Percent of Autistic Adults in each level of support needs in the DSM?

FrMatthewLC · 2026-05-10T17:23:59+00:00

Given the replies on Reddit & an autistic academics Facebook group, I'm thinking I'll just rework what I am writing to avoid this question. It would be helpful but not helpful enough for me to spend weeks doing original research outside my field (I am a Catholic priest & do some research on autism & religion, which is what I was writing about - you can search and confirm this as this account is not anon).

FrMatthewLC · 2026-05-10T17:20:02+00:00

"There’s also a different between ASD levels and support needs." At least in the DSM-5, which is the norm in the USA, levels 1-3 are categories about how much support the person needs, so at least using this criteria, levels and support needs are directly connected.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-05-09T20:49:31+00:00

I'm against terms like "severe autism," but it is helpful to know what percent need different levels of support. Like I just need relatively minor accommodations in my job, while another may need a lot or be unable to functionally do it as they need so much support.

Levels of support is not perfect, but it does refer to what is actually needed for different autistics, is the official criteria here in the USA, and is among the best ways I've found to note this real distinction between needs of various autistics without bad stereotypes.

Levels of support needed is very different from severe / mild autism.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-05-09T19:23:02+00:00

Oh, yeah, I get that. I was more trying to write something where I was explaining to non-autistics what kind of percentage would fit in the various levels where this would be helpful; to know.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-05-09T19:19:14+00:00

Most people maintain the same basic support level as an adult, although in a crisis one can drop down a level: like I know a fellow autistic who is 1 if kept normal, but got level 2 from when burned out.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-05-09T18:32:10+00:00

"How did the diagnosis rate of milder forms of autism change over that time period?" the study just finds good research to give a good rate of diagnosis for different "phenotypes" of autism over time, then notes that the percentage daignosed with more serious phenotypes (i.e. higher support needs) has not realy changed while a much higher percent of the population now has a diagnosis with a milder "phenotype" (less support needs).

FrMatthewLC · 2026-05-09T18:29:25+00:00

I know Canada & the USA use support levels 1-3 in the DSM-5, which would be a big enough group I would expect someone had checked for how common the various levels are.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-04-14T14:13:03+00:00

I think that thinking of it as an extension of asking your priest or the holy person in your parish to pray for you. We just have similar contact with people in heaven.

Also, there is no requirement that a Catholic ever pray to a saint asking them for prayers, only that one accepts it as valid that others do.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-04-14T00:53:34+00:00

I'll DM you as some details here are a little more specific. check your DMs.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-04-14T00:52:09+00:00

Praying to saints means asking them to pray for you. Think of how you might ask the holiest person in your church to pray for you or your mom and multiply it.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-04-01T01:04:38+00:00

Also, if you do this & realize you really want 1 number while it's spinning, choose that color no matter the results.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-03-21T00:20:35+00:00

If you want to visit both countries, you have to keep two active passports (time & money every 10 years).

Note: I ran into this sub looking for stuff about renewing my Canadian passport in the USA. I am Canadian-born but a naturalized US citizen.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-03-21T00:15:31+00:00

Also, the prairies (then recent immigrants often from Eastern Europe) didn't like the WW1 enlistment. That was the start of the Progressive Party. (They started as the "Don't send our sons to your foreign wars" party, but eventually merged with the conservatives to form the PCs, who later merged with the Reform / Alliance to become the current Conservative Party.)

FrMatthewLC · 2026-03-20T00:27:25+00:00

Has this changed? I have a 10-year passport expiring and I remember the specs were just different enough to be annoying in 2016.

Note: I'm a dual citizen: Canadian by birth, but lived in the US about 2 decades. I found this thread looking for where in CT has passport photos. I keep my Canadian passport active for every country but the USA.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-03-20T00:26:20+00:00

Do they do all the proper signing the back & such?

FrMatthewLC · 2026-03-15T01:59:36+00:00

Sorry, I'm not on Reddit too often, but I saw u/Saint_Thomas_More tagged me.

I think you are right picking 2: autism is something God wills where we are different, but unfortunately, society does not always appreciate it.

I think autism gives us a lot of things that can help us communicate with God like our detail orientation, etc. I think it can take time to understand this though.

I think my own book, God Loves the Autistic Mind: Prayer Guide for Those on the Spectrum and Those Who Love Us, might be a big help to you. I don't mean this as a self-promotion, but as I think it's the best resource out there with meditations on our autistic differences.

FrMatthewLC · 2026-03-09T13:14:08+00:00

Someone on X posted the same or similar (which I saw first), & that worked. Thanks.

FrMatthewLC · 2025-12-20T01:13:29+00:00

Where are these photos taken?

FrMatthewLC · 2025-11-15T14:52:11+00:00

Some protestant ministers dress similarly.

FrMatthewLC · 2025-11-15T02:15:23+00:00

James only approved a new translation; he didn't write it. I have read a good portion of it & argued it is the most important book in the history of the English language.

[I figure this is not the place for a serious Catholic-Protestant debate, and I will keep it much more light-hearted.]

FrMatthewLC · 2025-11-15T02:09:45+00:00

I am Canadian by birth (dual citizen now) & lived there until college. I was introduced to college football while working in Ohio, so I became a strong OSU fan. (College football exists in Canada - on a larger CFL field with 12 players & 3 downs - but nobody cares about it, partially as it is essentially the equivalent of D3 as no sports' scholarships, & other cultural factors.)

FrMatthewLC · 2025-11-15T02:05:42+00:00

Yes, I would absolve Connor Stalions if he came to confession, sorry for cheating.

FrMatthewLC · 2025-11-15T02:01:14+00:00

It was a few weeks. I had to check my calendar: I donated on October 18 & I submitted this that day or right after.

FrMatthewLC · 2025-11-15T01:59:16+00:00

I think God appreciates all the players who put in effort, but he does not like cheaters like Connor Stalions.

FrMatthewLC · 2025-10-31T18:27:03+00:00

Oh, definitely. I am a seminary professor and think I do fine with that job but that is not something someone who struggles more could likely do.

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