The boy in NJ who shot and killed mom, dad, sister and family friend was autistic

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Sandy Hook shooter was also on the spectrum.

The Sandy Hook shooter had way more than ASD going on and those things were far more impactful on his psyche. Sometimes people say ASD, when there are other things going on that they would rather not explain or broadcast.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Meet stigma head-on. People on the spectrum are much more likely to be the targets of harassment and violence than the other way around.

Or to put it another way, if everyone with ASD was a gun-crazed murderer there would be nobody left on the planet.

This is truly a tragedy on multiple levels for this family and their community.

But it is not proof of some kind of link between ASD or mental health challenges and the rates of gun deaths in the US.

Every single kid who does a mass shooting is also medicated for things like anxiety, depression, etc.

I think the issue is the pharmaceutical drugs and side effects on young men in particular, that are being glossed over that are the true cause of these mass shootings.

I don't know. Cho (VT shooter) was apparently not being treated for his psychiatric problems. Adam Lanza's mom may not have been able to manage his medication - I read somewhere that he had retreated to his bedroom, blacked out his windows and was communicating with his mom via the internet.

I think that some of this is due to the fact that these are normal, regular parents trying to handle severe psychiatric illnesses all by themselves with no training, no support, little guidance.

State of Connecticut wrote a report on Lanza. It's a case study of what not to do with an autistic kid. He was obsessed with violence and was not being properly treated. He was not recieving therapy or medication at the time and he was clearly showing signs of depression as he corresponded about his obsession on the internet. His mother allowed him to isolate himself for years despite professional advice not to do that. The schools did not fulfill their positive duty to identify and address all areas of educational need. And despite his obsession with violence (which his mother may not have fully appreciated) she gave him access to her guns and taught him how to shoot.

I think anyone with common sense reading about Lanza's home environment would have realized that he was a ticking time bomb.

His mom was overwhelmed and probably angry. Her life with Adam was miserable.

She seems to have actively avoided proper treatment both for her son and herself. They didn't get a proper diagnosis early on, and even when they got one from a very reputable clinic, she ignored the treatment recommendations, instead going to a psychiatrist who did not seem to be competent in treating autism. The father seemed to have a better understanding, but the parents were divorced and he had little influence on treatment decisions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Sandy Hook shooter was also on the spectrum.

The Sandy Hook shooter had way more than ASD going on and those things were far more impactful on his psyche. Sometimes people say ASD, when there are other things going on that they would rather not explain or broadcast.

He also had OCD and depression, which are common comorbidities with ASD. Add that to a lack of treatment, poor family life and easy access to guns, and it's a disaster waiting to happen.

[Anonymous]

A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

...but 26 people, mostly young children, may be alive today if he hadn't had access to those guns--the tragedy might have been prevented or at least contained. Not to get too political here, but that has to be said.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Sandy Hook shooter was also on the spectrum.

The Sandy Hook shooter had way more than ASD going on and those things were far more impactful on his psyche. Sometimes people say ASD, when there are other things going on that they would rather not explain or broadcast.

I totally agree. Both Cho and Lanza had extremely severe psychiatric issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

...but 26 people, mostly young children, may be alive today if he hadn't had access to those guns--the tragedy might have been prevented or at least contained. Not to get too political here, but that has to be said.

Maybe. Or he could have plowed his car into a playground taking out 27 kids. Or set off a bomb or torched a preschool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

Yes, but he would not have been able to murder several classrooms full of elementary schoolers. No one is suggesting banning firearms, but our current situation means that every "ticking time bomb" has the potential to turn into a mass shooting incident.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

If he had no access to guns, 20 other children would be alive today, but Adam Lanza would still be suffering.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

Yes, but he would not have been able to murder several classrooms full of elementary schoolers. No one is suggesting banning firearms, but our current situation means that every "ticking time bomb" has the potential to turn into a mass shooting incident.

Is there any psychiatric support network that could have been in place for these young men and their parents?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

...but 26 people, mostly young children, may be alive today if he hadn't had access to those guns--the tragedy might have been prevented or at least contained. Not to get too political here, but that has to be said.

Maybe. Or he could have plowed his car into a playground taking out 27 kids. Or set off a bomb or torched a preschool.

But his obsession was with school shootings, particularly Columbine. He kept a list of mass shootings and posted on the internet about buying guns and shooting people. As is common with ASD, he had a restricted interest, but it was a rare and extremely dangerous one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

...but 26 people, mostly young children, may be alive today if he hadn't had access to those guns--the tragedy might have been prevented or at least contained. Not to get too political here, but that has to be said.

Maybe. Or he could have plowed his car into a playground taking out 27 kids. Or set off a bomb or torched a preschool.

But his obsession was with school shootings, particularly Columbine. He kept a list of mass shootings and posted on the internet about buying guns and shooting people. As is common with ASD, he had a restricted interest, but it was a rare and extremely dangerous one.

He was obsessed with violent thoughts. If it hadn't been a gun, it would have been something else. Banning guns wouldn't have made those obsessive thoughts go away.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

Yes, but he would not have been able to murder several classrooms full of elementary schoolers. No one is suggesting banning firearms, but our current situation means that every "ticking time bomb" has the potential to turn into a mass shooting incident.

Is there any psychiatric support network that could have been in place for these young men and their parents?

It sounded like his mother isolated herself and her son from sensible treatment options. Based only on what I have read, she didn't take advantage of the support or treatment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of folks want to believe this could never happen to them, hence all of the second-guessing of the parenting.

The salient issue here isn't when folks got a "proper" diagnosis or choosing a different provider. It is access to firearms.

Adam was a ticking time bomb. He was going to go off at some point whether he had a gun at his disposal or not. Banning firearms would not have made him well.

Yes, but he would not have been able to murder several classrooms full of elementary schoolers. No one is suggesting banning firearms, but our current situation means that every "ticking time bomb" has the potential to turn into a mass shooting incident.

Is there any psychiatric support network that could have been in place for these young men and their parents?

My personal opinion is that IDEA should be updated to put more emphasis on the schools identifying risks and providing psychological services, and for kids who need it, there should be more services after they finish school. This would require our country to make a huge investment in mental health, so I don't expect this to happen anytime soon. Meanwhile, it's up to the parents to make sure their kids get what they need with whatever resources they have.