One of the more informative revelations in our quest to understand autism is the wide ranges that exist in behavior and effect. Journalist Steve Silberman opens his tour de force, Neurotribes, by detailing just how varied what is now known as “the spectrum” can be. One hundred people could feasibly have one hundred different genetic causes, resulting in a popular sentiment in the autism community: “If you meet one person with autism, you’ve met one person with autism.”
In the study, the team describes the five subtypes as:
Tension: This type is defined by irritability. People are overly sensitive, touchy, and overwhelmed. The anxiety makes the nervous system hypersensitive.
Anxious arousal: Cognitive functioning, such as the ability to concentrate and control thoughts, is impaired. Physical symptoms include a racing heart, sweating, and feeling stressed. “People say things like ‘I feel like I’m losing my mind,” Williams says. “They can’t remember from one moment to the next.”
Melancholia: People experience problems with social functioning. Restricted social interactions further cause distress.
Anhedonia: The primary symptom is an inability to feel pleasure. This type of depression often goes unrecognized. People are often able to function reasonably well while in a high state of distress. “We see it in how the brain functions in overdrive,” Williams says. “People are able to power through but at some time become quite numb. These are some of the most distressed people.”
General anxiety: A generalized type of anxiety with the primary features involving worry and anxious arousal — a more physical type of stress.