Hi,
When my daughter first saw her neurologist, she got a diagnosis of hemiplegia, but the neuro said "I think there's something else going on there too". She started asking lots of questions about stuff like imaginative play....I listed lots of examples of imaginative play and said "Oh she's also a great fan of Thomas the Tank Engine". This was written on file in capital letters....strange I thought.
Similar reactions from an ed psych later on.
I didn't click until I read an article in a newspaper (very sneery and unpleasant) "Why I hate Thomas the Tank Engine". Amongst the reasons quoted was "He's a favourite with autistic children...which says a lot about the lack of imagination in these stories...if you don't believe me see this website (quoting a study on autism)". Nice guy!
Needless to say I checked out the website, and when I saw the other diagnosis criteria, I thought "They think my daughter is autistic...." I had never realised that all her "quirks" and "tics" were not unique, and were actually signs of autism/aspergers.
When we saw the next Ed Psych I just gave her a list of "quirks" and "tics" and said "So is it autism/aspergers ?"
She said "Oh thank God you're on the ball, I've been thinking oh *** how am I going to break the news".
Cos I'm a teacher myself, she was pretty laid-back with me, and told me that Ed Psychs are not even allowed to mention the words "autism" or "aspergers" to parents, and are supposed to use vague terms about social development or pervasive development disorder, whilst urging them to see a clinical psychologist.
So the diagnosis is HFA/Aspergers....what was all the tip-toeing around about. Is this the "condition that dare not speak it's name" ?
Maybe they should introduce a new euphemism along the lines of "Friends of Dorothy" (gays)....perhaps "Friends of Thomas"....
It just seems a bit daft that there's this reluctance to "name that tune". If like me, you just thought your child was a bit "quirky", it's hardly life shattering to be told that there's a reason for the quirks.
I understand that they want to be sure before they give a diagnosis, but as a parent it would be good to be given some information about what they are "investigating".
Thomas is based on the E2 Class 0-6-0T locomotives built for the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway between 1913 and 1916. But... Thomas never held any attraction for me. I flipped the channel.
I think medical professionals trying to be kind is probably better than talking callous. I've dealt with both. I was angered by the rude & callous way my mother's doctor talked (right in front of her like she wasn't there) about her impending death. On the other hand, when a vet called me about my dog, he phrased it in such a round about way, I didn't understand that he meant my dog had died.
In your case, I supposed past experience has told them it's better to wait and have a qualified professional make sure before pushing the hysteria button on most parents. Which might later invoke fury at them if they were wrong. Remember, the propaganda being churned it by Autism Speaks tells them that the word autism means their whole family's life is ruined Ruined RUINED.
I did not like Thomas either, was already in my thirties when I first saw it.
The modification of medical terms to make it 'easier' is old. Cancer and tuberculosis had their 'nice' variants too.
I can understand that a professional is not allowed to tell about autism/asperger because he/she is not qualified to test for it. On the other hand, I would like to know why they refered me to somebody else.
So I would like it if they said, 'we see tendencies that might mean a PDD and want to look further. With my oldest the remedial teacher said: 'If you have difficulties with your daughter you might look for information on PDD-NOS or Asperger, not because she has that, but she does show a lot of traits and it might be helpful'. I never did, I would have guessed about myself 5 years earlier if I had done that. But I did not take offence of the advice either. It was said caring, careful and with respect.
I would have been very annoyed had I seen that the record said in big letters which television programme she liked much. Hey I knew that already.
I did take offence of how the schoolmedic treated us. She only saw my daughter 5 minutes in a strange environment. We thought we were coming for a hearing test. And we ended up with a total program of how I should get her into 'normal' behaviour. She did not use any terminology, but did give massive not fitting behavioural advice. She did not use any terminology, but did try to make us feel total s--t. As if nothing good was to be found in my girl, and only her approach could safe us. Took me weeks to get over that encounter.
She did not use any terminology, but did try to make us feel total s--t. As if nothing good was to be found in my girl, and only her approach could safe us. Took me weeks to get over that encounter.
This is closer to my initial experience when John was 6. The school official basically said, "Your kid has autism and its pretty much a hopeless thing. We can do all this testing, but there isn't really any point." She was very abrasive -- an attitude like dealing with another autistic kid was such a total waste of her time.
Grizeldatee,
I was lucky, the school was OK. It was just this medic. And I was so shocked by it that I refused to go a year later. I told them how I had experienced it. That I appreciated it that they wanted to keep an eye on children, but that it would be better for me and my daughter if they just asked questions at school about us. I gave her permission to ask school. A few months after that the teacher of my daughter told me they had called. I said that I knew and also why they had called school. The teacher laughed and said: 'we're only allowed to say yes and no to their questions, they didn't like that, but they do understand by now that your daughter is doing great'.
Its great having a 3 year old sister. I get to watch stuff I havent seen for years and years, like Pingu and Toy Story. I loved Thomas, but alas, my sister has no interest in talking trains. . .
Thomas the Dreadnought ;p
lolz. Very funny...
Thomas the Tank Engine may be what they call the current version of the show, but when I was a kid I remember it being called Shining Time Station, and the conductor was played by George Carlin (which I always thought was odd in an obviously brittish show.
But back to the original topic of the thread, what is this supposed to mean? Is it that the only kids who like the show are Autistic? Is it that watching the show will make someone Autistic? Is Thomas Autistic? I still don't quite get the reason why people see the show as a bad thing or what it has to do with Autism.
I did a search on google and didn't find any newspaper articles, just a blog entry by a mother who thinks her Autistic son who really likes the show is getting too far into it. She says he "worships" the show, etc, but says nothing about why the show itself is a bad thing, just that her son really likes it, the school her son goes to has a lot of toys inspired by the show, and that toys from the show are often really expensive.
And Sailor Moon is sexist because boys can't be guardians.
Man it's opinions like these that make me want to nuke the world and humanity... for this level of childishness.. lol.
Thankfully for the rest of us you don't seem the type that gets to stand near the "red button" 
Man it's opinions like these that make me want to nuke the world and humanity... for this level of childishness.. lol.
Thankfully for the rest of us you don't seem the type that gets to stand near the "red button"
Do you feel any better about the jackass who currently does stand behind it?
ha ha ha... NO! maybe they're one in the same...
(Sarah drives off in a huff to see if she can find a fallout shelter...)
Thomas the Tank Engine is sexist. There were only two female characters in the original series and they were the coaches, so they were entirely subservient to the male characters. I gather a female engine, Emily, has belatedly been introduced but gender parity's still some way off.
Man it's opinions like these that make me want to nuke the world and humanity... for this level of childishness.. lol.
My son loved Thomas the tank engine 
Here is a little tidbit I found:
"Created in the early 1940s by an Anglican vicar, Thomas has lived through a lot of changes in pop culture -- the civil rights movement, for example -- which may explain why one expert believes Thomas is not just a train, but a male chauvinist pig.
"I have a real problem with Thomas because I think it's quite sexist," says Robyn Starkey, an instructor of English literature with a specialty in children's literature at Mount Royal College.
"It's all boy trains. In the original books, if there was a female character, she wasn't prominent."
Since the original books began to be published in 1946, however, female characters have joined the cast. Thomas' best friends Annie and Claribel are prominent fixtures on the show as well as Miss Jenny, the leader of the Sodor Construction Company, Molly, a large and powerful steam engine, and Lady, a special engine who helped Sir Topham Hatt and Thomas defeat Thomas' nemesis Diesel 10.
In addition, data collected by Treehouse TV shows audiences for Thomas are split evenly between boy and girl viewers"
** (My mom always called the mailman "personperson")