4 ms·

It has just dawned on me that I know someone with Williams Syndrome, and I think this idea of an "opposite" is actually quite valuable. The title does put 'the

It has just dawned on me that I know someone with Williams Syndrome, and I think this idea of an "opposite" is actually quite valuable. The title does put 'the opposite of autism' in quotes, to make it clear it's someone's phrasing, not a matter of fact, but the body of the article quotes someone from a foundation for the disease saying: > "There is a classic autistic profile to which Williams Syndrome is the polar opposite. People can gauge the mood of a crowd and adopt without understanding the nuances of the situation." That, it seems to me, could be a defensible point. That is not something you'd ever say an autistic person would be good at; it's antithetical. But more to the point, not everything is an attack on autistic people. These are people trying to make a case that people should care about and be aware of the welfare needs associated with a poorly-understood disorder (which is maybe a hundred times rarer than autism). It would be fair I think to allow them the room to explain that.

shazbotter 1y ago
An autistic person can absolutely be good at that. It might not be intuitive, but that doesn't mean they can't be good at it. > But more to the point, not everything is an attack on autistic people No one said it was. I said it perpetuates a stereotype. I think that's different than an attack, personally. It's careless, not malicious. But careless can still be irritating.
- Fnoord 1y ago
  Yes, an autistic person can train such, and learn to mask (autistic women are especially trained to mask). I suspect that is what happened here with Williams Syndrome, but that is merely my hypothesis. Are there brain scans such as MRI available of people with Williams Syndrone? Those might be interesting to compare.
  - exasperaited 1y ago
    They are not masking and pretending to be loveable and huggable -- it is very obviously different. These two videos are by an interviewer who works with special needs kids/adults: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxZ7aZMFHPE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxZ7aZMFHPE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjlwtKAO6yw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjlwtKAO6yw As you can see it's also a physical development disorder, and it may bring to mind Downs syndrome more than autism (indeed, the young woman in the first video makes this comparison and understands the difference). The thing it makes me want to ask a scientist is to what extent does Williams Syndrome change the mirror neurons or their processing.
dimal 1y ago
That’s the opposite of an incorrect stereotype. The idea that autistic people don’t have empathy is false. I’m autistic. Of all the other autistic people I know (about a dozen) all are highly empathetic. To neurotypical people we often don’t appear empathetic but that’s very different. This disorder actually sounds somewhat adjacent to autism. Many autistic people have intense affective empathy and get overwhelmed by other’s emotions, especially in groups. But often we just shut down, which appears like nothing is registering and we have no empathy.

shazbotter 1y ago

An autistic person can absolutely be good at that. It might not be intuitive, but that doesn't mean they can't be good at it. > But more to the point, not everything is an attack on autistic people No one said it was. I said it perpetuates a stereotype. I think that's different than an attack, personally. It's careless, not malicious. But careless can still be irritating.

Fnoord 1y ago
Yes, an autistic person can train such, and learn to mask (autistic women are especially trained to mask). I suspect that is what happened here with Williams Syndrome, but that is merely my hypothesis. Are there brain scans such as MRI available of people with Williams Syndrone? Those might be interesting to compare.
- exasperaited 1y ago
  They are not masking and pretending to be loveable and huggable -- it is very obviously different. These two videos are by an interviewer who works with special needs kids/adults: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxZ7aZMFHPE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxZ7aZMFHPE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjlwtKAO6yw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjlwtKAO6yw As you can see it's also a physical development disorder, and it may bring to mind Downs syndrome more than autism (indeed, the young woman in the first video makes this comparison and understands the difference). The thing it makes me want to ask a scientist is to what extent does Williams Syndrome change the mirror neurons or their processing.

dimal 1y ago

That’s the opposite of an incorrect stereotype. The idea that autistic people don’t have empathy is false. I’m autistic. Of all the other autistic people I know (about a dozen) all are highly empathetic. To neurotypical people we often don’t appear empathetic but that’s very different. This disorder actually sounds somewhat adjacent to autism. Many autistic people have intense affective empathy and get overwhelmed by other’s emotions, especially in groups. But often we just shut down, which appears like nothing is registering and we have no empathy.