Intellectual Disability - Tumblr Posts

Can we stop using "still lives with their parents" or "unemployed" or "doesn't have a drivers license" or "didn't graduate high school" as an insult or evidence that someone is a bad person? Struggling with independence or meeting milestones is not a moral failing.

I think the topic of consent is very important, and I think as an intellectually disabled person, it’s even more important to talk about what I was taught, and what my mom did.

My mom, who was a single woman at the time, explicitly taught me about consent. Why? Because she knew that I, as an intellectually disabled person and autistic person, needed to know it. And it needed to be drilled into my head the importance of consent. Not only did she teach me this, but she taught me how to communicate to trusted people if something happened. She knew that if she didn’t, the chances of me not knowing, or not understanding certain aspects of consent and sex in general, would be profoundly higher than my peers.

She noticed, she did the research, she taught and did what she could. And I am forever grateful for that. Intellectually disabled people, who have a higher rate of things happening to them and being abused, NEED to be taught about sex education, consent, and how to communicate if something were to happen. We are at a much higher rate of being sexually abused than our peers. And it is so so important that these things are taught to us so we are aware and able to protect ourselves and know when it’s time to contact a trusted adult.

“Don’t let your disorder define you”

Okay but do you support the people whose disorders do define them?

Do you support people with the chronic illnesses who have had to develop whole lives around their conditions? Do you support the intellectually disabled people whose whole way of thinking is defined by their disorder? Do you support the people with personality disorders who literally have a disorder as a personality? Do you support the autism/ADHD people whose disorder you can’t separate from who they are? Do you support the DIDOSDD people who have multiple definitions of themselves because of their disorder?

Or are you just saying that because a disorder defining someone means you can’t ignore it.

7) languages are hard to learn so the fact you’ve done that is more than so many people (especially American English speakers) can say and also I don’t think I know a single English speaker who speaks “good” English it’s a MESS of a language

8) (this part goes for those who are native (English) speakers too and aren’t “good” at it it’s okay.) this language makes like no sense and the mechanics are difficult to get a handle of (especially if you have any kind of disability that inhibits language or speech or whatever) there is absolutely no reason to apologize for that but that’s not to say that if you don’t have a disability that makes it harder you have to apologize. there is never a reason to apologizing for communicating!!!!

my blog is, and always will be, a safe place for people who are not confident in their english speaking abilities. you will never be judged or mocked here.

As an autistic big sister to two incredible humans with Down syndrome, I was not ready for Percy and Tyson’s relationship. The way Rick Roirdan so perfectly encapsulates the experience of having a sibling with a very visible and obvious disability while you battle your own challenges is unlike anything I’ve read before. I know Percy loves Tyson and enjoys his company, but he also struggles with the attention Tyson brings. He wonders why his father chose to have a child like Tyson and doesn’t understand why his friends and camp mates/classmates are so cruel to him. It’s the first time I’ve seen my unique childhood illustrated in media.

I also love that they bring Tyson on the quest. They could have easily left him for the Harpies, blaming his death on his disability/he wandered outside/he wasn’t fast enough to get away, but they bring him along with them because he deserves to be involved. He’s an asset rather than a burden and that speaks volumes to the public perception of people with Intellectual Disabilities. Every single person has usable gifts and skills. It is up to those around them to discover those skills and foster them. Also, the respectful and mature way Percy speaks to Tyson should be studied. He never talks down to him, makes him feel less-than, or makes fun of him for his eccentric hobbies (metalworking). He fully and truly accepts Tyson for who he is and knows the issue lies in himself. Percy must accept Tyson as part of his family and his new reality. Family is forever and it’s an honor to watch Percy understand what that really means.

I really hope we explore this special and unique dynamic in Season 2 and (hopefully) cast an actor with IDD! We could create something magical. ❤️

There is so much preventing me, my family, or even my partners from being able to do as much as we'd like.

Shoutout to leftists who are too poor/disabled to give back to their community.

Shoutout to leftists who are too poor/disabled to shop at local/small businesses.

Shoutout to leftists who are poor/disabled and have to buy things from Amazon and other megacorps because it’s the most cheap or convenient.

Shoutout to leftists who are too poor/disabled to reduce their environmental footprint because they need the single-use plastics.

Shoutout to leftists who can’t go vegan because of dietary needs, disordered eating, or neurodivergence.

Shoutout to leftists who can’t volunteer or go to community events/protests/noise demonstrations because of inaccessibility.

Shoutout to leftists who can only be politically active online because they’re housebound.

Shoutout to leftists who are disabled and are rarely politically active because they simply don’t have the energy.

Shoutout to leftists who can’t be politically active because they’re under the care of a guardian or are trapped in an abusive situation, and they don’t have control over their finances/belongings.

Shoutout to leftists who can’t read theory, or who have trouble reading theory, but still do their best to learn.

Shoutout to leftists who can’t understand theory at all because of cognitive/intellectual disability.

Shoutout to leftists who want to be more active in their community but can’t because they struggle with anxiety, socializing, or maintaining relationships.

Shoutout to leftists with personality disorders, complex trauma disorders, conduct disorders, OCD, psychosis, and any other leftist whose personality or thoughts often unwillingly go against their beliefs due to a trauma response or chemical imbalance.

Shoutout to leftists who don’t have any “practical” skills that would be needed in a commune (i.e farming, building, sewing)

Shoutout to leftists who are too busy simply trying to survive to even think about being politically active.

Shoutout to leftists who have to always ask for mutual aid but can never give back.

Shoutout to all the leftists who can’t do this and can’t do that and can’t do the things that leftists are “supposed” to do. No one person is perfect.

You aren’t a fake leftist for not being able to do these things. All that matters is that you put in the effort, in whatever way that you can.

It’s not about your abilities as an individual. It’s about our power as a collective.

Writing Advice Part 2: Disability And EVIL

Disabled adults are adults and because they're adults they have a wide variety of morality and characters since humans are an exceedingly diverse group with even more diversed existences.

WRONG!

No. No. In reality:

👿👿DISABLED ADULTS ARE EVIL, ALL EVIL!!!!!!! 👿👿 According to certain writers!

When writers take communities and existences such as the facial difference gang or the intellectually disabled doers this results in horrific portrayals of "demonization". Obviously, people with physical disabilities are often portrayed horribly. I will mention them in the facial differences saga. The only reason I am specifically talking about facial differences and intellectual disability is because physical disability and facial differences tend to overlap while intellectual disability is a common yet undertalked form of representation.

Demonization: it's just like what it sounds like. Disablity always equals evil

However, the ways that facial differences gang is demonized is different to how intellectually disabled doers are demonized.

THIS BECAUSE OF A COMMON ASSOCIATION aka

Good = Beautiful/Handsome, Evil = Ugly

For future reference, when I say ugly I mean "not conventionally attractive" and when I say beautiful I mean "conventionally attractive". Afterall, Harvey Dent is attractive. That's a fact.

A popular example of this is the James Bond franchise which has stocks full of villainous characters with various limb differences, scars, and other such things. These ugly and bad characters fight against the cool and handsome James Bond

Literally, the association between evil and "ugly" is so ubiquitous that when a character becomes disabled they also become evil. The transition between being law-abiding handsome attorney Harvey Dent and evil insane "ugly" Two-Face is marked by fire/acid.

Let me tell you, there is no link between being a bad person and being not conventionally attractive. I'm not saying you can't write bad people with facial differences but they're not bad people because of their facial differences.

Secondly, Facial differences aren't only scars. They are often congenital. There are hundreds of different kinds of facial differences. This was just to talk about the fact that most people hear "facial difference" and think "scar".

FOR INTELLECTUALLY DISABLED DOERS, their evilness comes from their supposed "mental status as a six-year old". For the purposes of clarity, I am just going to say that's not how intellectual disability is labeled and move on.

Because of their supposed "mental status" 🤢, they have no ability to guage morality. They're " *derogatory term* who does evil out of ignorance"

Firstly, intellectually disabled people can learn things, like morality. Especially, if we are talking about the majority of intellectually disabled people who have to mild-to-moderate intellectual disability. Either way, there are hundreds of education prgrams designed to help people in learning about things from periods to childrearing to reading to everything necessary for life.

Secondly, intellectually disabled people aren't children. I talked about that in Part 1 named Writing Advice: Disability And Infantilization. Check it out, it's fun.

Thirdly, intellectually disabled people exist in the real world. If you want to write a character who is intellectually disabled, you can ask them for assistance. There is nothing stopping you.

CONCLUSION: No matter what disability someone has, that shouldn't stop them from being human. You can write disabled characters as evil but disabled characters should be evil not because of disability but regardless of disability. Evil Doesn't Equal Not Conventional.

From a textbook (we just happened to briefly cover it):

It's mainly diagnosed via IQ, but it sort of seems that that's not the best way and psychologists / researchers may want to change that.

Hello everyone 👋🏾

What’s the overview and symptoms of intellectual disability ?

How it affects ?

I tried Google but it’s bland

Thanks 😊

Okay, so I did some more looking to address OP’s questions in the notes and overall more info. (sorry if the conversion from Google docs doesn’t look good).

The DSM-5 defines intellectual disabilities as “neurodevelopmental disorders that begin in childhood and are characterized by intellectual difficulties as well as difficulties in conceptual, social, and practical areas of living”

Diagnosis:

The DSM-5 diagnosis of ID requires the satisfaction of three criteria:

Deficits in intellectual functioning - “reasoning, problem solving, planning, abstract thinking, judgment, academic learning, and learning from experience” - (confirmed by clinical evaluation and individualized standard IQ testing)

Deficits in adaptive functioning that significantly hamper conforming to developmental and sociocultural standards for the individual's independence and ability to meet their social responsibility

The onset of these deficits during childhood

Like I said, I think they’re trying to move away from having IQ be the main diagnostic tool, “Diagnosis is given not only on the basis of a low measured IQ, but also on whether that measurement was made in childhood and whether there is evidence of impairment in day-to-day functioning. As a result, people in this very broad category can differ greatly in their cognitive abilities and in their ability to function independently in daily life”

Symptoms: Okay so it’s pretty hard finding information that focuses on adults, but these are some from various sources:

Late to reach “milestones” in childhood

“Late to roll, sit up, or walk, as compared to what is considered developmentally appropriate”

Trouble in mastering certain skills or tasks

i.e. dressing or feeding yourself

Difficulty and delay in learning

Trouble w/ problem-solving and logical thinking

Memory difficulties

Is unable to connect actions with their consequences

Does not appear to understand or pick up on social cues

Overall, the main symptom is "difficulty thinking and understanding” with various life skills (conceptual, social, practical skills, etc.) being impacted.

Then there’s sort of different symptoms depending on the severity:

Mild (most people w/ ID)

“... slower in all areas of conceptual development and social and daily living skills. These individuals can learn practical life skills, which allows them to function in ordinary life with minimal levels of support ... can take care of themselves, travel to familiar places in their community, and learn basic skills related to safety and health. Their self-care requires moderate support.”

Is able to develop reading and math skills up to grades 3 - 6

Has difficulties regulating emotions and behaviors in age-appropriate manners

Typically functions at an age-appropriate level in regards to self-care

Is able to acquire practical skills and daily task skills

Is able to conform socially, yet social interactions are typically immature when compared to peers

Develops at a slower pace than is developmentally appropriate

Moderate

Presence of unusual physical signs

Conceptual skills are markedly behind those of peers

Spoken language is primary social communication tool, but is much less complex than peers

Is capable of understanding elementary level health and safety skills

Is capable of being taught simple self-care routines and can typically participate in them without assistance

Severe

“Major delays in development, and individuals often have the ability to understand speech but otherwise have limited communication skills ... able to learn simple daily routines and to engage in simple self-care, [but] need supervision in social settings and often need family care to live in a supervised setting such as a group home.”

Attainment of conceptual skills is highly limited

Has little or no communication skills, however, is able to understand some speech and can provide some, however minimal responses

Typically requires support for all activities of daily living

Typically requires supervision at all times as they are not capable of making responsible decisions regarding the wellbeing of themselves or others

The acquisition of skills requires long-term teaching, as well as ongoing, consistent support

Profound

“... often have congenital syndromes ... These individuals cannot live independently, and they require close supervision and help with self-care activities. They have very limited ability to communicate and often have physical limitations.”

Presence of extreme cognitive abnormalities

Conceptual skills are highly limited

Has extremely limited understanding of symbolic communication in speech or gesture

Presence of sensory and physical impairments

Presence of motor impairments

Is dependent on others for all aspects of daily physical care, health, and safety

Affects Behavior:

I didn’t find much about how ID affects behavior, just this “Behavioral: hyperactivity, impulsivity, or restlessness.”

And here’s a list of some “behavioral issues” in children w/ ID, but I think some can be seen in older people

aggression

dependency

withdrawal from social activities

attention-seeking behavior

depression during adolescent and teen years

lack of impulse control

passivity

tendency toward self-injury

stubbornness

low self-esteem

low tolerance for frustration

psychotic disorders

difficulty paying attention

Sorry, I’m not sure how to go about looking up what you’re specifically wondering about effects on behavior. I’d imagine that that's still something hard to research and explain concretely.

Hello everyone 👋🏾

What’s the overview and symptoms of intellectual disability ?

How it affects ?

I tried Google but it’s bland

Thanks 😊

Made a separate post because I didn’t want to clutter the other and I’m not sure if this is helpful. I wrote this up a while back but kept getting busy with school. Anyway …

This is related to diagnosing because I think some of this stuff can explain behavior and also it in a way lists symptoms (having trouble with the mentioned skills) that aren’t strictly tied to having a low IQ score (because some of this would have to be observed since it wouldn’t impact a score) … 

Intellectual disability is identified by problems in both “intellectual” and “adaptive functioning”

Intellectual functioning includes various mental abilities …

Reasoning

Problem solving

Planning

Abstract thinking

Judgment

“Academic learning” (ability to learn in school via traditional teaching methods)

“Experiential learning” (ability to learn through experience, trial and error, and observation)

Adaptive Functioning includes skills needed to “live in an independent and responsible manner” (basically life skills)

To be limited in these abilities would make it difficult to achieve “age appropriate standards of behavior,” and you’d likely need additional support to do well in school, work, personal independence, etc.

Here’s what one site included under adaptive functioning ...

Conceptual – language, reading, writing, math, reasoning, knowledge, memory

Social – empathy, social judgment, communication skills, ability to follow rules, ability to make (and keep) friendships

Practical – independence in areas such as personal care, job responsibilities, managing money, recreation and organizing school and work tasks

This is from another …

Communication - refers to ability to convey (through words and actions) information from one person to another

Involves the ability to understand others, and to express oneself through words or actions.

Social skills - refers to ability to interact effectively w/ others

includes the ability to understand and comply w/ social rules, customs, and standards of public behavior ... ability to process figurative language and detect unspoken cues (such as body language)

Personal independence at home or in community settings - refers to the ability to take care of yourself.

bathing, dressing, feeding

ability to safely complete day-to-day tasks w/out guidance (i.e. cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc.)

Ability to compete routine activities performed in the community (i.e. shopping for groceries, accessing public transportation)

School / work functioning - refers to ability to conform to the social standards at work or school

includes ability to learn new knowledge, skills, and abilities

Furthermore, must be able to apply this information in a practical, adaptive manner (w/out excessive direction or guidance)

People w/ ID struggle with these skills (under both Intellectual and Adaptive functioning), which may affect behavior by leading to … 

Poor impulse control

Since people w/ ID have trouble connecting cause and effect they might keep making the same mistake or decisions over and over again (not learning by experience)

Poor frustration tolerance

Which in turn causes people to respond w/ aggression and stubbornness or (the opposite) compliance and passivity

Low self-esteem

Due to limited intellectual functioning (which makes it difficult to solve problems and can cause self-doubt)

And due to possibly being made fun of

Also here’s some symptoms that specifically state “in adults” but a lot of it has already been covered in my re-blog of the original post by @greyowl1997 (it’s very hard finding info. on this that isn’t targeted towards parents about their children - these two pics are literally the only specific mention of adults I found)

@greyowl1997

@outsticallyastonished​ (sorry if you don’t want to be tagged, I just remembered that you were also wondering)

𝙄𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙨 𝙗𝙮 𝘿𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙮 𝘾𝙝𝙚 𝘿𝙤𝙡𝙘𝙚 𝘕𝘦𝘶𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴: 𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘺 𝘊𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘰𝘭𝘤𝘦

Keep reading

HAPPY DISABILITY PRIDE MONTH EVERYONE!!!

Definitions of each of the stripes:

- Red represents physical disabilities

- Gold/yellow represents neurodiversity/Cognitive and intellectual disabilities

- White represents invisible AND undiagnosed disabilities

- Blue represents mental illnesses

- Green represents sensory disabilities

Also if you’ve read this far you should know that no matter how the world treats you there will always be people that care about you. As someone who isn’t able to get a diagnosis I want everyone to know that they are valid if you’re professionally diagnosed or not. Also never forget that we all have to help each other. We are all a part of the same community and each struggle with something let it be physically or mentally.

I don't think someone is instantly a bad person if they have ableist behavior. Think about it, society is BUILT on ableism. We're all raised on that shit. There are examples of this in everyday life: 'good listening' habits that are beaten into us in school, sidewalks that are built on fucking hills, cities that WOULD be walkable had they installed more seating areas, etc etc the list goes on.

So it's almost natural to be some degree of ableist, even if you yourself are disabled, because it has been normalized through millions of things abled people probably wouldn't even notice. This doesn't excuse the behavior, but it's important to note that not every person is ableist out of malice.

This should’ve been said earlier, sorry!

Happy disability pride month!