Tag: autism
What the Fidget Spinners Fad Says About Disability Discrimination
From Thinking Person's Guide to Autism: For decades, autistic and developmentally disabled people have been conditioned and coerced into behaving like neurotypical people, including suppressing...
Our World: My Child, ECT and Me
A new episode of BBC's Our World investigates the increased usage of electroconvulsive therapy on children in America.
Smash the Blue Lights: Autism Speaks is a âDanger to Self...
There are few around Mad in America territory who would argue against the dangers of the National Alliance for Mental Illness. But as a movement, we often fail to recognize the dangers of their much younger sibling named âAutism Speaksâ.
Autism’s Drug Problem
From Scientific American: Many autistic children are prescribed multiple psychiatric medications, which can lead to serious adverse effects and are often ineffective.
"Multiple diagnoses lead to...
ASAN Condemns White House Autism Proclamation
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network has voiced opposition to the President's autism proclamation and participation in Autism Speaks' "Light it Up Blue" Campaign. The...
Take a Flyer Off a Wall: Six Hours in the Hole
Once your body enters a police car or an ambulance, it doesnât matter what labels you carry or what the apparent âsymptomsâ are. It doesnât matter if you even have any label at all. The moment you acquire a mental illness is when someone who doesnât like you decides that you have one.
Why I Resigned From The Mighty
The apprehensions I'd initially had about joining the team returned to my mind. I'd allowed my original cautious disposition to be overtaken by optimism when I had accepted a position of contributing editor with The Mighty, but my hopes were about to be dashed.
Kids Diagnosed with Autism More Likely to Get Psychotropic Drugs
Children diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are much more likely to be prescribed a psychotropic medication.
Children with Autism may be Over-diagnosed with ‘ADHD’
A commonly used ADHD diagnostic measure may find overlapping symptoms in autism and ADHD, resulting in over-diagnosis.
More Children Receiving âOff-Labelâ Antipsychotics for âADHDâ
Over the past twenty years, the number of prescriptions for atypical antipsychotics written to children and young adults between four and eighteen has increased...
Paxil Linked to Birth Defects, Cardiac Malformations
According to the CDC, January is National Birth Defects Prevention Month. New research continues to link various SSRI antidepressants with birth defects and neurological abnormalities in newborns. The latest study to examine this topic, a meta-analysis led by Dr. Anick BĂ©rard, found a 23% increased risk for birth defects, and a 28% increased risk for heart problems, in the infants of women who took the SSRI Paxil (paroxetine) during their first trimester.
âAutism’s Lost Generationâ
âSome autistic adults have spent much of their lives with the wrong diagnosis, consigned to psychiatric institutions or drugged for disorders they never had,â Jessica Wright writes in The Atlantic.
âSesame Streetâ Welcomes First Character with Autism
Last Wednesday, Sesame Street added a new character, Julia, to its roster of characters. In an online story, Julia, who has autism, meets Elmo and Abby and Elmo explains why Julia might sometimes do things a little bit differently. The story was written by Leslie Kimmerman, who has a child with autism, and the entire series will be developed in collaboration with parents, advocates, and people with autism.
Over Ten Thousand Unfiled Claims Against Risperdal Over Breast Growth in...
Johnson & Johnson is exposed to personal injury and product liability lawsuits over the failure to warn about Risperdal gynecomastia side effects in boys.
âThe Myth of the âAutistic Shooterââ
âAlthough there is no established connection between autism and murder, some eagerly leapt to causality and scapegoating,â Andrew Solomon writes in the New York Times. âTarring the autistic community in this manner â like presuming that most black people are thieves or that most Muslims are terrorists â is an insidious form of profiling. It exacerbates the tendency for people with autism to be excluded, teased and assaulted in childhood and adulthood.â