bing181

All over the country, people park their cars around the local footy ground to passionately support scrappy, congested, poor skill rubbish: local footy. Kids lie awake at night dreaming of playing scrappy, congested, poor skill rubbish with their mates. Happy to watch it and support my team.

Just to say: I've just finished a major project led by a muslim guy, as were most of those involved. His main concern at the moment? a) that his nephew will finish high school with good enough grades to get into the University he wants and b) that his aunt is seriously ill. I lived for many years in a predominately muslim neighbourhood, and the characterisations of muslims that I read on these (and other) pages have little or nothing to do with the reality.

First of all, it has to be a joke.

Best preventive measures would have been to get him into a mental facility where the underlying cause of all his (and our) problems could have been addressed. No-one in full command of their senses and aware of the consequence of their actions drives a car into a crowd of people, knowing that there will be deaths.

Hindsight bias. While it was happening, no-one had any knowledge or idea that a guy doing donuts in a city street was then about to mow down civilians in the mall. Looking back, we always think we had information that we didn't. In fact, we're sure of it.

Judging by some of the comments, perhaps some of you might like to explore this further, though it's impossible to draw any solid conclusions from a single test. I live OS, so am a bit out of the loop re how this works in Oz, but usually you would start off with your GP, though that depends on both you and the GP - some are more up to speed than others. The majority of organisations and individuals offering diagnosis are working with kids, so there might be a bit of sorting out of the wheat from the chaff. I'd specifically look for someone: a) specialised in Asperger's and autism, though if you're an adult and there was no speech delay as a kid, we're looking at Asperger's rather than autism (though that's a simplification of the situation, but enough for here), and b) someone specialised in adult diagnosis. Aspergers Victoria look like a decent place to start if you're in Melbourne/Vic. The first meeting with a psychologist or whatever might be nothing more than an exploratory chat to see whether it's worth pursuing or exploring possibilities, so it's perhaps worth at least going that far with it. I'd just say one thing re all this: Adults on the spectrum have grown up with it, and have often learnt to cope by masking the difficulties, especially socially. But that can be much more stressful than what we might be aware of. One of the main causes of death amongst autists is suicide. And the incidence of suicide is highest amongst autistic people who have no cognitive impairment (i.e. invisible autistics like me), where the suicide rate is 9 times the non-autistic population (Swedish study). Tony Attwood has observed that for many adult Asperger's, managing stress and depression is a greater concern than anything to do with autism itself. Not suggesting that's the case of anyone here, but if there's anything in this, speaking from experience, it's worth exploring. If you're autistic, you can never not be (and vice versa). But knowing that you are brings understanding, and with understanding comes the means to live and manage it better. Go Dees.

For those looking for more info - well, it's easy enough to find around the net, though a very mixed bag. In general, the Brits do it well, so anything from the National Autistic Society or other UK organisations is generally good. More specifically, I'd recommend anything by Tony Attwood, he's a British clinical psychologist but been based in Brisbane for yonks. He effectively wrote the book on Asperger's, there's plenty of info on his site, plus his book, Youtube videos (interviews, conferences etc.) etc. But the book I'd recommend above all others isn't really a book on autism per se, but on the history of autism: Neurotribes by Steve Silberman. I learnt more about autism from this than any other, even though that's not the intention. It's also a great read per se, Silberman is an actual writer, unlike most in the field. There are also forums and groups around the place, but I've found most of them fairly heavy going. Many of them end up like training threads. That's not to say there aren't worthwhile online forums, but if you were looking to explore any of this through groups etc., you might need to hunt around a bit.

Being a Demons supporter means never having to say you're sorry ... No apology needed or expected. Just passing on info, not intended as a reproach. Hopefully helps a little with understanding and perceptions.

Signs or characteristics rather than symptoms ... autism isn't a disease or a pathology. Good luck with it.

If you didn't cheat (!) and aren't taking the proverbial, might like to explore it further. Of course, this in itself doesn't confirm anything, I've known of people with "high" scores who don't meet diagnostic criteria. But from what I've seen, the results tend to be quite polarised, neurotypicals often get scores down around 11, 12 etc. I managed a performance of Gawn-like proportions: 47. Putting this alongside RAADS - 14 would help give a fuller picture.

Heart-breaking. It echoes Phil Walsh's tragic death at the hands of his son, or Luke Batty's at the hands of his father. It's too easy to see it as a failure of the police, but it should never have got that far. It's not the law or the police's job to manage what is a mental health problem (linked to a drugs problem), and even moreso in extreme cases. This guy should have received help way before this, but the mental health services are just not able to keep up. In most cases, even people like this can be treated and helped so they're no longer a threat to others - or themselves. The leading cause of death for 15 - 44 y.o. Australians is suicide (not that you'd know it by the funding).

And you too, stay strong SWYL. not one human on this planet is made to perfection... find your spot and be proud.

New Year, time to put a few things in order, so a small personal “coming out”. About a year ago, following a remark I heard on a podcast, I realised I was autistic. The Big A. A little while later, I had a bit of paper to confirm it: a diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome. (Asperger’s is autism without delay in speech development as a kid.) So, whatever, this is a football forum, fair enough. But posting here for the good and simple reason that the vast majority of adults with autism or Asperger’s are undiagnosed. In general, people have little or no real idea what autism really is. I know I didn’t. Given that autism is present at around 1%, then according to the stats, there would be 40+ autistic Demonlanders, most of whom don’t know it. That’s the stats. In reality? Who knows, at least a few. Or more. You’d be surprised. I know I was. There are underlying key diagnostic criteria, but outside of that, there are no specific rules with autism, everyone’s different. But if you have trouble looking people in the eyes, have trouble maintaining a conversation (except about subjects that really interest you, such as Hogan’s goal-kicking routine, or MFC players in the years between the two world wars), are maybe a bit uncoordinated, and are bothered even slightly, by sound, light, touch (e.g. clothes or textures) it might be worth looking into. For example, one of the ever-so-subtle give-aways for me was that I realised I always drive with the sunvisor down, even in winter. Equally, you could be fine with all of that … and still be autistic. If any of this rings a bell with you or anyone you know, you can look around the net for more info, or do one of the (validated) screening tests. They won’t confirm that you’re autistic, but will confirm that you aren’t (if that’s the case). Do a search on RAADS-14 or Baron-Cohen AQ Test. (if that name rings a bell, yes, cousin of …). Happy to reply to any questions as best I can and based on my own experiences, here or by PM. Autism has been good to me. Alongside the challenges, thinking differently has given me advantages professionally and personally. I wouldn't change it for anything. But I would change having spent most of my life not knowing. Go Dees. (Mods, if this is inappropriate or whatever, please delete.)

The route cause of so many of the problems here, from the very first day this came to light. Until he does so, hard to see how he can/could move forward. Unfortunately.

Presumably though Salem can continue to work on his fitness. Just hope this doesn't stop him triggering an extension clause in his contract ...

1. Brayshaw 2. Oscar Mac 3. Salem

I was at that gig as well ... but can't remember anything about a support band. Wasn't there an issue with the weather or something, and the concert was cut short? Memories ... I must have seen Madder Lake at some point, but it's all a bit of a blur to be honest.

Let's be realistic, if we get through till Christmas without a reasonably serious injury or two, we'll be doing well.

Exactly. This is no longer the team that cancels its own 3 km time trial because they don't feel like it.

Yes. Unfortunately, he won't be able to put in place what he's learnt until next pre-season. In the meantime, we get someone who'll be underdone all year, but perhaps more seriously in terms of finals etc., we get someone who runs out of steam late in the season - as we saw with Hogan, who went through a similar experience last pre-season, and has confessed as much.

"The proportion of drivers and motorcycle riders who lost their lives with a Blood Alcohol Content greater than 0.05g/100ml has declined from 38% in 1987 to 17% in 2015." http://www.tac.vic.gov.au/road-safety/statistics/summaries/drink-driving-statistics

Don't know about that. To have to stand up in front of the whole team and all the coaches with your mea culpa is not something young Clayton is going to forget in a hurry.

I've had the opportunity (blessing) to be on the other side of this from time to time, i.e., seeing/receiving these kids. I remember one time, a kid came in, must have been in November/December, and in chatting to him someone said "so, what's Santa going to bring you for Christmas?" There was silence, and eventually his father lent over and said "he's not going to make it to Christmas". Something you never forget. Great work by the club and the players, though I'm sure this goes on more than we're aware of.

Interesting that he didn't want to explore either the option of a rookie at another club, or even VFL ... yet alone interstate options. He's not that old, could have easily had another 5+ years at a decent level. Still, he must feel that it's time to move on from footy, though wonder if coaching is on the horizon. Good luck to him, could never say that he didn't put in.

Lots of speculation. None of us know the real story. But whatever is going on, would be good for all concerned to find a resolution sooner rather than later.