Autism and Misdiagnosis: Foundational Knowledge

Join Dr. Regan for the first in a series on autism misdiagnosis. This episode focuses on why autism is misdiagnosed and how we can do better. Dr. Regan's Resources New Course for Clinicians - Interventions in Autism: Helping Clients Stay Centered, Connect with Others, and Engage in Life New Course for Clinicians: ASD Differential Diagnoses and Associated Characteristics Book: Understanding Autism in Adults and Aging Adults, 2nd ed Audiobook Book: Understanding Autistic Behaviors Autism in the Adult website homepage Website Resources for Clinicians Read the episode transcript below: 1 00:00:01,890 --> 00:00:04,590 Hello and welcome to autism. 2 00:00:04,590 --> 00:00:06,170 In the adult podcast. 3 00:00:06,180 --> 00:00:07,450 I am your host, 4 00:00:07,450 --> 00:00:08,890 Dr Theresa Regan. 5 00:00:08,900 --> 00:00:10,830 I'm a neuropsychologist. 6 00:00:10,840 --> 00:00:19,210 The director of an adult diagnostic autism clinic in central Illinois and the parent of an autistic teen. 7 00:00:19,220 --> 00:00:27,060 I am going to be starting a new series today and that's going to focus on misdiagnosis... 8 00:00:27,060 --> 00:00:27,360 So... 9 00:00:27,360 --> 00:00:35,630 people who are on the autism spectrum, who have that autistic neurology, but are diagnosed with something else... 10 00:00:35,640 --> 00:00:42,180 typically a mental health diagnosis and oftentimes several diagnoses. 11 00:00:42,950 --> 00:00:50,480 We're going to talk about why that happens and how to understand how we can do better. 12 00:00:51,620 --> 00:00:53,560 As we're starting off, 13 00:00:53,570 --> 00:01:02,030 I am going to tell you a story and the story is called The Parable of the Elephant. 14 00:01:02,040 --> 00:01:04,890 And this is a very ancient parable. 15 00:01:04,900 --> 00:01:08,320 It has a few variations across cultures. 16 00:01:08,330 --> 00:01:09,370 But it really, 17 00:01:09,370 --> 00:01:15,260 I think. speaks to this dilemma that we have about misdiagnosis. 18 00:01:16,520 --> 00:01:23,610 There was an ancient village and they had never seen an elephant before. 19 00:01:23,620 --> 00:01:30,450 And you can imagine that when someone brought an elephant into their village it was a big deal. 20 00:01:30,460 --> 00:01:36,070 People wanted to know "what does a creature called an elephant look like?" 21 00:01:36,540 --> 00:01:46,990 And there was also this group of villagers there who were blind and they thought well we aren't going to be able to see the elephant, 22 00:01:46,990 --> 00:01:56,670 but we could put out our hands and we could perceive the elephant through touch and this will let us know what the elephant is like. 23 00:01:58,350 --> 00:02:02,660 So indeed the villagers went to the center of town. 24 00:02:02,670 --> 00:02:06,250 They stood around this creature called an elephant. 25 00:02:06,260 --> 00:02:12,830 In each person put out their hand and they were able to experience the elephant. 26 00:02:14,020 --> 00:02:17,690 So what happened is that the first person said, 27 00:02:17,700 --> 00:02:19,650 oh I get it. 28 00:02:19,660 --> 00:02:22,470 An elephant is like a fan, 29 00:02:22,480 --> 00:02:28,900 I've put out my hand and I can feel that it's broad and wavy and thin. 30 00:02:28,910 --> 00:02:31,150 An elephant is like a fan. 31 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:37,980 And here the person had felt the ear of the elephant. 32 00:02:37,990 --> 00:02:40,510 Well the next person said, 33 00:02:40,520 --> 00:02:52,780 I do not know what you're talking about because I am right here feeling the elephant and I can tell you that the elephant is broad and tall and wide. 34 00:02:52,790 --> 00:02:55,130 I can't even put my arms out, 35 00:02:55,130 --> 00:03:00,660 but I can just say that that an elephant is like a wall, 36 00:03:00,670 --> 00:03:04,400 it's so big and massive and strong. 37 00:03:05,390 --> 00:03:07,820 The next person disagreed as well, 38 00:03:08,750 --> 00:03:10,290 this person said no, 39 00:03:10,290 --> 00:03:10,480 no, 40 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:11,150 no, 41 00:03:11,160 --> 00:03:14,660 it's... I can put my arms around it, 42 00:03:14,670 --> 00:03:24,490 it's thick and tall but there is an end to it and and it's kind of like a tree trunk or a pillar. 43 00:03:24,500 --> 00:03:30,010 And this person was experiencing the leg ... touching the leg of the elephant. 44 00:03:30,410 --> 00:03:32,740 The next person was at the tail. 45 00:03:32,750 --> 00:03:34,100 They said no, 46 00:03:34,100 --> 00:03:34,890 no, 47 00:03:34,900 --> 00:03:36,850 not like that at all. 48 00:03:36,860 --> 00:03:38,400 This is thin, 49 00:03:38,410 --> 00:03:41,370 it's really... an elephant is like a rope, 50 00:03:41,380 --> 00:03:44,200 it's corded and thin and long. 51 00:03:44,210 --> 00:03:46,900 No said the next person, 52 00:03:47,220 --> 00:03:58,960 the elephant is like a snake and they were there at the trunk and they said it's thick and curvy and I can just feel all the textures of the skin, ...