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Andyman9328
Emu Egg
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Joined: 10 Sep 2017
Gender: Male
Posts: 1
Location: Newcastle

10 Sep 2017, 5:55 am

Hi there,

My name is Andy , 23 years old and at 7 years old I was diagnosed as having borderline asperger's syndrome, about the year 2000. Now, I am very puzzled as to whether I am truly asperger's or not. The reason I say that is because I understand sarcasm and jokes from others and really have been able to from a young age, without having any significant difficulty understanding tones, facial gestures etc. I did get off at a very bad start at primary school and struggled settling in. I struggled academically and was taken away from peers a lot and as such felt alien to them and struggled to bond with them. I could easily pass for being neurotypical and I actually have a heightened detection of subtleties. The reason I'm posting this is to see what others think. Does being diagnosed as borderline asperger's automatically make you asd even though you've never had a significant problem with the above described and you understand jokes and sarcasm? Could it have been a major misunderstanding or some other psychological trauma that caused me to behave in this way? Has anyone experienced anything similar? Any answers would be greatly appreciated as it would help put my mind at ease.

Thanks guys :)



StampySquiddyFan
Veteran
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Joined: 19 Jul 2017
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Posts: 3,754
Location: Stampy's Lovely World

10 Sep 2017, 1:43 pm

I'm not entirely sure if "borderline Asperger's" means that you have ASD or not. That being said, you don't need to have every single trait to have autism. Many autistic people get jokes and sarcasm, and I have read posts by people who pick up on subtleties and social cues better than neurotypical people. The main thing you want to ask yourself in this situation is whether or not you fit the DSM-5 criteria for autism spectrum disorder. That is what defines whether a person has ASD, not their ability to understand jokes and sarcasm.

You'll also find that many people here are missing some or a lot of traits that are commonly shown in autism. I know I certainly don't have all the traits, and some of my behavior is almost the opposite of the traits or stereotypes. You are autistic if you have a disorder known as autism/Asperger's. You cannot be excluded from having autism just because you can pick up on some social cues :D .

I hope this helps! :D Feel free to ask me any questions if you have them.


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Hi! I'm Stampy (not the actual YouTuber, just a fan!) and I have been diagnosed professionally with ASD and OCD and likely have TS. If you have any questions or just want to talk, please feel free to PM me!

Current Interests: Stampy Cat, AGT, and Medicine


Sofisol612
Raven
Raven

Joined: 15 Feb 2017
Age: 28
Gender: Female
Posts: 109

20 Sep 2017, 5:47 pm

Well, I've had a quite similar experience. I've been officially diagnosed with PDD NOS (a particular form of autism that does not involve all the symptoms of classic autism or Asperger's Syndrome) before I was 4. My parents, teachers and therapists did their best to make me as normal as possible from that moment on, and I was taught how to behave in certain social situations. I was also mocked every time I failed to understand a joke or sarcastic comment. After many traumatic experiences, I stopped exhibiting those traits and begun picking on most social cues (this happened by the time I turned 12).

Now I'm a young adult and still meet the DSM V criteria for ASD, but barely, and my symptoms are quite mild (I struggle with close relationships, don't make much eye contact, new situations cause me anxiety and I deeply dislike certain noises and textures even though I'm able to tolerate them most of the time). When I tell people that I'm autistic they usually tell me they wouldn't have guessed if I hadn't said it. I've become an expert in passing as NT. For many months even I doubted the validity of my diagnosis, but in the end I decided to accept it.

It is said that ASD is a neurological disorder. This means that it depends of the way our brain is wired. If we learn to identify social cues and develop coping abilities which allow us to live a normal life, that doesn't mean we are not autistic anymore. It just means we have overcome its most visible difficulties.


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Professionally diagnosed with PDD NOS as a child, but only told by my parents at the age of 21.

Autism Quotient: 30
Aspie quiz: 123/200 aspie; 75/200 NT
RAADS: 135