats all very fine, and true. But as a Parent deciding whether or not to have some of those legs removed and adding some arms (if such things were possible medically), I believe you would be down right *selfish* not to because it's blatantly obvious the difficulties that would exist if such action wasn't taken. And Autism is also a difficulty is many respects, and this is not discounting the good things which grow from such difficulties as they are harmonised by that person in their development. The point is though, that they can become something great without what would be, if treatment were developed for Autistic afflictions - an *unnecessary* impairment. Support Autistic people, encourage and tolerate them - celebrate their uniqueness. But don't suggest for a moment that the spectrum is some wonderland we should wish for all to come.....

I certainly do not think that autism is a wonderland ! The sensory difficulties that i experience, the internal daily struggles, is not what i would call a wonderland !!! !! In fact it has often led me to feel suicidal. However ,i believe that there is a reason for God making me this way, and that my life has just as much purpose as everyone else. God has not promised any of us an easy life, but He has promised to always be with us.Life is hard - but God is Good! Remember ,too ,that God's power is made perfect in our weakness. As Christians, our main aim should be to seek to bring God glory, and not about our own personal happiness. Also, consider that there are sometimes great risks involved during operations, treatments, etc. These risks could seriously harm, and / or kill your/ones child.

As Christians , one of our main aims should be spiritual growth, rather than worldly success,fame,etc. Often we learn to lean on God the most during struggles and difficulties. We can become more loving and compassionate people through hard times.God can help us to be thankful even for difficult times. God can help us to accept and be thankful for our autism, too. Lets pray for each other that God will help us to do this.

Autism effects the way we think, our character and our very person , from when we are born. In this way ,i think , that it is different from a purely physical impairment, or perhaps, even a mental illness. In trying to completely remove the autism, i feel, that it is like rejecting the person her/him self .

drifter5 said:

I certainly do not think that autism is a wonderland ! The sensory difficulties that i experience, the internal daily struggles, is not what i would call a wonderland !!! !! In fact it has often led me to feel suicidal. However ,i believe that there is a reason for God making me this way, and that my life has just as much purpose as everyone else. God has not promised any of us an easy life, but He has promised to always be with us.Life is hard - but God is Good! Remember ,too ,that God's power is made perfect in our weakness. As Christians, our main aim should be to seek to bring God glory, and not about our own personal happiness. Also, consider that there are sometimes great risks involved during operations, treatments, etc. These risks could seriously harm, and / or kill your/ones child.

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Okay so you admit there are difficulties, struggles - and so this therefore allows your Autistic disorder to fall under the word affliction. http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=affliction

Autism is an affliction. Stop trying to beat around the bush or candy coat it.


But this is not the most disturbing issue here, because these are relatively mundane issues. What really worries me is that you think that God gave you Autism!

However ,i believe that there is a reason for God making me this way

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Here's what I believe, because you love to protect your statements with "I believe" and I'm sure that we can all at the end of the day just believe whatever, so I will add that I believe this is the absolute truth on the matter. I believe that God made Mankind in his *perfect* image, we were without sin and were in the Garden of Eden. Then Eve was tempted by the snake, the Apple was eaten and Adam scoffed some too (All this is found in Genesis). The implications of this are so much more than a simple act of sin followed by God no longer hanging out with them on such an intimate level.

What happened as the result of this? The Fall of not just the entire race of man, but of this whole world! Everything has death, decay, disease, etc etc because we poisoned his perfect world with sin. All diseases, all death, all pain everything that is not good came about because we sinned and so the fall happened.

Yes God made Mankind, and in doing so had the infinite foresight of all that would exist including yourself. So yes God designed you, but he designed you perfect and without death. Using the freewill he also allowed us, we chose to sin and in doing so the *entire* future and all people of it including yourself and myself were affected. So we now die, we now have diseases, genetic defects, *autism*, etc etc

God never wanted you to have, never gave you, autism. Just like he doesn't want anyone to have cancer, or anything else unpleasant. Bottom line is though, we stuffed up. Thankfully God loves us to pieces so he already had a plan lined up, to send his only son so that our belief in him will allow us to be resurrected at the end of time to that perfection and eternity which he has always wanted for us. God will not step in to correct the fall until then and so there is the affliction that even his believers (you and I) must endure. But in all bad things, God can produce Good things if a person relies on and trusts in his will and allows the Holy Spirit to work it's way. We will bring glory to him, as you say his Perfection is revealed in our weaknesses and for that we can be truly thankful.

But God didn't give you Autism. And so once again, you should be all for the prevention of autistic impairments. A baby or child isn't fully developed so you aren't rejecting the person or anything ludicrous like that. You are enabling a different path, and allowing them to become someone equally as important.

Well, God did allow me to be born with autism, certainly. There is a reason for everything that happens in our lives. It says in The Bible that God has a perfect plan for our lives. God does sometimes allow difficulties in our lives, to help teach us to lean on Him. God has allowed us to have the brains , personality and character that We are born with, for a reason. I have nothing against autistic people receiving help for seperate co-morbids,e.g anxiety, depression, sensory issues , etc. My objection is when people talk about trying to cure autism, itself.

I am very sad that you would object to preventing a baby or child from being hindered by Autism.

God allowed disease to happen after the fall, so should doctors have not bothered curing anything because after all God allowed it so it must be endured at all costs? Do you see how this thinking falls flat on it's face?

Just because God allowed it to happen, just because people have served a purpose and do serve a purpose for God with any sort of struggle doesn't mean we shouldn't try to stop these struggles, these afflictions, these diseases and discomforts which are many in this world.

I do not see autism as a disease, and therefore i do not think that it needs to be cured .

You have already admitted that autism gives you struggles. Regardless of what title would then be applied to something that is promoting struggles - it is in the interests of a compassionate humanity to try and remove those struggles as we do with everything and anything.

You seem to be saying that you like your struggles and wouldn't be without them. Which is fine because thats your choice, but you are also wishing that on everyone else (by objecting to a cure for autism)who will have autism in the future which is selfish. To want them to have those struggles because in your mind it's not a "disease" and *you* are quite comfortable (now theres a contradiction) with them, is really beyond any reasoning that I can think of.

How can you want others to be Autistic? You cannot sit on the fence. You either want it cured or you want it to continue.....

As someone with Aspergers, I don't want others to struggle in the ways that I have and continue to. Thats despite the fact that i share your sentiment, but on a strictly personal level - in that I wouldn't give my Aspergers up because it is simply too big a part of me now. There is a critical difference in accepting Autism for you, now and accepting it for others, those that are to come. The first one is logical, the second one isn't.

So you seem to be saying that it is compassionate and selfless to want to do away with autistic people, then ? There are many people on the autistic spectrum, including those with classic autism , who would strongly object to this. Let their voices be heard too ! The Bible says that we should protect the vunerable in society.

There is no cure for Autism at this time. If God wants us to find a cure, He will lead someone to the cure, and until then there is no reason to question whether or not it should be cured. We all need to pray and ask God for guidance and wisdom and then follow the path that God wants us to take - even though he gave us the choice not to.