Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Emotional regulation is a commonly acknowledged challenge for many autistic individuals, with the majority (67 to 79 percent) of children on the spectrum experiencing comorbid symptoms of anxiety and many (42 to 54 percent) depression (Mayes et al., 2010). Autistic individuals’ experience of emotional regulation is impacted by numerous variables. Some variables relate to autistic…

The concept of vacationing has always been a challenge for our family. As a single parent, it’s a lot of planning and prep for one person and at times can be very overwhelming. I decided over the years to do what feels right. Not to hold back from making memories and experiencing new things with…

I don’t know if my son has anyone who considers him their friend, besides his cousin. If you ask Jesse who his best friend is, he says, “Lukas.” It’s not always mutual though. Although, it used to be. My son is autistic and eight years old. He is 18 months older than his cousin. When…

Your browser does not support the video tag. Pause Expanded possibilities: Expansion microscopy involving an objective lens typically used in electronics can image the entire mouse brain. By bloating brain samples and imaging them with a powerful microscope, researchers can reconstruct neurons across the entire mouse brain, according to a new preprint. The technique could…

Film script highlights former high school wrestler An actor and writer from Beacon is hoping to bring to the big screen a movie inspired by the true story of an autistic high school student who conquers his fear of touch by joining the wrestling team in his freshman year. Carrie Gibson is raising money to…

General developmental profiles of infants at elevated- and low-likelihood of ASD General developmental profiles of infants were evaluated using the MSEL test at 5 and 36 months of age, and with ADOS-2 at 36 months of age. Key confounding perinatal factors such as antibiotic exposure, preterm birth and medical conditions were excluded during enrollment. Additionally,…

Mbd2 is required for cognitive, social, and emotional behaviors Previous studies on Mbd2−/− mice behavior found impaired maternal behaviors such as suboptimal feeding and delayed pup retrieval [23]. Hypoactivity, impaired nest-building behavior and mild spatial learning and memory impairments were found in male Mbd2−/− mice [30]. We further tested whether Mbd2 is involved in behavior…

As a parent, seeing your child battle depression can be one of the most difficult things to do. You want to help them through it and see brighter days ahead, no matter how bleak things may look at the time. But what about children with autism? Can a child have autism and depression? The simple…

Applying for a passport can fill anyone with dread — the lines, the wait time, the paperwork. Stress is a common response. But the process can be overwhelming for people with autism spectrum disorder. The last time Steve Moyer tried to get a passport for his son Mathew, now 28, it was a mess. Mathew…

Null result: The number of excitatory synapses (red, green) in the hippocampus remains unchanged in mice missing all three neuroligins (right) compared with controls (left). Deleting sticky molecules called neuroligins from astrocytes in mice has no effect on the cells’ shape or on synapse formation, a new preprint claims. The findings are at odds with…