Has Autism Existed In Somalia Or Is This A New Phenomenon

[Peache]

Mental health disorders existed but had no diagnosis. Same way Somalis say cancer didn’t exist back home.

Oh wow, that’s what my relatives would say. Our uncle died of lung cancer from his intense cigarette use and they blamed the white man and said it was a western disease.

They tried to say no such thing as Alzheimer’s, bi polar, dementia, and cancer doesn’t exist back in Somalia. Imagine autism ? So, of course they denied that.

 

[Peache]

I don't believe in autism conspiracy theories but i do find it interesting and frankly suspicious on how many Somali refugees or their children in the West are diagnosed with autism compared to other refugee groups like Afghans, Iraqis, Syrians etc. I'm not kidding when i say that almost every Somali i have met in the Netherlands or in the Nordic countries had or knew someone close to them that was either autistic/schizophrenic or something else.


And it's not even autism but other mental illnesses. Honestly I do believe that some of it is overdiagnosed. Of course there still exist a big stigma on mental health in the Somali community but this does not explain why other refugee or poorer communities don't have these numbers.

Sis let me tell you how in the school I took my son to for his speech delay..
Cause I’ve wondered this as well… same with my older relatives…
The other special needs classrooms are filled with Somali kids.
On orientation day… all the mothers on one side of the school that were there for the special needs program wlalahi billahi are all Somali.

When they gave me a tour and I heard all this awful animalistic like screaming … it was these teachers trying to deal with these Somali girls and boys that were austistic.

There’s two playgrounds. One for the normal students… and one that’s contained inside for the special needs kids… all Somalis and maybe one or two other races.
I dare someone to say im lying on what I saw.

 

[Mount23]

Whats the cause of Autism?? If its Vitamin D deficiency which 90% of Somalis have in the west, than no it probably wasnt common back home

 

[LibaanSom]

Whats the cause of Autism?? If its Vitamin D deficiency which 90% of Somalis have in the west, than no it probably wasnt common back home

The question was if it existed or not.

 

[LibaanSom]

Oh man. My father said it was brutal the way autistic kids were treated.
He even said the women who gave birth to kids like that were deemed broken and how it was seen as a “curse”.

Everyone sees it that way. Including my mother with my brother. That it’s a curse for something she did in the past.

He even told me tea about a woman he knew that had left during the war and brought her other normal children but purposely left behind the autisitic child and they were taken care of by the maids or family who stayed behind.

Subxanallah, may allah give her child justice in yowmal qiyama.

 

[Mount23]

The question was if it existed or not.

Vitamin D deficiency rarely exists back home, so probably not if its truly the main cause of Autism

 

[Lovelypriestess]

Sis let me tell you how in the school I took my son to for his speech delay..
Cause I’ve wondered this as well… same with my older relatives…
The other special needs classrooms are filled with Somali kids.
On orientation day… all the mothers on one side of the school that were there for the special needs program wlalahi billahi are all Somali.

When they gave me a tour and I heard all this awful animalistic like screaming … it was these teachers trying to deal with these Somali girls and boys that were austistic.

There’s two playgrounds. One for the normal students… and one that’s contained inside for the special needs kids… all Somalis and maybe one or two other races.
I dare someone to say im lying on what I saw.

Trust me, i 100% believe you because this is exactly what i have seen in certain Somali communities first hand (In the Netherlands and Sweden). I too have heard from some of my family members in Norway that many of the special ed classes are filled with Somali children and my online Canadian-Somali friend from years ago have said the same thing regarding many Somali children being diagnosed with autism.

The thing that i find to be the most suspect is the fact that some of the researches/articles that are talking about the link between war and autism and why refugee children are thus more prone to being autistic, is the fact that you don't see this prevalence in other refugee communities like Iraqis, Syrians, Burmese, Nepalese, Rwandans etc. Why does this explain on why Somali children are more at risk for not developing mental illnesses in general but not in other communities? It doesn't make sense to me in that regard.

But nevertheless i'm atleast happy that those kids get the help and attention that they need, especially in schools, so they can properly function in society.

 

[King Khufu]

How do you think the civil war happened?

How dare you?!
That is not why,
It happened cos
Of tribal wars,

 

[Peache]

Trust me, i 100% believe you because this is exactly what i have seen in certain Somali communities first hand (In the Netherlands and Sweden). I too have heard from some of my family members in Norway that many of the special ed classes are filled with Somali children and my online Canadian-Somali friend from years ago have said the same thing regarding many Somali children being diagnosed with autism.

The thing that i find to be the most suspect is the fact that some of the researches/articles that are talking about the link between war and autism and why refugee children are thus more prone to being autistic, is the fact that you don't see this prevalence in other refugee communities like Iraqis, Syrians, Burmese, Nepalese, Rwandans etc. Why does this explain on why Somali children are more at risk for not developing mental illnesses in general but not in other communities? It doesn't make sense to me in that regard.

But nevertheless i'm atleast happy that those kids get the help and attention that they need, especially in schools, so they can properly function in society.

So another thing is … this woman I met that works for those companies who take care of older special needs people during the work day or during the weekend… you know those people you see assisting them at the recreational centre or at a public library? She told me how a lot of the clients are teenage Somali boys who are autistic or have some type of mental illness.
She was Nigerian I believe, and was genuinely concerned about why we have so many of our people like that. She’s been working for these type of companies for like 20 years so that’s what she basing it off of.

I have my reasons to why which some muslims hate to hear, but even older people like my dad ( 69 ) and other older relatives have confirmed this and beilve it to be as well.
Are they trying to wipe out healthy African migrants or something ? Especially muslims ones like us ?
There needs to be an investigation why all of these Somali families coming into the western world are special needs.

Oh, and these families were in denial about their kids and it was the white teachers and social workers that had to force them to acknowledge their child needed help with their issues.

 

[HiraanBorn]

So another thing is … this woman I met that works for those companies who take care of older special needs people during the work day or during the weekend… you know those people you see assisting them at the recreational centre or at a public library? She told me how a lot of the clients are teenage Somali boys who are autistic or have some type of mental illness.
She was Nigerian I believe, and was genuinely concerned about why we have so many of our people like that. She’s been working for these type of companies for like 20 years so that’s what she basing it off of.

I have my reasons to why which some muslims hate to hear, but even older people like my dad ( 69 ) and other older relatives have confirmed this and beilve it to be as well.
Are they trying to wipe out healthy African migrants or something ? Especially muslims ones like us ?
There needs to be an investigation why all of these Somali families coming into the western world are special needs.

Oh, and these families were in denial about their kids and it was the white teachers and social workers that had to force them to acknowledge their child needed help with their issues.

Many mental illnesses are linked with childhood upbringing and trauma, it's no secret that Somalis usually aren't that affectionate towards their children, of course there are exceptions to this. The manner of raising up children in our culture is generally with a heavy hand and a very minimal amount of gentleness and patience.

So it's no surprise that some Somali children grow up to have psychological issues, this is also seen in children of other ethnicities that grow up in a negative family environment. It's typical that Somalis would blame external factors other than their behaviour towards children.

The more harshly you raise up a child, the more likely there is a build-up of resentment and anger which can negatively affect their mental health.

 

[Basra]

Its a Western phenom. I think it has something to do with the pain killers they get during labor birthing

 

[DalsanJubiland]

Its a Western phenom. I think it has something to do with the pain killers they get during labor birthing

What?
What pain killer? I thought they don’t give any medication pregnant woman
May be after delivery you might get pain killer.
Are you talking about epidural?

 

[Basra]

What?
What pain killer? I thought they don’t give any medication pregnant woman
May be after delivery you might get pain killer.
Are you talking about epidural?

Yes i mean epidural, u groupie fan of Ilhan Omar YOU

 

[wheel]

Many mental illnesses are linked with childhood upbringing and trauma, it's no secret that Somalis usually aren't that affectionate towards their children, of course there are exceptions to this. The manner of raising up children in our culture is generally with a heavy hand and a very minimal amount of gentleness and patience.

So it's no surprise that some Somali children grow up to have psychological issues, this is also seen in children of other ethnicities that grow up in a negative family environment. It's typical that Somalis would blame external factors other than their behaviour towards children.

The more harshly you raise up a child, the more likely there is a build-up of resentment and anger which can negatively affect their mental health.

Autism isnt a mental illness but a mental disorder. The difference is you are born with the latter, all these autistic kids were born this way.

 

[Shimbiris]

It probably always existed in smaller numbers among post-paleolithic cultures like ours, especially in parts of the miyi where people were not strict pastoralists and in the tuulo iyo magaalo but the higher rates found across the world now seem more attributable to some sort of derangement with things like the gut microbiome caused by modern and highly processed diets:


(Please ignore the fella who speaks after her)

 

[Bundasliga]

It probably always existed in smaller numbers among post-paleolithic cultures like ours, especially in parts of the miyi where people were not strict pastoralists and in the tuulo iyo magaalo but the higher rates found across the world now seem more attributable to some sort of derangement with things like the gut microbiome caused by modern and highly processed diets:

Thank you for your high IQ input , i couldn't stand the suugo science in this thread

 

[Somaliwadani123]

A lot of our people want to call this the “western disease” and how it didn’t exist back there, but my father and aunts have all confirmed it did, but “special needs” chidlren were seen as shameful and labeled crazy and thus were hidden from the public.
So because kids like this were hidden… people think oh it didn’t exist.

It’s younger people who never grew up there trying to always be like it wasn’t around back in Somalia, but ask the older people.
They’ve told me crazy stories. How they were chained in the home.

No one knew how to deal with a kid like that.

My dad and uncles said they knew a few
families that had autistic children like that, but the mother would only bring out her normal children and act as if she didn’t have a kid like that, who was taken care of by the maid.

He said some were chained to the inside of the house cause they would run away and some familes flat out didn’t want others to know they had a “broken” child.

I remember when I got sent back for dhagan elis (dont know how to spell it ) but one of my moms cousins had it, they use to tell me she had a shaytan....but I suspected autism

 

[OffTheDome]

Every Somalian reer in Minnehopeless has at least 1 or 2 autistic kid, it’s insane. This is definitely a new thing.

Btw never heard Autism being attributed to Jinn, who’s saying this stuff?

 

[LibaanSom]

Every Somalian reer in Minnehopeless has at least 1 or 2 autistic kid, it’s insane. This is definitely a new thing.

Btw never heard Autism being attributed to Jinn, who’s saying this stuff?

niggas be exorcising the demon out of autistic people in Somalia wdym?

 

[Keep it a boqol]

No I believe its new because Camel milk actually helps cure Autism

Camel Milk as a Potential Therapy as an Antioxidant in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) - PubMed

Extensive studies have demonstrated that oxidative stress plays a vital role in the pathology of several neurological diseases, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD); those studies proposed that GSH and antioxidant enzymes have a pathophysiological role in autism. Furthermore, camel milk has...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Wallahi camel milk and sunlight (vitamin D) is truly the bread and butter for Somali people. We really are not fit for the western environment