[Soliloquy]

My grandmother had undiagnosed anxiety and depression the whole time I knew her. My friend's mom had very severe OCD her whole adult life. There was no help. There was no internet to find help. If you went to your doctor, a woman was often told to go get a new dress and hairstyle to cheer herself up.

If your kids had ADD, autism, or were atypical in other ways, you were a horrible mother and your kids could get kicked out of school. Atypical kids were often punished very severely. My dad got hit with rulers every time he tried to write with his left hand. Bullying was just accepted, as was racism and sexism. Cognitively disabled children were often sent to live in institutions. I remember taking a school field trip to one in 7th grade. It seemed normal to us that those children were kept there.

Sometimes I see comments on social media about "well, back in my day children behaved in public. I don't buy this autism, add nonsense." The truth is that, back in that day, atypical children were kept out of sight. There was no inclusion. My high school had a separate little building for kids with special education needs. We never mixed, not even on the bus. They had the short bus, literally. Younger people may not get the "did you ride the short bus?" joke which isn't funny to me.

Some things have changed for the worse, certainly. Some things have changed for the better, though.