I sometimes wonder, Aubrie, if some people are better off not being diagnosed. Modern society is anxious to label everyone. People are increasingly willing to label themselves.

There were kids I went to grade school with in the 1960s that probably had ADHD or autism. Usually the kids with ADHD were considered discipline problems and those with autism were considered weird. However, I think people tended to be more likely to give them a chance because they didn’t have a diagnosis that informed their expectations.

When we label people, we make them subject to pre-conceived notions about what “people like that” are like. As you point out, the media contributes to this. I think a diagnosis is key to understanding ourselves or our children, but I’m not sure waving it around to the public at large is all that helpful to us.