Miss Montana with Autism

like you said - it's a spectrum - much like a rainbow...

I saw the interview - she stated she worked HARD to overcome a lot of her adversity. And she had a great support system.

I know this is hard to relate - however - it's like a case of chicken pox...some people get 2 or 3 blisters - others get it all over their bodies...it's STILL chicken pox. This is not to make light of those who have autism or have children with autism....it's just the way it is. As much as it sucks to say that.

All could think of when I saw the interview was "YOU GO GIRL!!" with a speech impediment she STILL won...HOW WONDERFUL!!! People saw through the "stuff" and found HER!!! YAHOO!!!

My daughter is high functioning.....probably to same level. Out and about you'd never know. Her teachers don't know. She's a varsity goalie for her high school hockey team, her coach and teammates don't know. Come to my house and you will definitely know something is up. The are able to "hold" it together (at school, hockey, church) and than they lose it when they get home where they are comfortable. You can't judge a book (or diagnosis) by its cover.

I know it's hard for people on the outside to really understand because the high functioning ones look so normal. Its easier to see someone further one the spectrum and say oh, yes, they are autistic - that's what autistic looks like. But to look at my daughter and see her, you wouldn't see what her autism looks like. She sits at her lunch table and laughs right along with everyone else.....then comes home and tells me what was said and ask me why they were laughing. Or she'll say something and everyone will look at her oddly, she'll come home and ask me what she said wrong.

It's definitely easier the older she gets....when she was younger and we would be out people would look and share at her if she was throwing a fit. I have a best friend with a son with downs and she used to think she was lucky because people could look at her son and see his disability. People accepted his public tantrums where i was told she needed a spanking.

Back to your question, i think its great and i know it was harder for her to get there then the other contestants. I'm sure some people who don't understand the autism spectrum will not get it and such is life.

I saw a little promotional video last night, of her in her hometown.
Yes, she is pretty and high functioning but she has a clear speech impediment and probably all kinds of issues that aren't visible on the surface.
I would imagine any parent of an autistic child, wherever they are on the spectrum, would be thrilled to see this issue brought to light in any national arena, especially something as long running and "traditional" as the Miss America pageant.
I'm no fan of beauty pageants but I am a big fan of using them to get a positive and important message out. In this case, autism is REAL, and so are the people who live with it every day. It's time for people to be educated, tolerant and accepting. Go Miss Montana!
ETA: I can't imagine anyone thinking autism is "no big deal," on the contrary I think people will be made more aware of how vastly different it is with different people.

My son has AS and right now he has a friend over that is AS as well. Two very different boys.

I am ADHD, very much so, like as far over you can be without crossing into AS. You would never know I am ADHD unless you catch me with my hair down. Nothing about how I interact with others is intuitive, it is all trial and error. I know that if someone doesn't know me it is not a good idea when asked does this make my butt look big to say yes if it does, yet my mind will always compel me to the honest answer which is yes. My answer is learned, not intuitive.

The thing that is always hard about AS or ADHD, everyone looks normal. There have been times where I have admitted I wish he was blind or some disability where it is obvious because maladies of the brain are always subjected to judgement. The thing is that is exactly what you are doing. Just because it isn't obvious when she performs, how she looks, doesn't mean she doesn't have the same challenges as your friends kids do.

I put so much work into appearing normal and it really hurts when people use me as an excuse to say the others are faking or don't try, they could be normal too, whatever that is. The thing is it is important to ME to appear normal, there is nothing wrong with focusing your efforts elsewhere.

I guess I am saying until you walk a mile in their heads you have no idea how bad they have it. It is human to judge but ignorant to assume your judgment is correct.

Relate-ability to others within the same category of diagnoses is not the issue when it comes to spectrum disorders. That doesn't come into play at all, and it shouldn't. There are various types of Autisms. There are various severities of each type of Autisms. That's why it's a SPECTRUM. Some people will relate to each other, and some won't.

Just like some people with Diabetes II will relate to other people with Diabetes II and others won't. Or some people with 12 children will relate to other families with 12 children and other families won't. Or some people with Bi-Polar I will relate to others with Bi-Polar I and others won't.

Anything that can bring Autism into the spotlight and get people to be ACCEPTING of people who have Autism and help shatter some of the negative stereotypes that aren't true is good publicity. This young woman is amazing. She's overcome so much regarding her disability, and she still has to take everything day by day and do what her disability allows her to do. She can do what it allows her to do.

Because it's not true that people with ASD can aspire to "anything." They can only aspire to what their particular Autism allows them to aspire to. Attempts to strive higher occur when there's a feeling of capability and push to overcome... but that's not always possible.

And of course there are some people so severe with their ASD that they'll never speak or toilet on their own. They'll never be able to use Assistive Technology of any kind. Most autistics are not like that.

EDIT: The goal of people with Autism, especially those in the public arena, IS NOT TO APPEAR NORMAL aka NEURO-TYPICAL. That's a fallacy and it's ignorant to assume that that's what people with ASD are striving for. People with ASD don't want to "be normal" or typical, they want acceptance. They want the general public to be educated about what Autism Spectrum Disorder actually is. The goal is not finding a cure or appearing normal. The goal is learning to function in a world that doesn't think the same way and isn't built for them... and to eradicate bigotry, ignorance, and intolerance of any level of disability.

I would love to think that the human race or at least the portion that knows of or at the very least heard of autism has some knowledge that it is a spectrum and what a spectrum is. The last thing parents of autistic children (I speak mostly for myself and my circle of moms with autistic children) want to do is create a faction within the autistic community.

For us, this is a good thing. It creates an opportunity for awareness and education. What most lay people do not understand is that in most cases the disorder is coupled with other disorders. Some have OCD, at lot have sensory processing challenges and some like mine have ADHD.

For people to wonder whether Autism is a big deal or not. It really is and it isn't.

I do want people to be aware of what it is so not just so they don't pass judgment so easily, but also so they perhaps recognize the early signs and intervene early with much needed therapy.

I view my child as someone who should be afforded the same opportunities as the next kid and should not be considered something broken that needs to get fixed (So far this has not sank in with my extended family). Sure it has been more difficult that my easy going do everything right kid but who is to say my so called perfect child would not make colossal mistakes along the way.

I would not even worry about the people who may discredit her for having Autism. Instead, I will be grateful that she has shine some light and awareness on a disorder that has affected a great number of people.

She's judged on her looks, not her ability to get through difficulties with autism. I don't think anyone watching a beauty pageant will care if she has autism. SO...the won't even ask the questions about difficulties, if she seems normal, etc. I don't think I would look at someone who is "high functioning" and assume it's no big deal. I really don't think most people would, either. I just think the people who actually WATCH, won't spend a second of thought on it.

Does anyone think those pageants are about the adversity the women face, or their brains?

Any light being shined on the subject is good, correct? However, I believe that you have to be living under a rock or really unengaged in life to not already know that Autism is a spectrum disorder.

I think I fundamentally disagree with you when you say that it's hard to see how putting the most severe cases and Miss Montana under the same umbrella is possible...of course it's possible and it just educates others as to how different the two ends of the spectrum can actually be...it's really not that complicated of an idea to grasp.

As to your 'So what happened' I would not waste any more of your energy wondering about those people who might think 'Oh Autism is no big deal' b/c Miss Montana has it and she is fine. To be blunt, those people are just ignorant and in reality there opinions hold no value, therefore should not be given any extra thought or unnecessary worry/consideration. Sorry if this came off too blunt, I have learned of myself that I have zero tolerance or patience for stupid.

Simply put, your worry on this subject is a waste of your time B B.

I think anyone with any experience with kids with autism are not going to look at Miss Montana and think "autism is no big deal."
And the idea that her "platform" stops at encouragement is falsely assumed.
Surely, her main focus will include education and awareness.

Ignorance is ignorance.
An autistic Miss Montana/Miss America can't fix that!
People who want knowledge will find it. Others? Not so much.

I work with lots of autistic people, have attended lots of autism seminars and find that just like all the rest of us, they are all different, some have individual talents and some need guidance in certain subjects and some are clearly unable to relate to this world. I haven't seen Miss Montana ( I will look her up )
but I have met beautiful looking autistic people who are able to do amazing things that I can't. In this particular case she was the one who aspired (or her parents perhaps?) to do this, just as the woman (and sorry I do not remember her name) the woman who designed a less painful way for cows to be butchered...they are driven from within and go past their autism to get what they want.
Autistic people themselves are not always unhappy thinking they should be any different and they are not always controllable, but in the 'umbrella' example you are right, others shouldn't put them all in the same category. Each person on this earth should aspire to be their own best self whatever the condition.

I'm wondering what your solution would be? Should she not compete because some people might misunderstand her diagnosis?

I actually agree with you. I didn't see the interview, but I read the online article. A lot of the people at my job are "on the spectrum" so to speak and most are high-functioning.

When I read about her, I thought to myself... good for her, but I definitely think it will lend people to say.... well, Miss Montana "got over" her Autism and looks just fine... why can't my child?