41 reasons to save Asperger's, not mild, DSM-V

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Liloleme, that's a good analogy, but (especially in psychiatry, unless that's just my bias toward my special interest) there are other examples of a disease that's basically another disease only ramped up to eleven. PMDD is just PMS, only more so. Dysthymia is basically mild depression.

Is it sane? No. But there are such cases.

Aspergers Syndrome should remain seperate, but not because of the literature or the emotive aspects.
The reason Aspergers should remain seperate (while still linked) is that Aspergers syndrome and the ASDs have different developmental paths, the HFA's typically follow the LFA's developmental path up to a point then skyrocket while Aspergians typically have no developmental delays.

Secondly the tiered structure of the Spectrum at present is not accurate, each of the conditions give different outcomes, and for lack of a better word 'symptoms'. This means Aspergers should not be removed as aspies often face problems that no other Autistic person could run into, just as the rest of the Autistic Spectrum has problems that I could never comprehend.

Just so anyone reading this knows I am DIAGNOSED with ASPERGERS SYNDROME, and if it was removed I would most likely be someone who shows enough Autistic traits to have difficulty while not enough to get any help.

Well said. I concur totally. Your concerns are the same as mine as I am about to push for a DX for myself and one son not yet DX'd.

I sure am glad I'm not the only one anticipating these possible negative outcomes because of this. I just wish more who seem to be more lackadaisical in their reactions might begin to see it isn't just a simple change of label, but also a redefinition open to very wide interpretations that could result in them losing whatever help they have, or not being able to get it if they don't already have it.

just my opinion on the matter, shaped by my observations over time....

mild/severe does not apply. The conditions that are currently different disorders on the spectrum are distinguishable from each other by a few criteria, thus making them separate entities. However, they are separate entities that share a common root in how they are expressed by the patient. That common root is what defines all of them as ASD... I think the idea behind this merging is that ASD is pretty much its own condition, and each individual condition is really just a variant of that. My diagnosis was pretty recent (2 years ago), and seems to be more in recognition of the merged form than the single diagnosis, as I was diagnosed with "Autism Spectrum Disorder, specifically Asperger Syndrome".

I agree with that notation, as it identifies Asperger Syndrome as an individual condition that is not a full diagnosis itself, but is a description of the diagnosis (ASD).

I believe that mild/severe is false in all cases of ASD, because not one of the conditions are a single factor. For example, a fever is when a person has a high body temperature, is sweating and shaking. Does that person have a mild fever if they're not shaking, but have a record temperature? Each diagnosis is made based on a number of factors, and the severity of each factor is what qualifies or disqualifies the diagnosis. Therefore, it is near impossible to honestly compare each disorder, when they have all been diagnosed on the same threshold criteria, and the only real difference between them is in which factors are present, as opposed to the severity at which each of the factors were assessed to be.

All aspergers is, is a form of autism....all the name aspergers tells you is the last name of who discovered it. So I don't see a huge problem with the DSM getting rid of the term asperger's syndrome considering that just makes it confusing in the first place to some, which is why we have people who claim AS is not a type of autism.

i think the new system will be better.however it may be pudent to make it a 4 level disorder not a three level disorder