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From: Enigma128 on 10 Mar 2007 22:08
Autism and the Limbic System

Written by Stephen M. Edelson, Ph.D.
Center for the Study of Autism, Salem, Oregon

Quote:

<snip>

The amygdala, (which means "almond-shaped"), controls our aggression and
emotions. Many autistic individuals are aggressive towards themselves or
others, or conversely, extremely passive. Furthermore, autistic children and
adults often appear emotionless or 'flat' (even though they obviously do
have emotions). Experimenters have also shown that when the amygdala is
removed or damaged, animals exhibit behaviors similar to autistic
individuals, such as social withdrawal, compulsive behaviors, failure to
learn about dangerous situations, difficulty retrieving information from
memory, and difficulty adjusting to novel events or situations.

<snip>

The hippocampus, (shaped like a "sea horse") appears to be primarily
responsible for learning and memory. Damage or removal of the hippocampus
will lead to an inability to store new information into memory. This sounds
similar to Dr. Bernard Rimland's cognitive theory of autism. In his 1964
award-winning book Infantile Autism, Dr. Rimland theorized that autistic
children had difficulty relating new information to previously stored
information.

End quote.

http://www.autism.org/limbic.html

Presumably many people intimately know about this already, but I am not one
of them, hence my post to possibly stimulate discussion to gain further
enlightenment.



* Difficulty retrieving information from memory.

This was of particular interest to me.

Previously I had thought I was simply not concentrating hard enough.

If this truely is the reason for my deficit, my first question is: What can
be done about it?

There have already been indications from my previous research that
trainning/exercises can help with the situation and I will do follow-up
reading on the subject.



* Difficulty adjusting to novel events or situations.

Previously in a recent post here I alluded to what I call a "psychological
inertia" regarding having a lack of motivation.

This inertia seems to also effect the adaptation process.

I will be researching this aspect of autism also.



* Difficulty relating new information to previously stored information.

This is another consequence of autism that has baffled me.

Having information side-by-side but often needing outside confirmation that
there really is a relationship to strongly materialise the connection.

This falls into what I call a "lessened sense of reality".



Any input here would be appreciated.

Cheers,

Peter...




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