Aspergers.

[GregoryHelms]

Hello, I'd just kind of like to know if anybody here has Aspergers. If you do could you please reply thanks.

[ROKUSHO]

i do.

[Kaolin]

I've always wanted to know, what life is like, if have you Asperger. Rokusho, do mind telling me your experiences?

[ROKUSHO]

its no different from a "normal" person in physical terms.
psychologically its an entirely different story.
i really didnt understood nor cared to understand when the psychologists explained it to me. until i wikipedia'd it.
on the site, these are the most common traits (ones with a * means i have that, for real).

-translated from the spanish page because some asshole edited out the traits in the english one and fuck if im gonna go trough all the edits-

difficulty to keep eye contact* (since i can remember, if i stared at someone for more than 2 seconds i bursted out laughing)
difficulty with social interaction* (in my case, i can talk forever with people i know closely. new people make me shut down)
alterations in the pattern of non-verbal communications -(personally i dont know that this means)
restricted interests in a single theme or many in small quantities with variable latency*
inflexible conduct*
special care to details or the grand view of a percieved situation* (special care to details. in homework, i wont say i finished it until i feel i did. one time i actually finished an essay in 16 minutes but spent 1 hour looking for the right font).
perfeccionism and excessive metodism*
obssesion with self image
literal interpretation of the language*
difficulty when taking personal desicions* (half the time i need someone else to decide for me)
obssesive input in planification* (think wily e. coyotes overly complicated plans)


it says there are many more and that it varies on the person, but that those are the most "common" traits.

[AirElemental]

some Asperger's have troublel with fluorescent lighting.
It flickers and gives them a headache. They also like to do the exact same thing the exact same way and there is no other way. Example: Show them how to walk to the store and the next time they go they have to walk on the same side of the road, sidewalk ect or they can't get there without alot of upset.

I am a CNA who works with those with all forms of Autism (Aspergers being on the higher spectrum) as well as mental illness. Most of the time we have discovered that several mental illness's hide the Aspergers.

My baby bro also has it. He was diagnosed in 93 with Aspergers, Bi-polar disorder type 2 and several other bits and pieces. Once we got him on meds it was just a matter of time before the Aspergers was apparent.

[Kaolin]

...

Reading through your post, your sig makes even more sense now

[Lyedecker]

i am undiagnosed high functioning autistic. i've never bothered going to a doc to get an official diagnosis because as an adult i really don't think they'll tell me anything about it i haven't already read in countless books.

air, you're right, i love to have routines and having those routines changed or broken can pretty much ruin my whole day.
sensory problems too. bright light, certain noises, crowded places...all are a big problem for me

[AirElemental]

I use a pair of noise reduction headphones (not the expensive ones) and an mp3 player to get my brother and clients thru shopping. Sunglasses work for the bright lights at Walmart and Fred Meyers, but the crowds we have to work thru.

Alot of employees think I am nuts but, I don't have any incidents while shopping.

[DoDoRay9000]

I do.

[Lyedecker]

I use a pair of noise reduction headphones (not the expensive ones) and an mp3 player to get my brother and clients thru shopping. Sunglasses work for the bright lights at Walmart and Fred Meyers, but the crowds we have to work thru.

Alot of employees think I am nuts but, I don't have any incidents while shopping.

my ipod is my best friend in public.

i try to go out shopping at the least busiest times. same with driving

[Hawkeye_1138]

i am undiagnosed high functioning autistic. i've never bothered going to a doc to get an official diagnosis because as an adult i really don't think they'll tell me anything about it i haven't already read in countless books.

I'm kind of in the same boat, none one really picked upon it when I was a kid so it's something I figured out on my own...

[DoDoRay9000]

Does anyone else get an occasional feeling of being the only one different from everyone else? Not sure if this is because of Aspergers, but I feel that way half the time.

[Lyedecker]

I'm kind of in the same boat, none one really picked upon it when I was a kid so it's something I figured out on my own...

well it wasn't even being recognized as an official disorder/syndrome in the US until 1994 when i was already a teen and i didn't know what it was until i was in my 20s when i stumbled on a webpage about it. every charactristic/symptom listed fit me closely so i began reading every book i could find and self-diagnosed.

---------- Post added at 09:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:24 PM ----------

Does anyone else get an occasional feeling of being the only one different from everyone else? Not sure if this is because of Aspergers, but I feel that way half the time.

all. the. time.

i've always known i was a little different from "normal" people. wasn't until later that i realized i wasn't alone and there were others that shared many of my quirks

[ROKUSHO]

Does anyone else get an occasional feeling of being the only one different from everyone else? Not sure if this is because of Aspergers, but I feel that way half the time.

i do.

while most of the class listen to pop music of the moment, im happy hearing wily's stage 1-2.

from day one, everyone knew i was "that guy".
hell, on the day of my exam (which was about an exposition of my choosing) i chose to talk about 7 generations of systems. so i brought a big ass bag of systems and portables.

i instantly won the heart of the teacher because she loves pacman

[DoDoRay9000]

Nice.

[NoVaTuRiEnT]

I'm one of these people with Aspergers.
That's all I'm saying...

[Jarosik]

Is it fashionable to have Asperger's?

[DoDoRay9000]

I don't know about that, but I do know that this guy gives autistic people a bad name

[AirElemental]

Aspergers is the new ADHD/ADD in the schools.

The only difference is that you can't use (because it won't work) medications for Aspergers where as with ADHD/ADD the teachers can try to get you to put your kid on ritalin or another medication.

Aspergers requires behavior modification which teachers hate to do because they don't have the time to teach it. (there are about 25-34 kids per class in each of my son's classes)

I removed my son from a teachers class a few years ago because she told me he had Aspergers and she wouldn't tolerate his behavior in her class nor would she work with him on classroom skills.
(He doesn't have Aspergers he just really hated her)

[Jarosik]

I removed my son from a teachers class a few years ago because she told me he had Aspergers and she wouldn't tolerate his behavior in her class nor would she work with him on classroom skills.
(He doesn't have Aspergers he just really hated her)

There is a first class example of how easy it is for people just to throw labels on things and let the kid grow up thinking their 'different' somehow. Lucky you are well aware that child does not have this magical thing called 'Aspergers'. Personally I think there is so much bullshit and so many grey areas in the field of mental health. Bi-polar disorder depression to a great extent being flimsy and unreliable arguments. I've been depressed, because I didn't get off my fucking ass and do something about my life - simple as that.

[Marceline]

There's a difference between being depressed and clinical depression.

Nor is a teacher qualified to diagnose Asperger's. They could recommend a kid get evaluated by a professional.

Certain diagnoses seem trendy for several reasons: diagnostic criteria improves, more people get themselves evaluated, and people hear about a condition and decide they or someone they know has it without getting formally diagnosed. This happens with medical illnesses too- ie people saying they have the flu when they have a virus or some kind of cold. People also like to come out of the woodwork and decide that all these conditions are false, which I see as pretty much the same thing. People do this with medical conditions that don't have obvious, physical symptoms too. People are really weird.

[AirElemental]

Having a family member who went through the process of being diagnosed with Aspergers, and working with the Autistic / Developmentally disabled community I knew exactly what I would be looking at if my son had Aspergers.

I have several other friends whose teachers have told them that their kids had ADHD and needed medication.

They tried that on me with my daughter.

I laughed hysterically at them and told them that they need medications and if they couldn't control their classroom maybe they shouldn't be teachers.
I also told them that my daughter was bored and their class wasn't "up" to her level, and maybe they should make it more challenging.

[ROKUSHO]

marceline, i was diagnosed with aspergers by not one, not 2, but 4 professional phychiatrists (and 2 doctors).

[Marceline]

Yup, from what I understand it's a lot of work getting an actual diagnosis. My friend's son is autistic and he had to see doctors here and then drive all the way to Boston to get an official diagnosis. I can completely understand why people wouldn't want to pursue a diagnosis if it wasn't for a child- there's less that can be done for adults and it's so much work.

I definitely know people (with no sort of qualifications) who like try and diagnose all the people in their life. Thankfully none of them are teachers.

[DoDoRay9000]

I was diagnosed and I was never told until I was older.