Subtitle 1: ‘Focus’ = the ability to block out a lot of extraneous input and attempt to solve a problem
Subtitle 2: ‘Savant Syndrome’ = a comorbid autistic trait/phenomena
I have been missing in action (MIA) on Facebook and blogging regularly due to feeling like crap and a personal problem, trying to figure out just what autoimmune disease that I have in order to manage it correctly.
After sixteen plus years of dealing with severe health symptoms that originally bestowed the label of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) on me, I finally have the correct label, ADIOS, and I’m the one that had to solve this complicated puzzle.
What a [insert here] relief! 🙂
ADIOS is the acronym for Autoimmune Dysfunction Idiopathic Overlap Syndrome.
In a way I should feel special. 🙂 Some people only have boring autoimmune diseases that affect one organ of the body, either the skin, the adrenal glands, the kidneys, or the brain. I have one that can affect any and all of them! WOW!
My only competition that I’m aware of are those that have the label (diagnosis) of Lupus, Sjogren’s Syndrome, or a combination of both.
That’s O.K. because most of those folks are women, only 10% of men win those labels, and the men need to have their own special label to brag about. 🙂
It was quite an arduous journey over the last few months sifting through the megabytes of research reports and case studies to reach this enlightenment. As a result, I had to stop and think about how I accomplished that.
It’s called ‘focus’ with a little bit of savantism thrown in, specifically the savant skills called ‘lightning calculation’ and ‘prodigious memory’.
I have a few other savant skills but these are my favorites because they’re useful.
Some autistic savants with the ‘lightening calculation’ skill can do all sorts of math tricks like solving Pi really fast.
That’s cute and entertaining but I prefer the ability to process data like a supercomputer using Mathematical Logic, and that requires ‘focus’, ‘association’, and stored data (‘prodigious memory’), and together they work like a finely tuned motor. 🙂
One of my favorite autistics and fellow autistic savants is Dr. Temple Grandin. She speaks and writes frequently about the autistic traits of ‘focus’ and ‘association’ in order to empower parents and caregivers to recognize these traits in autistic children. The reason is to provide them with ideas on how to effectively teach those children to utilize those traits/skills to be valuable contributors to society.
What does this all have to do with ADIOS? Plenty…
When you recognize the positives of a negative (autism) and say, “Screw you! I’ll build a castle out of that sand…”, you might just end up with the most elaborate sandcastle on the beach, and in the process find all sorts of tools that can be made out of crap lying around in order to construct it.
In this case referring to Dr. Grandin’s message to parents and caregivers, she often goes on to say that when the child is taught to use those gifts, he/she might be the next Nobel Prize winner in Physics as an adult.
That’s a powerful message to think about.
If you’re like me, an autistic adult, it’s never too late to build that sandcastle and gain all sorts of new insight about the latent or dormant skills that one has.
Since I discovered the new autoimmune disease, Autoimmune Dysfunction Idiopathic Overlap Syndrome (ADIOS), I intend to write a very long scientific research paper using me as the case study participant and get it published.
You heard it here first! 🙂
In the meantime, attached to this silly post is an interesting article about a young man who is an autistic savant and a gifted musician. I hope you enjoy it.
To be continued…
Article: Extraordinary Minds – the link between savantism and autism
The Mind of an Autistic Savant 