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Autism / Aspergers Syndrome ID-style Cards

Droopy

Droopy

Founder & Former Admin
V.I.P Member
I recently came across this link about a site that makes cards for people with medical conditions. I had seen this before and wondered if anyone has one or thinks they are worth getting?

It is basically an ID-style card saying the holder has Autism (or other medical condition), contains contact information for doctor/parents and on the back explains some of the difficulties the person has.

It could be useful in some situations, like this one for example.
 
I think it could be a very useful thing. I myself probably wouldn't carry one but I can see where others on the spectrum would benefit greatly.
 
Having such an ID card mentioning the condition and "how to handle" instructions would be useful for a condition like epilepsy - where life threatening fits happen suddenly. However, AS doesn't have such things. Thus, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.

Having an AS ID card is almost as good as putting a sign on your face saying "Aspie" or openly telling everyone that you are one.

The advantages would be better marketing of skills, assuming public awareness and confidence of Aspie obsessive interests is high (not happening soon). You could perhaps include there like "highly skilled in XXXXXX skill". But however this would only apply a small percent of the time.

The rest of the time, it would probably attract unwelcome attention.

I know I'm not PC here, but just because the law (in your area, not mine) somehow includes some clauses for protection of Aspies doesn't mean that people won't hate one. And no matter what the law says, hate will always find a way to manifest.

On the other hand, this could also be abused and these buggers give us a bad name. Just think of all those SOBs who manipulate the system to get welfare benefits (or to slack off during conscription in my country), including things like faking all manner of mental illnesses like depression and so on. Do the rest of the public know better? No. Even if they did, they usually don't have the time to make a proper diagnosis and they tend to generalise.

Even putting AS on an identity card with "handling instructions" might have negative effects. People would lump AS together with conditions like say epilepsy or something that can flare up immediately and unpredictably. Then they have more perceived reason to shun AS people.

So, I don't think this is a good idea.
 
190 said:
Having such an ID card mentioning the condition and "how to handle" instructions would be useful for a condition like epilepsy - where life threatening fits happen suddenly. However, AS doesn't have such things. Thus, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.
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What about for those at the severe end of the spectrum? Would it not be a good idea to have in case something went wrong (e.g. getting confronted by police as mentioned in the other article)? Obviously you wouldn't wear it around your neck but rather keep it in your wallet and only take it out if/when needed.
 
I like the idea, but I think I'd have to agree with 190 on this one (at least in my area). Even a run in with police, unless they were forced to take it seriously and trained on them it would do more harm than good. They'd likely tazer you if you tried to pull it out and would likely do the opposite of instructions on the card thinking it would be funny. And according to what I've found out thus far, there are very few protections for AS in the southern U.S.

Take my above opinion with skepticism, as I know I have a resentment for authority figures and notice police officers being rude and not obeying various laws quite frequently. I feel that most (not all) do not honor their moto of "to protect and serve".
 
Where I live they tazered an autistic teenager at the beech because when they asked for his ID he reached in his pocket and pulled out an empty hand. The police told him to stand up and he wouldn't so they just tazered him. (Resisting arrest they say) Turns out the whole thing was a fiasco. The person who tazered him was actually jail guard not a police officer, and the cops lied about it. The Georgia Bureau of Investigations got involved and they all got fired, plus settled a large lawsuit.
 
Well, if police are going to act like that then there's no point in having a card for that purpose. Where I live, police don't use tazers except specialist officers, so there's a very slim chance of getting tazered over here.
 
Hm... 190 does have a point, Jaws and Billi has a point as well. The card might not have done Neli any good. In another article, his mom was suggesting on getting a medical alert bracelet or necklace. That might be the only thing cops might pay attention to. Key word is might now.

I don't recall any cases in Florida right now, but it depends on where you live though. Some cops might have some knowledge and empathy (or training) on how to approach the situation. Not all cops have that knowledge though.

The ID Card thing is a touchy subject. Personally I might get one if it was a generalized medical one to list just medical conditions, and maybe neurological/psychiatric info on the side. But, mainly just for the medical conditions though. I am not saying Asperger's Syndrome is a medical condition.

Edit: If I had offended anybody, I apologize in advance.
 
I wouldn't mind getting one. I think that it would be very useful for me to have one on me. What if I lose something that means a lot to me, or I'm having a meltdown. I can whip that card out of my wallet and show it to the person who's helping me.
 
You might as well put it as a quick response card to give out when you have a meltdown. Don't even bother using it as an ID. Just make your own and laminate it.

And while you're at it, just put it as a personal condition and don't mention AS. The chance that someone is bothered to google up and finds out you have AS is minimal anyway.

I don't know whether it's not PC to discriminate against a Aspie in Western countries (i.e. in the same light as gay lesbians and whatnot), but here in my region practically nobody has any qualms discriminating against Aspies.
 
I recently heard that a dutch autism support group has cards they hand out. It's general information about autism and a bit of the sensory stuff, from what I've heard. I might ask for one, even if it's just to see what it's all about. I don't feel that I should wave the thing around to anyone, however I do feel that at places I need support at least the ones offering support should be a bit familiar with it, or at least know a bit about it. I feel that handing someone from say... social services a card that says "I have autism, these are some general/common issues I might have" rather than me having a meltdown and trying to get myself together to talk to them.
 
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I have a stack of these cards that I was given when I was diagnosed. I have never actually used one and can't see that I ever will, but I imagine they would be useful for somebody who has meltdowns in public or is nonverbal.

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I think for the majority of HFA/aspergers it's unnecessary to carry around a card. But I don't think it's a bad idea, either. I think this is perfect for those who are on the more severe side of the spectrum who have more intense breakdowns, especially if it were to happen in public places. It would just depend on the individual case.

In a way I like this more than going on a permanent/government record, because you can sort of choose who sees it.
 
190 said:
Having such an ID card mentioning the condition and "how to handle" instructions would be useful for a condition like epilepsy - where life threatening fits happen suddenly. However, AS doesn't have such things. Thus, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.

Having an AS ID card is almost as good as putting a sign on your face saying "Aspie" or openly telling everyone that you are one.

The advantages would be better marketing of skills, assuming public awareness and confidence of Aspie obsessive interests is high (not happening soon). You could perhaps include there like "highly skilled in XXXXXX skill". But however this would only apply a small percent of the time.

The rest of the time, it would probably attract unwelcome attention.

I know I'm not PC here, but just because the law (in your area, not mine) somehow includes some clauses for protection of Aspies doesn't mean that people won't hate one. And no matter what the law says, hate will always find a way to manifest.

On the other hand, this could also be abused and these buggers give us a bad name. Just think of all those SOBs who manipulate the system to get welfare benefits (or to slack off during conscription in my country), including things like faking all manner of mental illnesses like depression and so on. Do the rest of the public know better? No. Even if they did, they usually don't have the time to make a proper diagnosis and they tend to generalise.

Even putting AS on an identity card with "handling instructions" might have negative effects. People would lump AS together with conditions like say epilepsy or something that can flare up immediately and unpredictably. Then they have more perceived reason to shun AS people.

So, I don't think this is a good idea.
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Actually it is very helpful for AS. For example if the person is stopped by a police officer or any other situation like that, the person gets can get very stressed out, nervous, and anxious. That may cause mutism or a meltdown and it’ll seem rude or I. The case of authority it will seem like it’s our fault and we do not want to cooperate. Also, in a medical emergency the doctors may know why we are not talkin or actin a certain way and will call the emergency numbers on the back of the card. So yes it is beneficial. For your safety.
 
Addison said:
Actually it is very helpful for AS. For example if the person is stopped by a police officer or any other situation like that, the person gets can get very stressed out, nervous, and anxious. That may cause mutism or a meltdown and it’ll seem rude or I. The case of authority it will seem like it’s our fault and we do not want to cooperate. Also, in a medical emergency the doctors may know why we are not talkin or actin a certain way and will call the emergency numbers on the back of the card. So yes it is beneficial. For your safety.
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