Steam Community :: Stay-Puft

Stay-Puft

Delaware, United States

Level

Guardian Angel

400 XP

A winner is someone who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses these skills to accomplish his goals.

Larry Bird

Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.

Dr. Seuss

The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today.

H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

"May you always remember to enjoy the road, especially when it’s a hard one."

Kobe Bryant

⠀⠀⠀⠀
"𝙿𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞’𝚕𝚕 𝚊𝚕𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛;
𝚢𝚘𝚞’𝚛𝚎 𝚋𝚛𝚊𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚋𝚎𝚕𝚒𝚎𝚟𝚎,
𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚖,
𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔."

– 𝙰.𝙰 𝙼𝚒𝚕𝚗𝚎

Daniel in Seattle, Washington, writes:

Marilyn: I am 26 years old and am diagnosed as a high-functioning autistic. I have also been diagnosed with negative-symptomatic schizophrenia, the effects of which devastated my cognitive function around the age of 20. I have spent the last five years in an intense recovery process, as well as expanding my intellectual capacities as an adult in ways that were not possible when I was younger due to my neurodevelopmental limitations. (My autism went undiagnosed until adulthood.) After correcting a hormonal imbalance, my entire brain changed, and I had to start over.

According to neuropsychological testing, my verbal intelligence is in the top 1 percent of the population. However, my cognitive IQ scores are all over the map, ranging from very superior, to the completely deficient range. I am an autistic savant. I am likely among the most accurate free-hand draftsmen in the world and also have some mnemonic savant-abilities, but thinking in pictures doesn't translate to higher reasoning.

Despite many talents and gifts due to my autism, my ability to understand complex problems greatly exceeds my ability to cognitively manipulate information: I can understand Swedenborg, Leibniz and Jung, but struggle performing basic algebra. Help me, Marilyn! What sorts of problems or training can I utilize to enhance my ability to cognitively "hold and manipulate" information to solve mathematics and science problems—despite being partially blind to my own mind? I am motivated and willing to work.

Marilyn responds:

Daniel, you sound as though you are doing splendidly, and I don't want to suggest that you do anything else. Plenty of very successful people can't handle math and science, and it just doesn't matter. Do you want to be a mathematician or scientist? If so, why? You're so capable at so many other tasks! And if not, I think you should just forget about it!

Instead, I would focus on what you can do best—and enjoy most. Build your career or life from there. And please do accept my congratulations in the meantime. You are already flourishing in your own special way.