Why does co-morbidity sound so.............morbid?

In our last class, Introduction to Counseling with Larry Welkowitz, at Antioch New England University New England, we talked quite a bit about comorbidity. If you are asking yourself if that has anything to do with dying, it doesn't. Comorbidity is the presence of more than one mental disorder occurring in an individual at the same time. Could they have come up with a more positive name?! Surprisingly enough comorbidity is common, and not in just in the Autism Spectrum Disorders communities. It is rare for someone to walk into a counselors office and have one lone diagnosis. Human beings are complex. It would be silly to assume that all of our problems would fit neatly inside a box. As Americans, we really like things to be neat and tidy. Unfortunately, as we learn as we grow more mature, none of us fit into that tiny box.
We also heard from Kathleen Seidel who is the parent of a child on the spectrum. She has done much work researching the effectiveness and roots of many of the "hot" treatments in Autism and Aspergers. Her website, Neurodiversity.com, is a wealth of information and is certainly worth a look. I have always been skeptical of any program that offers a "cure" for Autism. It is easy for me to be skeptical. I am not a parent, let alone a parent with a child with autism searching desperately for some way to reach my child. I understand the need for parents to find something that works, but I do also urge caution. Autism is the "it" disability and just like everything else in America, people will exploit it to make a buck. Kathleen Seidel offers a critical look to these treatments.
Finally, we heard from Andy Sylvia who recently ran for State Representative in New Hampshire. Andy is the only candidate in politics who was "out" with his Asperger's diagnosis. He lost. That is not a commentary on who he is or what he stands for. What an absolutely fine young man. I was enthralled by his description of his childhood, adolescence and now adulthood. I was intrigued that his high school experience sounding much like mine. I wish he could know that most people in high school feel like outcasts, that experience is not because of Aspergers.

See you next time,
Sara