Are people with autism and/or down syndrome difficult to work with?

To me it has less to do with whether they have autism/down than it has with their personality, just like with any other person. Some people with autism are complete assholes who think everyone should lick their boots because they're "special", some "normal" people think everyone should lick their boots because they are superior to everyone else (a different kind of special).

Judging how hard it would be to work with someone because they fit into a specific group is not a very reliable method. I've worked with someone with down syndrome and he was the sweetest, kindest, most hardworking person in the whole damn company. He was always willing to work late, take on more work, pitch in on other people's work, would show up with coffee for everyone every now and then...sadly it's too easy to exploit someone like that, and he probably would have been if it wasn't for a few people there "having his back"

Never worked with super low-functioning autistic people but never had any problems working with autistic people after a day or two of trying to get used to a quirk or two.

(While I admit that some people with mental disabilities can be hard to work with I voted no because I don't agree with the generalisation)

Precisely two weeks ago in the organization I do volunteer work I had the opportunity to work with an individual which had autism; he was a hard worker, it wasn't difficult (relatively) to work with him and it seem he had a great time. It was a rewarding experience.

No more than anyone else, really.

Some are difficult some aren't. Pretty much like non-autistic people, some are impossible to work with and some aren't.

I was not trying to be mean or rude, I was just saying from my personal real-life experience. The ones I worked with were low-functioning and behaved like children. They were spoiled, selfish, snobby and thought everyone had to lick their boots because they were "special." If they did not get their way, they threw tantrums and fits. I had to walk on egg shells all the time because they were oversensitive and the smallest misunderstanding would result in me getting in trouble.

@samanthademeste: Yeah, it sucks to work in those conditions but I'm firmly against treating people differently because of their disabilities (within reason, I'm not going to tell someone in a wheel chair to take the stairs) but I also think you need the understanding of your higher ups when the "tantrums" occur, and it sounds like you don't have that, which probably contributes to your stress as much (or maybe more) as the people themselves.

I don't hate handicapped people at all. I just think it takes someone who has years of professional experience and education in that particular field to work with the more lower functioning ones. For me It was almost like babysitting or teaching in a elementary school at times.

I've worked with autistic/aspergers children from all over the spectrum and some can be extremely challenging. I find the ones who are non-verbal to be extremely difficult and test my patience big time. But they are manageable once you find what comforts them and what they respond well to.

I've never had to deal with an autistic adult.

@MrsSolidSnake: I find that (most of the times) working with difficult autistic children is more of a challenge to your communication skills and working with difficult autistic adults is more of a challenge to your patience.

@samanthademeste: No worries, I never said (or assumed) you hated handicapped people. I wouldn't bother participating in your thread if I thought you were a hateful person.

Been around a lot of autistic kids in the past. Some get it, and some really don't get it... and that shit annoys me.

can only speak from experience with autists.

I would not think they are hard to Work with, atleast not in my experience. Everyone is different, I doubt any mental difference such as Autism is going to be a deciding factor. I know they tend to have a hard time to understand body language, do not want people to invade thier personal Space, and you have to really say what is on your mind to them.

But honestly the ones I have met and worked with are Little diffrent then other people, everyone has thier own quirks. So I would say "no" I have not have alot of problems working with autists.

I have ever worked with or even spoken to anyone with Down syndrome, so can't say there.

I suppose it has alot to do with the nature of your Work relation aswell.

Now I have worked with people who wer eemotionally unstabile (as in REALLY unstabile) that I can not do, which may simply be part of my personality that I can relate and understand autistic behavior more then emotionally random behavior

So might have alot to do with you yourself, and how well you can understand the problematics..

I don't know. I've never worked with them.

I find my patience very tested especially when I have 20 other children under my care I am trying to transition to inside. It's very testing when the child doesn't like being touched and you can't pick them up or carry them inside nor reason with them.

Autistic people -probably. They can be volatile, and even dangerous. This lad is only about 12-13 but look at the size of him compared to his carers.

@uninspiredcup:

I have worked with adults that act like that. It may seem funny in the comforts of home watching on the internet, but in real life it is nerve-racking.

You mean violently or unpredictably?

Both. Because of that, I only work with them if I have to.

@samanthademeste: Ok, I misunderstood your meaning when you said "working with"...I took it as "alongside"

The staff at the school I used to go to blamed me for their (the autistic and down-syndrome students) bad behavior. They said it was my fault if they threw tantrums, fits, etc. and I would get in trouble if things got out of hand. Which is why I left.

Who said or implied it was funny?

@samanthademeste: I see, I thought you meant co-workers...I've taken care of autistic children but never in a big group...normally 1 or 2 at a time...don't think I'd have the talent needed to make it work in large groups.

Some people on the youtube comment section post jokes on videos like that. I was not talking about the gamespot community.

It was around 30-40 people depending on the day. So yeah, it was pretty difficult.

@samanthademeste: And you survived. Kind of proud of you.

@korvus:

Thanks. It was like that for three years. Then I said "enough is enough" and I left. I am at a better school now and my workplace is fine.

@samanthademeste: Glad to hear it.

i worked with head injury survivors at one point and i would imagine it would be pretty similar in that each case is individual and not the kind of thing where you can just say "X" is the way everything works.

Most people with autism who you deem as assholes dont think they deserve special treatment, they simply dont look at the world the same way you do and are unaware that their attitudes are innapropiate.

I have asperger syndrome, I used to be a complete asshat (Sometimes I still am) and a retard at socializing, I went to many therapies to correct this and before that I honestly had no fucking clue that a lot of the things which I did pissed people off or made them think I was rude. I never, not once, thought that I deserved special treatment for my autism, in fact for the most part of my life I didnt had a clue I had anything like that.

@lightleggy: How exactly do you know which people I deem as assholes? I'm referring particularly to the ones who tell you to your face "You can't dispute me on this because I was hired under a special needs contract and I can get you in trouble for disagreeing with me"; I'm referring specifically to people who bring up their mental illness as an excuse to do whatever they want. Like I said, it is about personalities, not disabilities.

Those people are most likely not even autistic. The problem here is how much of a cookie cutter diagnosis autism has become. Every celebrity now who is shy is deemed as "autist", and a lot of psychiatrist (or even people with no authority to give a diagnose) hand out the diagnosis like candy. Its like the new bipolarity, the cool disorder to have.

A lot of those "autists" are just kids with horrible tempers and horrible manners, but most therapyst dont have the balls to tell that to their parents (or their parents dont accept it).

My friend is getting a degree on language therapy and she has to see kids who are diagnosed with autism, most of them dont even exhibit the smallest symptoms and fail the most obvious tests. They are just assholes who try to use a disorder as an excuse for their attitude.

@lightleggy: I don't disagree with you. Autism, much like ADHD has become a blanket statement for "person who's difficult to deal with". If you see autism as something that impairs you from function at full potential I'd understand, but nowadays everything is in the "autism spectrum". Just like every misbehaving, restless kid "has ADHD". Yeah, I believe that most people have predisposition, but there has to be a threshold...otherwise everybody is OCD as well...

I've been upset this week because I have Asperger's Syndrome, but everytime I ask for help being independent it's suggested to me I join with a group of low functioning Autistic people. I've been in groups with them, and harassed to be a girlfriend to a guy who can't function. It's like they want so desperately to be okay giving my life up to care for their forever child.

I now have PTSD from issues regarding this and abuse in special ed. I get more frightened the more it seems Autistic people are above consequences for their behavior, and it's wrong to tell them no. I'm getting a feeling disorders that would once be called things like antisocial behavior disorders are being called Autism to please parents. Violent behavior is called "melting down." I don't feel safe as a woman around men like this, but am told they can't help it, they have Autism.

I also fear becoming the obsession of a man with Autism, in fact that fear is a main reason I'm upset. I have been told I can't reject Autistic men in the past cause they like me. A mother of an Autistic son yelled at my mom for not forcing me to be with him. I felt no hope, that my life would be babysitting Autistic men forever.

I became seriously depressed. I'm depressed now because it seems the only way to get past this is just refusing to identify as having Asperger's Syndrome. I desperately want my diagnosis revoked, or for them to make a female varient of it so I can choose to get support just with women. Since parents of Autistic men would cry discrimination if their sons couldn't join a group.

I'm posting this here because it seems one of the few places left people are able to discuss this without being told to shut up and just understand. I woke up having an anxiety attack about this and feeling like wanting to cry. To not eat even though I'm hungry because that pain is easier to cope with. I'm terrified if I don't get this removed when my parents pass on, (that was hard to think about just to type it) I'll be put in a living facility with Autistic people. I'm tired of functioning labels don't matter, my ability to feel safe does matter!

I feel better knowing there are still people who will understand this, who won't tell me I'm a monster for feeling this way. It happens today is my birthday, and it's a wonderful gift to know I can have hope again for a normal life.

Very, in many ways. My friend's brother is autistic and my aunt has downs and lives in a group home with others. Some are easier than others, some can't even speak, some are really articulate and have an amazing sense of humor, etc. It varies, but it's difficult no matter what.

@yoshiglobox: First of all I want to wish you an incredibly happy birthday!! Second, I'd like to tell you that even though I don't know you I feel kind of proud of you for being able to open up like that to a bunch of people you don't know...that takes courage.

I can't say I can fully relate with your experience (I'm neither a female nor I have Asperger's) but I am no stranger to joining a group seeking help only to have people turn to me like I'm some sort of cure or saviour...there are no shortcuts and relying on someone else to help shouldering the problems of their loved ones just because they happen to be in the right place at the right time (or wrong place at the wrong time, depending on which perspective you see it from) is highly unfair and damaging to the person in question. I'm sorry you have to endure that and that you are being fed so much contradicting information.

One thing I can say for sure is that you ABSOLUTELY can reject anybody regardless of their situation or problems...I've met way too many women who ended up trapped in relationships that were hazardous to them because "they were not supposed to say no". Granted, some ways of rejecting someone are better than others, and you should always try to be the kindest possible, especially towards people who might have trouble understanding your rejection or went through a lot of effort to let you know they're interested, but above all you need to remember that they life conditions are neither your doing nor your responsibility. If you join a group to get help you are there primarily for that reason...if you can offer some help in return all the better but it's neither your job nor you probably have qualifications to provide the needed help.

I hope that you can find some measure of peace in knowing that you have several people here who are willing to listen to you and lend you an ear (an eye sounds creepy =P) and while I obviously can't offer anyone else's help I want you to know I'm available (either here or in PM) to listen to you. I'm not qualified to help but I'm "qualified" to listen. Just live life the best you can every day and keep your chin up as much as possible!

I think anyone that needs assistance in anyway could add difficulty to your personal working space.

@korvus: Thanks so much for your kind post. My main issue is fearing an Autistic person becoming violent if I reject them. It's terrible how the families of violent Autistic people justify their child being around others. I've wondered if it'll get to a point where psychos are just labled as on the Autism spectrum, I don't recall another time in history people pushed for acceptance of people who endanger others.

They can be. Particularly with autism, that's not a fair question. I've known autistic people whom you would never know were autistic from daily interactions. I've also known autistic people who were actually dangerous (one such individual dragged my 22 year old cousin across the room by her hair in a rage). Similarly, I know one individual who is severely autistic to the point that he can't really function, but he would never hurt a fly.

Autism is a little perplexing to me because people with it are just all over the map in terms of behavior and capabilities. That's what they refer to as the "spectrum" of autism. It's just striking how wide it's range is.

Most of the people I was working with were dangerous and violent. That's why I said low-functioning autism and low-functioning down syndrome.

Well the parents will only tell you how nice their child is. They get offended if you ask if they might be violent, so there's no way of knowing what you're getting into. I was nearly punched by an Autistic man at a support group, and the parents just stood there like it was no big deal. I don't want to be around people like that.

Most parents today don't correct their children anymore. Most staff from schools don't correct students when they bully other students either. Today's generation is way too lax and lenient when it comes to right and wrong and societies norms.

Yes!

Hard to say considering I've actually never really worked with any, but I'm sure that's due to me being really behind on finally being in the working/employment world, argh, hope no one is mad at me for being a lazy bum.

Well at least I go to college... so it shouldn't be that long before I get a job I say.

The good news is if it's not part of your job description and/or your not put in a classroom with them at school, people can walk away from most situations that involve lower functioning handicapped people. (such as autism and down syndrome.)

@samanthademeste: What you said about parents is true. In fact it seems parents these days think at almost the same age as their children. I don't know if that's nature's way of bonding, but in other countries outside the US you don't see parents holding their own temper tantrums in public, or treating people who don't want to associate with their children in the same way a small child passively shows aggression. By glaring, or in even one case a mother stuck her tongue out at me like a mad 3 year old. It's like having children raising children.

They are people too, People with downsyndrome may only have a physical dissorder and autism is quite handleable (yes both have extremes but don't say all are like that!) i have a few friends with autism even if they can't handle everything as good as a person without autism they are still people with lives, famillies and needs! so No they are not difficult to work with (most of the time) i know "normal" people who are harder to work with!

"normal" people can be just as difficult if not more difficult to work with as handicapped people, I agree. I never said that everyone should lick the boots of "normal" people and I do not hate handicapped people. I was referring to low-functioning autism and low-functioning down syndrome. Those people are indisputably difficult to work with. Anyone who says otherwise is a hipster and a SJW.

In what capacity do you work with them? As equals, or are they under you care or supervision.

Most the time I've noticed business go out of their way to hire people with special needs, they typically hire them to do the most menial work. I'm just curious, but what line of work are you in that you have extensive experience dealing with people with down syndrome or autism, because I'd worry less about whether people with these conditions are more/less difficult to work with and more concerned if you settled on a job/career menial enough that you find yourself working side-by-side with them. Because if it's the case that the job is just menial, low paying, not building worthwhile experience to advance your career, I'd look for work elsewhere.

If it's the case these people are under your care or supervision, what kind of training do you have dealing with these people? If none, I'm curious how/why you are put in that position to begin with.

I was stuck with them because the staff at my former school put me there. I tried to get out for 3 years and it was not until a new registration member came in that they would even allow me to leave at all.