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The Sandy Hook shooter was diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder, not Autism. ASD was a claim made by friends of the shooters mother. In other words a rumor. Regardless neither SPD or ASD would explain the shooters actions. He obviously had far greater undiagnosed issues.
As someone who is Autistic myself, I take great offense to someone making a ridicules statements like "I hope I never see (my Autistic son) on the news for shooting up a movie theater". That just shows a complete lack of knowledge of Autism.
First you said your son has ASD. Now you say he has ASPD. What is your son diagnosed with? Did you ever actually have him tested and properly diagnosed? I seriously doubt it, because it sounds like you are just throwing around random mental conditions.
This is NOT true. People with Aspergers can misunderstand the world of human interactions, and have great difficulty understanding how someone else feels. They can become bitter and angry after repeated social rejection/isolation. So it is entirely possible for them to develop weird ideas associated with their obsessive interests. This is what happened in Newtown - extreme isolation, obsessive fascination with violent video games, intensive training in the use of assault weapons, and free and easy access to the same. That young man never considered how someone else would feel - the children, their families. He only saw himself, ever, acting out a fantasy. Some of us with teen or adult male family members with Aspergers can understand perfectly what happened in Newtown. Those who say that there was no connection between his Aspergers and what he did are very, very wrong.
The Sandy Hook shooter was diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder, not Autism. Autism Spectrum Disorder was a claim made by friends of the shooters mother. In other words a rumor. What happened at Sandy hook, had absolutely zero to do with Autism. The shooter was obviously a psychopath.
Please do some research on both the Sandy Hook shooting and on Autism, before making these ridicules claims.
He has no empathy. He was 15 when my mother died. My next oldest son was 10 at the time. Of course, no one likes going to a funeral parlor but he just hung out in the back of the room. He didn't talk to anyone nor did he go anywhere near my mother's casket. My younger son, however, came right up to me while I was standing by my mother. He put his arm around my waist, looked up at me with tears in his eyes, and said "I'm sorry Mommy." I'll never forget that; I thought it was so sweet, especially coming from a 10 year old (plus it was the first time he was ever in a funeral parlor). What a stark contrast between two very different kids.
He clearly didn't have the social skills needed to deal with the situation. He couldn't cope with it. That has nothing to do with lack of empathy. It's really too bad you didn't take some time to learn about your son's disorder.
The Sandy Hook shooter was diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder, not Autism. ASD was a claim made by friends of the shooters mother. In other words a rumor. Regardless neither SPD or ASD would explain the shooters actions. He obviously had far greater undiagnosed issues.
As someone who is Autistic myself, I take great offense to someone making a ridicules statements like "I hope I never see (my Autistic son) on the news for shooting up a movie theater". That just shows a complete lack of knowledge of Autism.
I apologize for the misinformation about Sandy Hook, but I still don't see why you are saying someone with autism couldn't do such a thing. Autism does not mean one cannot exhibit violence or extreme violence. They can, just like any other person, it doesn't make them immune to (ab)normal human extremes.
He clearly didn't have the social skills needed to deal with the situation. He couldn't cope with it. That has nothing to do with lack of empathy. It's really too bad you didn't take some time to learn about your son's disorder.
Lighten up. Your comments in this thread border on cruel.
First you said your son has ASD. Now you say he has ASPD. What is your son diagnosed with? Did you ever actually have him tested and properly diagnosed? I seriously doubt it, because it sounds like you are just throwing around random mental conditions.
Wow, I didn't realize someone with Asperger's couldn't be anti-social!!! Thanks for enlightening me.
He clearly didn't have the social skills needed to deal with the situation. He couldn't cope with it. That has nothing to do with lack of empathy. It's really too bad you didn't take some time to learn about your son's disorder.
Yeah, okay, it has everything to do with a lack of empathy. It's really amazing that you can make judgments about my son not even knowing him!
I'm sorry for your family's pain. Try to keep track of him - if you know where he is, send him letters, send him money, let him know that he is still part of your family, no matter what. He is probably very alone, and in a great deal of pain.
Thanks for your post but we don't know where he is. We had a couple of e-mail exchanges with him after he left (we had some unfinished business with him we were trying to resolve) and his responses were extremely nasty. We weren't overly friendly either but we were civil. He told us never to contact him again. It's sad how things turned but I'm relieved the constant grief he inflicted on us has finally come to an end. I have peace in my own house again and that's a very good thing.
I apologize for the misinformation about Sandy Hook, but I still don't see why you are saying someone with autism couldn't do such a thing. Autism does not mean one cannot exhibit violence or extreme violence. They can, just like any other person, it doesn't make them immune to (ab)normal human extremes.
Because violent crime is not a symptom of ASD. If someone shoots up a theatre, they have some way worse problem then Autism. A parent worrying about their son committing mass murder because he has ASD, especially when he has no history of violence is just wrong.
Violent crime and ASD/AD
Reports in the past 2 decades have described violent behavior in persons with ASD/AD. Because of the sensational and unusual nature of these criminal incidents, there is a perception by the public that persons with these disorders, especially those with AD, are predisposed to violent behavior. (Incidents allegedly committed by persons with ASD include the 2007 Virginia Tech campus shooting and the 2012 Newtown, Connecticut, school massacre.6)
Yet neither the original descriptions by Kanner (of autism) and Asperger, nor follow-up studies based on the initial samples studied, showed an increased prevalence of violent crime among persons with ASD/AD.
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