The Dawn of Neurodiversity
April 23, 2009, by Prudence Baird
A "brainbow " of neurons in the hippocampus of a transgenic mouse
April is World Autism Awareness Month. In the United States today, one of every 150 children born will be diagnosed with autism, an incurable neuro-developmental disease that impacts an individual’s ability to interact socially, to communicate and to manage his or her own behavior around transitions, new routines, people and new information.
Prudence Baird is getting a master’s certificate degree in Autism Spectrum Disorders and has a personal interest in brain development, as her youngest son suffered anoxia at birth and has a diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome. She shares her views on a different kind of diversity.
One of my dreams is time travel to the time when humans numbered in the millions instead of the billions. Doesn’t that seem exciting—raising a glass of ale with Wm. Shakespeare, hanging with Jesus on the Mount, seeing firsthand the Great Pyramid at Giza being built?
But let’s not fool ourselves. If we should suddenly drop out of the ether into an earlier time, it wouldn’t be that easy for us to blend in with the natives. Our words (even if they were understood) would be misconstrued and misinterpreted. What we take for granted—having our own teeth at age 50 or just being able to walk in public as a single woman—would be considered weird and somewhat threatening. Chances are we’d be burned at the stake or beaten with sticks within moments of touchdown.
Our brains, our reasoning abilities and our collective unconscious have evolved over the millennia, much more so than our bodies. Chances are that with the proper training, a Neanderthal could drive a car. (In fact, I think I saw one on the 101 freeway last time I was in Los Angeles.) Our brains’ giant cortexes give us the ability to integrate new knowledge, new technology and new concepts—quickly, efficiently and across populations both diverse and widespread.
Today, human brains are changing rapidly and right under (or behind) our noses. Not only have BlackBerries, computers, cell phones, text messaging and IMing rewired younger generations’ brains, but our brain chemistry itself is changing. Awash in phalates, estrogen mimickers, pesticides, herbicides, pharmacological leftovers, mercury, arsenic, petroleum residue and a host of other heavy metals and manmade substances, human brains are finding new ways of relating to the world, forming new pathways around the insults we’ve levied at them.
Perhaps the epidemic of autism is one of these evolutionary changes.
Perhaps, in the not so distant future, as more and more of our children are given this diagnosis, their brains won’t be perceived as damaged, developmentally delayed—or even “different.” Perhaps the world the individual with autism experiences is where we are headed as a species. Certainly, many young people today are locked in their own little spheres as they walk down the street with earbuds or a Bluetooth imbedded in their ear canals while thumbing furiously at a BlackBerry. This, after all, is one marker of autism—living in your own world with its own language and quirky behaviors.
Maybe the individual with autism is an intermediary step on the way to a new-and-improved brain that is fighting to survive despite these manmade electro-petrochemical hurdles; a brain that is marshalling 150 millennia of evolution to adapt to these new developments, taking the best and leaving the rest.
Perhaps, in a thousand years, humans will wonder at how limited we were in 2009; how we shortchanged our abilities to tune into a thousand different channels that are out there waiting to be discovered.
Those on the forefront of neural research use the term “neurodiversity” to explain how more and more human brains have different presentations and interpretations of the world around us. The brothers—and sisters—from another planet are among us and multiplying. We may never know why, the fact is they’re here, they’re queer, get used to it, if I might borrow a line from gay rights activists from the 1980s.
Wrapping my own rather rigid mind around the concept of the human brain radically changing in my lifetime was made easier when I viewed this amazing film clip about a young lady named Amanda Baggs. I hope you will watch all eight minutes of In My Language, a transfixing and somewhat disturbing peek into neurodiversity—and then join me in wondering where we are headed and when we’ll get there…if ever. In My Language >>
To read more about how our modern “convenience-oriented” lifestyles are spawning this new type of brain, read Scientific American’s excellent article: “New Study: Autism Linked to Environment” >>
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April 23rd, 2009 at 7:25 am
Pru–I don’t know that I can wrap my poor gray matter around evolutionary leaps and brain chemistry, but our kids who are challenged with Downs or Autism or other puzzling neuro disorders inspire us to evolve in our hearts, in our imaginations, and offer us the chance to take leaps of faith.
Much love, Connie
April 23rd, 2009 at 8:07 am
Conz,
Yes, our kids do inpsire us. And then they grow up and we, their caretakers die–leaving them to what? To find anyone who will care for them as we do?
This is the maddening conundrum of being the parent of a child with special needs. The child creates opportunities for us to grow and evolve. But the wider world we’ve brought them into is not set up to deal with them. Not fiscally, not physically, not emotionally–not in any way.
It’s all very well to have faith, but we also need housing, jobs, lifelong medical care and a society free from bullying and predators if these soon-to-be-grown children are to have any kind of quality lives. So far, none of these options are readily available and a large percentage of the homeless on the streets are special needs children who grew up without a safety net to catch them when they became adults.
What is the answer? We need 21st century solutions and rock-solid policies in place to address this new population that is growing in leaps and bounds. And we need funding and accountability from those polluting industries who are part and parcel of this epidemic.
I could go on…
Prudence
April 23rd, 2009 at 9:33 am
In a few succinct paragraphs, you have brilliantly summarized and offered illuminating perspective on what is clearly a new world order. Thank you. It comes from the heart and mind of a thoughtful, highly-aware parent.
April 23rd, 2009 at 10:22 am
This kind of thinking is what inspires me…a paradigm which says perhaps these kids are an intermediate step in evolution. Love the relevance to the one marker of autism…living in our own world with quirky behaviors and language. Who isn’t doing that REALLY! Fantastic things to ponder. We’re here and we’re Queer…interestingly the young gay people of the 21st century prefer the term Queer to gay or lesbian because it encompasses so much more, more identity options and opportunities, less defined definition as it were. Tuning in to more channels…I m all for that.
April 23rd, 2009 at 10:41 am
Pru…fascinating/illuminating..you know, i sorta dissed Jenny McCarthy for her fairly similar viewpoint (not having read her book but from quick perusal of her website) and now i have to hear what she has said differently thanks to your explanation…the video is radical…i guess i am inherently ‘prejudiced’ because i do not have the skill to hear a person like AM…y’know,i have a friend who is not obviously autistic (but may very well be on the spectrum) who has such an interesting mind and such profound creativity…she is a brilliant performance artist (and quite a success in europe…not so much here…duh) and for years played Bread Woman…her music is so wild…made up languages, non-traditional instruments, etc…anna homler (she may have a web site) but because she has english language skills she is not perceived as a freak but as a really interesting artist…so it is a fine line..seeing Casey’s work at the show the other nite was also like a crack in the cosmic egg…his talent in capturing something essential about his subjects…separate from his drawing skill is…is what makes an artist IMHO…that even Xavier appreciated it (my kids are not so high up the sensitivity ladder) was a nice surprise…i need to work on my ability to hear/sense more..thanks for opening my eyes (and ultimately, heart)…i realize more and more how literal and linear i am and need to shake that up…
April 23rd, 2009 at 10:44 am
With your words, you brilliantly nudge us to rethink the way we look at those who are different, not necessarily less better, than ourselves. Thank you, Pru!
April 23rd, 2009 at 11:08 am
Your dedication as a mother of a special needs child and a lifelong learner have coalesced to form a wonderful and important mesh of curiosity and need. You deserve big kudos for going back to school in your fifties girl!
Seeing the Amanda Baggs’ video made me watch more of them. To be able to see her communicate in a language that we “normal” people can understand is just mind-blowing. I’m also reminded of the fascinating stories of the patients of neurosurgeon Oliver Sacks and how twists of fate can change one’s reality in a mere moment. Who is to say what “language” to communicate in or which “reality” to live? Thanks for opening hearts and minds to a broader definition of diversity.
April 23rd, 2009 at 5:22 pm
You are such a wonderful gift to us all Pru. I do believe that our kids are part of our human evolution. I know, that right now, each of our kids at the very least has created paradigm shifts for many people who had narrow views about ASD. So, no more leading violent revolutions…let’s lead evolutions!
April 24th, 2009 at 7:54 am
Pru:
We have no idea whether your ruminations ultimately will prove to have some validity, but they seem beside the point when considering that the most important things about trying to understand and deal with children who enter life as your son did are in the here and now—as cogently conveyed in your reply to Conz.
April 26th, 2009 at 8:43 am
Brilliant. Thank you.
April 27th, 2009 at 5:04 pm
Very thought provoking. I think we humans are evolving in response to our environment. It would be rather a narrow point of view to think that Amanda wasn’t relating to her environment in a meaningful way. She is hearing and seeing something different that most of us, but that doesn’t mean we have the ‘right’ relationship and she has the ‘abnormal’.
Thanks for the great food for thought.