Richard's Animorphs Forum
Animorphs Section => Animorphs Forum Classic => Topic started by: rocklobster on June 10, 2009, 03:47:25 PM
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I think Tobias seems slightly autistic at times. Even before he became an animorph, he was quite withdrawn and he's not very good at fitting in. Plus in #23, he admits he's no good at facial expressions, a typical autistic trait.
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I don't think he is. He had a hard life prior to becoming an animorph, so that could cause him to be a sort of withdrawn and not good at making friends. He's not good at facial expressions because he's not used to having to make them. He's normally a hawk.
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I don't honestly think so.
Tobias was just bullied, and as such, would naturally be suspicious of others. This would lead to higher levels of social alienation, both self-inflicted due to the aforementioned suspicion, as well as a consequence of few people wanting to hang out with the 'loser' who always got bullied. Being ostracized, he wouldn't gain much social experience, explaining the awkwardness.
As for facial expressions - Like Anitiger said, hawks don't make them.
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i don't think he is, but about the facial expressions... make he couldn't do them voluntarily, being used to a hawk, but his body is still human so he shouldn't forget how to do involuntary facial expressions, like smiling when laughing...
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maybe he has asperger's syndrome
OR MAYBE HE'S JUST A WEIRD KID WHO LIKES ALIENS AND DINOSAURS
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how is that weird at all?
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When I was a kid, I loved aliens and dinosaurs.
That doesn't make me weird, right? Right?
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um here is the dictionary.com definition of "weird kid":
1) an adolescent between the ages of 10 and 15 who likes both aliens and dinosaurs
2) Tobias from Animorphs
sorry guys
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I don't think he is. He had a hard life prior to becoming an animorph, so that could cause him to be a sort of withdrawn and not good at making friends. He's not good at facial expressions because he's not used to having to make them. He's normally a hawk.
What he said. He also become more withdrawn after being tortured in #33 but that's pretty normal too.
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I think Tobias seems slightly autistic at times. Even before he became an animorph, he was quite withdrawn and he's not very good at fitting in. Plus in #23, he admits he's no good at facial expressions, a typical autistic trait.
i think it's because he's been a nothlit for so long.
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um here is the dictionary.com definition of "weird kid":
1) an adolescent between the ages of 10 and 15 who likes both aliens and dinosaurs
2) Tobias from Animorphs
sorry guys
you can only search 1 word on dictionary.com. so there wouldn't be any result for the phrase "weird kid". I even checked it just now.
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you don't know how to use the reverse dual unitisitc algorithm on dictionary.com?
I thought everyone knew how to do that...
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you don't know how to use the reverse dual unitisitc algorithm on dictionary.com?
I thought everyone knew how to do that...
you do know "unitistic" isn't a word?
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you don't know how to use the reverse dual unitisitc algorithm on dictionary.com?
I thought everyone knew how to do that...
you do know "unitistic" isn't a word?
thats the joke morf
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you don't know how to use the reverse dual unitisitc algorithm on dictionary.com?
I thought everyone knew how to do that...
you do know "unitistic" isn't a word?
thats the joke morf
[spoiler]I know. I was playing along. or at least trying to[/spoiler]
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Autism is a neurobiological disorder that is first manifested in children under the age of three. It is a life-long disability that is often characterized by repetitive movements, perseveration, communication impairments and lack of social skills. I'm going to assume that you're referring to either high functioning autism or Asperger's disorder when you ask this question in regards to Tobias. That being assumed, the primary deficits or characteristic of Aspergers are a lack of appropriate social communication due to to an inability to understand social language, thinking and various other aspects of social communication. At times, EVERYONE exhibits one or more of these characteristics. However, that does not make us autistic. Tobias is socially awkward and is lacking friends, but if you look at the environment in which he was raised i think that these problems are self-explanatory.
That being said, as a professional qualified to give an educational diagnoses of autism, I would definitely agree that "no, Tobias does not have autism." *steps off of soapbox*
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Autism is a neurobiological disorder that is first manifested in children under the age of three. It is a life-long disability that is often characterized by repetitive movements, perseveration, communication impairments and lack of social skills. I'm going to assume that you're refering to either high functioning autism or Asperger's disorder when you ask this question in regards to Tobias. That being assumed, the primar deficits or characteristic of Aspergers are a lack of appropriate social comminicatiom due to to an inability to understand social language, thinking and various other aspects of social communication. At times, EVERYONE exhibits one or more of these characterstics. However, that does not make us autistic. Tobias is socialy awkard and is lacking friends, but if you look at the environment in which he was raised i think that these problems are self explanitory.
That being said, as a professional qualifiesd to give an wducational diagnoses of autism, I would definitely agree that "no, Tobias does not have autism." *steps off of soapbox*
Show off. :P
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Thanks Kenny. >:) That'swhat happens when you dedicate 50+ hours a week to teachin and soing behavioral therapy with kids with autism. I typed that from my phone so I'll have to fix all of the typos when I get home.
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It's good to have a professional opinion on things from time to time. I think a better question would be whether his angst/wangst is justified or not. Sometimes characters really do have good reason to angst, but since no one likes to hear too much complaining at one time, they'll start disliking a character for it anyway.
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problem is, what's "complaining" to one person, goes practically unnoticed by another person...
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Jess you totally did that to show off LOL i bet you were waiting for a thread like this to show up
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who voted tobias being slightly autistic?
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Autism is a neurobiological disorder that is first manifested in children under the age of three. It is a life-long disability that is often characterized by repetitive movements, perseveration, communication impairments and lack of social skills. I'm going to assume that you're refering to either high functioning autism or Asperger's disorder when you ask this question in regards to Tobias. That being assumed, the primar deficits or characteristic of Aspergers are a lack of appropriate social comminicatiom due to to an inability to understand social language, thinking and various other aspects of social communication. At times, EVERYONE exhibits one or more of these characterstics. However, that does not make us autistic. Tobias is socialy awkard and is lacking friends, but if you look at the environment in which he was raised i think that these problems are self explanitory.
That being said, as a professional qualifiesd to give an wducational diagnoses of autism, I would definitely agree that "no, Tobias does not have autism." *steps off of soapbox*
Ugh, thank you.
How much of an idiot do you have to be to assume that someone is autistic just because they're socially awkward and how is that not offensive to people who unfortunately do have that disabilitiy?
Wow.
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Jess you totally did that to show off LOL i bet you were waiting for a thread like this to show up
No. I did that to hopefully de-rail a stereotype that someone has about autism.
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Jess you totally did that to show off LOL i bet you were waiting for a thread like this to show up
No. I did that to hopefully de-rail a stereotype that someone has about autism.
Hear, hear.
Sorry, I'm not sure if anyone meant to offend anyone else, but being socially awkward or lacking facial expressions (*cough* hawk morph) doesn't equal autism. Jess nailed it, because she's awesome and does this sort of thing for a living. My sister is special needs and a lot of her friends are autistic. Not to mention some of my own friends. Honestly, sometimes I feel more socially awkward than most of them!
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Wouldn't his knowledge of dinosaurs count as a very specified interest commonly seen in children with aspergers or autistic spectrum disorder? Yes his home life is a factor. Really we don't see enough of him as a human to say he is autistic or not. Once he is trapped it makes things hard to figure out. I forget if he is described as withdrawn from school or not.
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who voted tobias being slightly autistic?
who voted tobias being slightly autistic?
I did.
I voted for that because... I am slightly autistic. I got the diagnose autism only some years ago (Unfortunately I was too normal and too intelligent so it took many years before anyone even noticed that something was wrong) Anyway, I think its quite possible that Tobias have something in that way, he seems normal and intelligent too. What convinced me about this is that Jake said he use to look at the sky and dream, actually everything Tobias did in the first book proves this, I don't think I had done one thing different...
I just want to say one more thing. Autism is NOT bad, your brain just works in another direction but still you get the same answer (at least for those people who you can't tell have it if you don't know). I have even heard a hearsay that Einstein had something. Then it can't be something to be ashamed of?
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Tobias is not autistic just introverted and depressed to the crapy conditions he was raised in.
Trust me I actually have friends who are autistic and am slightly autistic myself.
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Autism is a neurobiological disorder that is first manifested in children under the age of three. It is a life-long disability that is often characterized by repetitive movements, perseveration, communication impairments and lack of social skills. I'm going to assume that you're refering to either high functioning autism or Asperger's disorder when you ask this question in regards to Tobias. That being assumed, the primar deficits or characteristic of Aspergers are a lack of appropriate social comminicatiom due to to an inability to understand social language, thinking and various other aspects of social communication. At times, EVERYONE exhibits one or more of these characterstics. However, that does not make us autistic. Tobias is socialy awkard and is lacking friends, but if you look at the environment in which he was raised i think that these problems are self explanitory.
That being said, as a professional qualifiesd to give an wducational diagnoses of autism, I would definitely agree that "no, Tobias does not have autism." *steps off of soapbox*
Ugh, thank you.
How much of an idiot do you have to be to assume that someone is autistic just because they're socially awkward and how is that not offensive to people who unfortunately do have that disabilitiy?
Wow.
It might be akin to people saying so many children have ADD or ADHD, when a generation or two ago people would just say they're just being children.
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I just want to say one more thing. Autism is NOT bad, your brain just works in another direction but still you get the same answer (at least for those people who you can't tell have it if you don't know). I have even heard a hearsay that Einstein had something. Then it can't be something to be ashamed of?
I absolutely agree with this comment.
(I also wanted to add, I hope this wasn't in reference to my comment. My comment was mean to be an attempt to inform, and hopefully stop people from assuming that anyone who's social awkward has autism. This isn't true, and makes people less likely to accept and understand those who truly do have it - Kind of like what Chad28 was explaining.)
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(I also wanted to add, I hope this wasn't in reference to my comment. My comment was mean to be an attempt to inform, and hopefully stop people from assuming that anyone who's social awkward has autism. This isn't true, and makes people less likely to accept and understand those who truly do have it - Kind of like what Chad28 was explaining.)
It wasn't, and you are right, people really need to know more about this.
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Wouldn't his knowledge of dinosaurs count as a very specified interest commonly seen in children with aspergers or autistic spectrum disorder?
I don't think it would really qualify as a restricted interest, seeing as he only mentioned it in MM#2. If he was doing it all the time, then yeah.
I mean, I know lots of useless facts about various topics other than dinosaurs...
It might be akin to people saying so many children have ADD or ADHD, when a generation or two ago people would just say they're just being children.
This! I hate how everything has to be a ~*disease*~ now.
No, your kid isn't sick, he's just a brat.
:/
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who voted tobias being slightly autistic?
who voted tobias being slightly autistic?
I did.
I voted for that because... I am slightly autistic. I got the diagnose autism only some years ago (Unfortunately I was too normal and too intelligent so it took many years before anyone even noticed that something was wrong) Anyway, I think its quite possible that Tobias have something in that way, he seems normal and intelligent too. What convinced me about this is that Jake said he use to look at the sky and dream, actually everything Tobias did in the first book proves this, I don't think I had done one thing different...
I just want to say one more thing. Autism is NOT bad, your brain just works in another direction but still you get the same answer (at least for those people who you can't tell have it if you don't know). I have even heard a hearsay that Einstein had something. Then it can't be something to be ashamed of?
Very well said. And wow, I'm exactly the same as what you've said. Only diagnosed a few years ago, smart and too normal to set off any alarms earlier. Although I do have the social awkwardness problem. It's wierd, I find online interaction easier than face to face. Eye contact feels uncomfortable.
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This! I hate how everything has to be a ~*disease*~ now.
No, your kid isn't sick, he's just a brat.
:/
Amen to this as well. You wouldn't BELEIVE some of the kids I've had referred at school for special education services.
Seriously people, if you'd just spend a little time with your kids, and make them do their fricken' homework we wouldn't be having these problems. Your kids are sucking services and funding away from the students who really do need help. Stop wasting my time, and messing with your child's head.
Autism is not a designer label. ADD/ADHD are not designer labels. Childhood Bi-Polar/Depression are not designer labels. They're all serious disorders that do affect people, and by taking them so lightly, you're totally screwing with the ability of professionals to accurately diagnose and treat these problems.
Blah.
*steps off of soapbox again*
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I have thought about this for a while... I know I will not be very popular after this but...
If anyone of the animorphs were autistic, its not Tobias. Its Rachel.
I have allready admitted that I am slightly autistic myself. There is more, I can't be afraid if its not a very prolonged danger or a phobia. And the prolonged danger have to be very long. I wouldn't get time think I should escape if a tiger entered the room for example. And shopping would count as her special interest (in that case).
And about lack of social skills... I have two autistic friends who are exactly the opposite... (Which more exactely means... have too much social skills... they can be quite annoying)
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I must have a really low understanding of what autism is, if anyone starts talking about Rachel being autistic. I thought autism was a disorder where a person has little to no ability to socialize at all, though they can be creative if their mind is focused on one thing. Which is why a 1 year old with autism can make a tower of blocks with excellent symmetry and color coordination. But he or she won't show any facial expression or respond to speech.
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Every on in the world... have a very low understanding of what autism is.
By the way. Cassie seems a little autistic too. Animals are the most common special interest... if you don't count timetables...
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That's three now. The Autisticmorphs...
I really don't understand autism, but reading these posts saying Tobias, Rachel and Cassie could be autistic doesn't help me understand it. Or make any sense.
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The way I interpret it, the core issue is often hypersensitivity to external stimulation. Those of us with only mild forms only have trouble with things like social skills but more severe forms are are so problematic because the person can't process and make sense of the sights, sounds, smells, ect, their brain is recieving from the world around them. My brain only overloads when there are too many facts at once, like math, or I'm trying to remember a bunch of things at once. It often seems like I can't remember common sense things.
I hope I at least came close to being right there. That's how I've heard it described even though I don't feel that way, probably because I'm only mild.
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Asuburger's= someone who has been diagnosed by A quantified Doctor to have the disorder.
Aspie= a person who self-diagnosed him/her self and uses it as an excuse to act like a a-hole on the internet.
now, seeing as that we lack a doctor in the house who can actually study the characters, i don't think that this issue will get resolved anytime soon..
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now, seeing as that we lack a doctor in the house who can actually study the characters, i don't think that this issue will get resolved anytime soon..
Agreed.
But I did want to add onto the thoughts about Rachel and Cassie...both of them have good social skills. They aren't hyper/hyposensitive to external stimulation. They both communicate effectively and efficiently. I wouldn't think either of them would fall anywhere on the spectrum. I think that everyone is grasping at straws here, but it makes for good conversation.
Autism is something that is hard to understand. It's nice to know adults who are able to explain more about it.
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Autism is a spectrum. Some people have it bad and can't function, other people appear normal and you might not notice anything.
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Asuburger's= someone who has been diagnosed by A quantified Doctor to have the disorder.
Aspie= a person who self-diagnosed him/her self and uses it as an excuse to act like a a-hole on the internet.
Not necessarily true. I know plenty of people who are diagnosed with Asperger's and refer to themselves as Aspie's.
As for the question at hand, I don't think that any of the Animorphs displayed signs of autism. Tobias certainly comes closest, but I'm fairly certain that his societal disconnect was more of a result of his environment than anything else. He comes from an emotionally abusive household, and he is bullied by kids his age. Obviously that would limit social skills.
When I was 13 I was very much like Tobias. I was shy and had difficulty connecting with people. I always seemed to say the wrong thing and, more often than not, was a target for bullies. That doesn't mean that I have autism, it's just a matter of circumstance.
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I think Tobias seems slightly autistic at times. Even before he became an animorph, he was quite withdrawn and he's not very good at fitting in. Plus in #23, he admits he's no good at facial expressions, a typical autistic trait.
I would say he isn't. He was the "loner" type, and even I'm quiet and withdrawn most of the time (or I was at his age XD Bit more outspoken now, admittedly, but I still see myself as totally antisocial). As far as the facial expressions go, I believe he said that was a product of being a nothlit - and it fits. If you're not used to using those muscles, you won't always remember how to. Like Ax has a problem speaking with a human mouth. If you're not in human form for a while, you...sort of forget how to be human.
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I think Tobias seems slightly autistic at times. Even before he became an animorph, he was quite withdrawn and he's not very good at fitting in. Plus in #23, he admits he's no good at facial expressions, a typical autistic trait.
Straws.
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This is the quote where Tobias explains why he doesn't make facial expressions:
"Are you okay? You don't seem surprised."
No, I didn't, I realized with a start. I had forgotten to make facial
expressions. It was something I didn't do as a hawk.
He's explaining that since he's so accustomed to being a hawk, he's forgotten to make facial expressions.
None of the characters had autism. I think KA would've mentioned it in the first book if any of them did.
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Exactamundo.
It's a little annoying these days, all of the over-diagnosing of autism and ADD. Ridiculous.
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True!
*whinning tone* "My child can't sit down and stay quiet, he must have ADHD."
"NO! You just have to stop feeding your kid so much sugar and let him play outside more often! Be a GD parent for once!"
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True!
*whinning tone* "My child can't sit down and stay quiet, he must have ADHD."
"NO! You just have to stop feeding your kid so much sugar and let him play outside more often! Be a GD parent for once!"
I agree. Everyone wants to make excuses for their problems instead of admitting faults and trying to correct them. Just lower the standards some more.
There are people out there that have these diseases/disorders, but too many people claim to have it that don't.
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You know what? Being born in the 80's, when Ritalin was subscribed to pretty much every-other-kid once they're old enough to speak, I'm almost willing to give some credit to Tom Cruise and his mistrust of psychiatrists.
Sure, the guy's a messed up looneytune. But I think on that point he's probably at least partially accurate.
I just think psychology is a pretty dangerous thing, when you get it wrong. You subscribe a pre-schooler Ritalin when he doesn't need it, who the hell knows what effect that has by the time he's a teenager/young adult? Side-effects are proven. Side-effects when the kid didn't have the condition in the first place? Risky.
It just seems parents need to actually re-learn the art of disciplining their kids and raising them properly, instead of sitting them in front of a TV and then using psychiatry excuses to make themselves feel better, once their child starts misbehaving. Because, you know, it couldn't possibly be bad parenting, the kid's obviously just insane.
Damn quick-fix lazy society.
It's the same with the "obesity epidemic". Right. "One in four Americans/Australians/Brits is morbidly obese!" - Dumb. One in four? Yeah, researcher-man, you're an idiot. Take a walk down the street sometime. Pass 30 or so people. I guarantee 8 of them aren't Fat Albert.
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I think my parents gave me ritalin, or something like that. But that was for terets, which I do have. My mom said that made me hostile, or something. Like argumentave, and angry. Now I've just learned to live with it.
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You probably don't have Tourette Syndrome.
It's reasonably rare. Look into it, get a second and third opinion, you never know the crap parents pull when you're too young to comprehend the consequences.
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Well, I've got something.
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we all have something chad
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No, we don't, that's the thing. There's a difference between regular phased behavior as a kid and a mental disorder.
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Very true, parents are so freaked out about the kid reporting them to CPS, or a friend suing, or some bull like that, they don't discipline their child the way the child needs. Some kids need to be smacked to get a point across. When I was a kid, my parents gave me warnings after warnings, and the only thing that stopped me was the threat of getting hurt, and the knowledge that if push came to shove, I they WOULD make good on that threat.
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Meh, I mean I was never really smacked as a kid. Probably once or twice, I mean I was aware that they probably would if I did something really crazy.
It's just about balance, man. Beating kids and having them live in fear isn't right either. But the soft new-age approach is absolute impractical tosh preached by limp-wristed cocooned medical types with the real-world experience and wisdom of a snowpea.
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I remember a guy talking about this on Comedy Central. He said that when he was a kid and did something bad, his dad would throw a shovel througjh the wall. Whatever he did to make that happen, never happened again. But now if he yells at his kid, he's in anger management classes. They put him on Zoloft or something. Crazy stuff like that.
Everything in moderation. I know my neices just don't get the picture until we whack them on the hind end sometimes.
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I just think psychology is a pretty dangerous thing, when you get it wrong. You subscribe a pre-schooler Ritalin when he doesn't need it, who the hell knows what effect that has by the time he's a teenager/young adult? Side-effects are proven. Side-effects when the kid didn't have the condition in the first place? Risky.
I actually DO have ADHD, and refuse to take Ritalin. I took for about 2 weeks in 7th grade. Now, I'm a paranoid person to start with. Ritalin enhanced that paranoia SO much that I once opened every window in the house in under a minute because I could smell the cigarette smoke from when my uncle visited an hour ago.
Yeah. That was when my parents took me off the Ritalin.
I still have ADHD. Have pretty much every single symptom of it, even the lesser known ones. But instead of drugging myself to get rid of it, I learned work-arounds to help me out.
Although I still laughed when I started college, and they offered me a "distraction free room" to take tests in. There is no such thing as a "distraction free room" for someone with ADHD.
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I'm just skeptical about it, I guess. It obviously has its place in society, but I just can't help but wince at the power psychiatrists have over people's lives. That 5-year-old kid running around acting crazy is prescribed pills without comprehending even slightly why, and having to potentially deal with crazy chemical imbalances into his teens and later in life. It's not really something you want to make a mistake with.
I was diagnosed with ADD by some random school psychiatrist visiting different elementary schools to "help parents" or whatever too. I'm just lucky my folks didn't take it seriously enough to medicate me. By the time I was 13 they forked out the money for a second opinion from an actual clinical specialist, the guy basically just laughed and said that something like 50% of kids born in 1986 were diagnosed with the same thing.
The autism thing seems the same. "This kid's quiet and doesn't like football. AUTISM!!1!!1roflwaffles."
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It just seems parents need to actually re-learn the art of disciplining their kids and raising them properly, instead of sitting them in front of a TV and then using psychiatry excuses to make themselves feel better, once their child starts misbehaving. Because, you know, it couldn't possibly be bad parenting, the kid's obviously just insane.
Damn quick-fix lazy society.
It's the same with the "obesity epidemic". Right. "One in four Americans/Australians/Brits is morbidly obese!" - Dumb. One in four? Yeah, researcher-man, you're an idiot. Take a walk down the street sometime. Pass 30 or so people. I guarantee 8 of them aren't Fat Albert.
Yeah, it's called the Blame Syndrome....
As for ADHD, I do believe it exists, but I don't think we should turn to methamphetamines for help in controlling it. I think the kids or whoever's taking it could get addicted, and COME ON. It's meth in pill form. How could that possibly be good for you?
My step sister actually has the worst case of ADHD I've ever known. She's the most rude, disrespectful, interruptive, annoying, agitating, and the craziest person (not just child) I've ever encountered. I know it's not just ADHD though. She seems to have acquired Tourettes...I know, it doesn't seem possible. Reminds me of that South Park episode where Cartman "acquires" it. It seems to have happened last November. She's been coughing for no reason...just short, little coughs that couldn't clear your throat in a million years. And she has this thing where she'll say Yay or just joyfully shriek for some reason. She'll also laugh when nothing's funny. I don't think that last one is Tourettes, just insecurity, since she wants someone to laugh with her or something. Oh well. I don't know what her problem (s) is. At least now she's off her meth pills and her mom's trying a different, natural method. Haha, get it? METHod. Ya, I'm not good with jokes. And believe me, my stepmom's not a bad mother. She's just got one f*cked up kid.
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She's been coughing for no reason...just short, little coughs that couldn't clear your throat in a million years.
Actually, I think I might know what that is. I have something like that, too. It's called post-nasal drip. Basically, the nasal cavity is tilted a bit too much towards the throat, and all the stuff in it, well, drips. For lack of a better word. It gets into your throat enough to be irritating and make you cough, but not enough to actually be dangerous.
[/fountain of useless information]
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She's been coughing for no reason...just short, little coughs that couldn't clear your throat in a million years.
Actually, I think I might know what that is. I have something like that, too. It's called post-nasal drip. Basically, the nasal cavity is tilted a bit too much towards the throat, and all the stuff in it, well, drips. For lack of a better word. It gets into your throat enough to be irritating and make you cough, but not enough to actually be dangerous.
[/fountain of useless information]
Does it have any effects on your nose? When she gets into this coughing phase (it lasts for about 5 days to a week), it doesn't effect anything else.
Have you always had this condition?
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I've always had it, yeah, and it doesn't have any other effect other than stuff dripping into your throat.
It's a bit sporatic on how often it happens. *shrugs* Tends to happen more if I've been laughing a lot.
My parents thought it was a nervous tick for a really long time, until my mum met someone who's daughter had the same thing.
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Meh, I mean I was never really smacked as a kid. Probably once or twice, I mean I was aware that they probably would if I did something really crazy.
It's just about balance, man. Beating kids and having them live in fear isn't right either. But the soft new-age approach is absolute impractical tosh preached by limp-wristed cocooned medical types with the real-world experience and wisdom of a snowpea.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying beat every kid that acts out. I'm saying that some kids require the threat of violence. I agree that balance is the best, but every person is different. Some children need more force, some don't, but you do have to keep force as a last resort.
I have a friend with mild ADHD, he's constantly clearing his throat, he must have that as well.
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I have the dopey kind of ADD that females get... I was given ritalin as a child but because my father listened to people like Tom Cruise (fortunately not tom cruise himself) he took me off ritalin. Later after struggling horribly through high school, getting the lowest UAI in my year and being fired from a few jobs. My sister persuaded me to see a psychiatrist, he perscribed me ritalin, it really works, it really works I am now able to get high distinctions in my bridging course in order to get into university as a mature aged student. I resisted the whole ADD thing for a long time because all the boys at school who were mean, nasty, stupid, illiterate and ugly behaved badly I would say "alex is an awful mean stupid boy" and someone else would say "it"s not his fault he has ADD" now i know that those boys don't have ADD they are just sociopaths. A lot of nasty stupid people are labelled ADD because nobody wants to tell their bogan parents that their child is a sociopath.
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Actually, Tobias may have Asperger's Syndrome. I myself was diagnosed with it, and I see a lot of similarities between us, which most likely explains why I always liked his character the most. The bullying could also be a factor, like him I used to be bullied too, then I started standing up for myself. But this is an interesting theory.
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well Tobias doesn't show personal space issues or obsessive behavior.
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True, but not every case is the same, but your point does make sense.
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Also in answer to the Meth question: Meth on the streets is neither regulated nor prescribed. Its the dose that makes the poison remember. When prescribed for someone with the right condition and in the right amount, it can have beneficial effects. This is true of any drug. Its abuse that causes problems.
I feel that this whole topic has devolved a bit into an argument about the over diagnosis of children with mental conditions... on the Animorphs forum. Tell me, is anyone here actually a doctor?
Back to Tobias. I just don't think we can concluded he has Autism from what is seen in the books. Maybe if there is a new series this can be delved into further, but there really is not enough evidence. All we can say is that Tobias was kinda nerdy and awkward as a human.
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I was bullied like hell, but I am not autistic/aspergers. Having said that, Tobias was not my favourite character, so perhaps animefanboy you are more able to empathise with him.
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I was bullied as well when I was a kid. I related the most with Tobias. And I don't have any medical conditions.
Just 'cause you're an introverted social outcast, doesn't mean there's something medically wrong with you.
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I never said their was. I was just saying he had shown some things that would suggest he may have it. I don't think it was anything like that, I should have been more slow to label. :-[
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That wasn't directed towards you, man. It was mostly directed at this whole thread.
The fact that this argument has gone on and on is kind of annoying.
Look, Animorphs is KA's universe. They're her characters. We can't say a character has an illness if KA didn't state it.
Personally I wish this thread would get locked.
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*hopes this thread is locked after this post*
Autism is a neurobiological disorder that is first manifested in children under the age of three. It is a life-long disability that is often characterized by repetitive movements, perseveration, communication impairments and lack of social skills. I'm going to assume that you're referring to either high functioning autism or Asperger's disorder when you ask this question in regards to Tobias. That being assumed, the primary deficits or characteristic of Aspergers are a lack of appropriate social communication due to to an inability to understand social language, thinking and various other aspects of social communication. At times, EVERYONE exhibits one or more of these characteristics. However, that does not make us autistic. Tobias is socially awkward and is lacking friends, but if you look at the environment in which he was raised i think that these problems are self-explanatory.
That being said, as a professional qualified to give an educational diagnoses of autism, I would definitely agree that "no, Tobias does not have autism." *steps off of soapbox*
Yup. Quoting myself.
Also, going to add this. Who here has heard of feral children? Those are children who are raised outside of human society. Some are kids who are locked up in a cage in a basement, others are ones who have been raised in nature for one reason or another, away from people. These children do not learn typical human behaviors, becuase they are kept apart from humans showing these behaviors. If anything, I would compare how Tobias is acting to how a Feral child acts when exposed to human society.
In reality, feral children lack the basic social skills which are normally learned in the process of enculturation. For example, they may be unable to learn to use a toilet, have trouble learning to walk upright and display a complete lack of interest in the human activity around them. They often seem mentally impaired and have almost insurmountable trouble learning a human language. The impaired ability to learn language after having been isolated for so many years is often attributed to the existence of a critical period for language learning, and taken as evidence in favor of the Critical Period Hypothesis.[citation needed]
His lack of skills/inappropriate skills are not from a neuro-biological disorder, but self-admittedly from a separation from human culture. So, perhaps he is some sort of reverse feral child.
In short: If people are going to insist on labeling Tobias, I'm going to insist we label him as being feral.
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maybe he has avoidant personality disorder like shinji ikari?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avoidant_personality_disorder
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Nah. He's an angsty kid, who's stuck in a hawk's body. He's pissed off becuase he's gotten a tough break, and he's losing social skills becuase he doesn't have the opportunity to practice them.
Not everyone who is quite, or lonely, or not popular has something wrong with him. I wish everyone would stop trying to label him. Sigh.
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is this thread still going on? I thought it'd be pretty clear by now that Tobias doesn't have autism...
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Yeah, I'm going to ask that this thread be locked.
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This thread doesn't seem to need banning exactly, but I do see your point. It seems pretty clear to me that Tobias didn't suffer from autism, he was just a shy, lonely kid who'd been through a lot.
Since it's been requested, I will lock this thread. If anyone wants it unlocked and can think of a valid reason to do so, please PM me.
*locked*
:lock: