Faking autism and Faking aspergers

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The reason I sought out an assessment with a doctor was to ensure this was what I actually possessed, there are many who don't want to be certain but want to possess the condition, I have came across a handful of them and they certainly give autism a bad name, I do not know if they are autistic or not but neither do they and do not want to find out. They seem to be certain and use it as a reason to behave way out of balance.

I looked this up because I was interested in seeing if people would actually do something like this. I'm really interested in psychology, psychiatry, and medicine, and after reading about many mental health disorders (and their possible causes) I saw where "malingering" and "factitious" were described in things that some people do. I wondered if there were people out there who would actually pretend they have autism (sadly there are). On the search engine I found this discussion.

People with Aspergers and autism have significant struggles and it's nothing to play around with.

I have severe sensory issues and it's something I would never wish on someone else. I would love to have normal sensory perception to reduce the stress and anxiety it causes.

Also, people can be misdiagnosed with AS (because there are overlaps with some other disorders) but still have "autistic traits" and other significantly disabling behavioral/mood symptoms that are out of their control. People can think they have it and identify with it for good reason; that doesn't mean they're faking it either.

I’ve never met anyone I suspected to be deliberately faking Asperger’s, but I have met someone who was self diagnosed (not including myself, before I got my diagnosis) in my social skills group. I had a hard time deciding what I thought about the legitimacy of her claim, based on her behaviours. I’ve always had a slightly morbid fascination with malingerers, especially those who fake mental illnesses or neurological conditions. It’s interesting to think about the fact that there are people in the world who wish they had your disability for the “perks” (extra attention/support, more leniency with expectations, programs/products geared specifically towards us and our needs, etc.)

I can actually understand this, mainly because I face the kind of pressure which might make ME want to fake ASD (I am actually diagnosed though). Even given my diagnosis, I am still viewed by my family as 'normal' enough to be expected to behave exactly as NTs do (which I can't, of course). My parents force me to interact with people and then berate me for not doing it 'normally', which puts me under a lot of stress. I often wish I could be non-verbal so that they couldn't do this to me; I'd rather to never talk than to be forced to talk and inevitably yelled at. I can see how somebody under intense pressure would decide that this is a viable option.

Whilst these faking NTs would not have the difficulties with social interaction caused by ASD, they still may find it challenging to interact 'normally'. Victims of childhood abuse generally have more difficulty functioning in all aspects of relationships; they might find it easier to pretend to be autistic - thus accounting for their difficulties - than to try and explain how any why they are struggling. They may be aware that they are deliberately deceiving others, but there probably comes a point where the need for assistance and and relief from responsibility overcome one's commitment to honesty.

I wonder with a few if it's a matter of Munchausen Syndrome (Fictitious Disorder Syndrome) rather than intentionally faking.

Why does anyone even care if someone is faking? This is what I don't get.

Okay, let's say I'm faking. I've just been lying and pretending to be autistic all along, but in reality I have an awesome social life, and a fabulously successful career. How does this affect anyone else on here at all?

As others have said, it's been likened to a witch hunt:

Dark Ages: There are pagans in our midst! They must be identified, and burned at the stake! Throw them in water - if they can swim, that's a sure sign of guilt!

21st Century: There are pagans in our midst! ...Whatever, who cares.

I think the 'autism faker' witch hunt needs to be left in WP's distant past as well.

There's really no logical reason for anybody to "fake" autism.

One just does not get too many benefits because of having "high-functioning" autism or Aspergers.

And one cannot really fake "classic autism."

A popular affable NT salesman type fakes being a socially inept dorky aspie/autistic in order to...

What?

What's the payoff of doing that sorta fakery?

Many symptoms of a psychological nature are present in people with high-functioning autism.

What the diagnostician has to do when assessing a person----is to determine which predominates:

The Autism.....or

The other condition (with symptoms of autism).

A person is not "faking it" if the person has "autistic symptoms" without actually having "autism."