Thinking in Pictures: My Life With Autism

Despite the term “disorder” attached to autism, it encompasses both benefits and limitations. Misconceptions abound, from what causes problematic behaviors to the belief that autistic people lack thought and emotion. Grandin discusses both the struggles and skills associated with autism—insights that offer a shift from misconception to understanding.

Deficits do exist, says Grandin, and with varying effects on functionality. People often use high-functioning and low-functioning as categories to sort out important differences, although questions remain about the distinctions and features of these two subcategories. The problems a person with autism experiences span multiple facets of life—cognitive, sensory, social, emotional—and they often occur in a context of misunderstanding. A lack of direct personal experience contributes to misunderstanding. It can be difficult to comprehend sensory sensitivities, such as feeling discomfort due to high-pitch sounds or clothing texture, without first-hand knowledge. Deficits thus require understanding for the purpose of effective treatment and to avoid misconceptions:

At autism meetings I have heard countless horror stories of how giving the wrong drug to an autistic with epilepsy can cause grand mal seizures or how doctors make zombies out of people by giving them enough neuroleptics to put a horse to sleep (130).

Grandin also explains how sensory sensitivities and a heightened nervous system response to fear primarily fall on the side of problematic. Other struggles related to autism may oscillate from problematic to beneficial based on context and how others respond to these struggles.

Two areas that represent the potential for both problem and benefit are fixations and social interactions. Grandin describes how her high school science teacher, Mr. Carlock, views a fixation as a motivator, guiding her fixations to be a form of perseverance. Likewise, a person with autism may awkwardly engage in social interactions, but it is the ridicule and exclusion by others that lead to the most problems. If people understand how those with autism interact socially and offer acceptance, autistic people won’t be left out of social situations that can help them learn social skills. Invoking understanding and empathy can reframe fixation to dedication and odd social skills to merely a difference in relating.

Grandin’s adeptness in visual thinking marks the boundary from deficit to exceptionalism. Whereas some may view language and verbal-based thinking as more valid than visual thinking, Grandin’s work designing livestock equipment and detailed layouts challenge the narrow scope of what it means to think. Visual thinking creates masters in a variety of visual fields, such as design, computers, and industry. A focus on the problematic may blind people to the exceptional. Grandin’s empathy, in particular her sensory empathy for cattle and other animals, marks another extraordinary quality. Grandin’s ability to make associations between animals and people is a source of skill and empathy. 

Grandin’s early experiences before diagnosis highlight how misconceptions result without seeking the perspective of other people. Adults in Grandin’s life, both teachers and those in the mental health field, often did not accurately understand her experience and behaviors. The advancement in neurological research, however, represents an area of change from misconception to understanding, acknowledging autism as a neurological disorder rather than solely behavioral. As knowledge culminates, misconceptions decrease and awareness increases. This is true for Grandin as she adds to her visual library, and for those desiring to expand their comprehension of autism.