Hi everyone (an introduction)

Post Reply New Topic

Hi,

I was diagnosed with Asperger's as a kid but have never met anyone who also has it in real life (or at least not that I've heard of) and wanted to get to know some people with it, so I joined this forum.

Whilst I've been diagnosed I have both signs that I do and don't have it, and it can be difficult to tell whether some of my traits are due to Asperger's or due to my natural personality (eg. introversion). I went through a long period (most of secondary school) where I never felt like I had it, not feeling I was any much different from other people. Things became a bit different after I graduated from secondary school - I had some nasty depression resulting from some feelings I had for a girl, and I started university where I started to feel more 'different' from other people again due to differences in my social life from when I was at school (for example knowing fewer people as you have to make more effort in uni in order to get to know people). As I'm in my final year of university I'm looking at possible careers and in the process tried to find out more about myself (something which I've also developed an interest in doing). These things have prompted me to think more about my AS condition.

Some signs that I have it are that sometimes I feel awkward with other people, having improper eye contact, sometimes have difficulty articulating my thoughts when talking to people, and some stimming (though I can usually keep this under control when I'm with other people). Some signs that I don't are that I do enjoy many social situations (through with some restrictions, such as preferring smaller groups), have some close friends, and that I really care about other people and have empathy.

Anyway, I'll leave it at this for now. Hope to get to know some of you!

Welcome!
WrongWay, great name

I also did some diagnostic tests online, however I feel like they're not too reliable as they are self-report tests (which can lead to bias as I answer them), and I've done the AQ test 4 times with quite a bit of variation in the results.

AQ - I did it just now and got 30/50, however in the past I've got 32 (~7 years ago), 24 (~3 years ago), 22 (~6 months ago)

Aspie quiz - Aspie score of 57/200 and NT score of 133/200 indicating I'm 'most likely neurotypical' (~6 months ago, around the same time I got the lowest score on AQ so might have the self-report bias problem)

Greetings welcome to the Wrong Planet.

Welcome!

Welcome aboard.

That's really interesting.

There is a small chance that you were misdiagnosed as a kid, or perhaps grew out of many of the traits. It should also be said that the "Aspie Quiz" isn't very reliable and it's based on other diagnostic self-reports which are also not that reliable. Something like 80% of people with AS are found by the AQ test, which means 20% who actually do have it are not found in that test.

You should realize that not all people with AS dislike social situations and have very few friends. On the contrary, some aspies are actually extroverts and many are capable of having a number of close friends at a time. Also, having Asperger's certainly does not indicate that the person doesn't care about others and doesn't have empathy! It only means that there is a higher chance the person with AS finds it more difficult to properly express or display their empathy. For example, they may not feel bad for someone because they don't recognize the gravity of the situation at the time, or because they simply don't understand why the other person should be upset about something that they, themselves, would not have been upset about. Some people with AS actually feel like they have TOO MUCH empathy - which is another side to this trait. Like many aspies, I'm a little bit of both. I sometimes don't display the correct emphatic response in situations, but if I find out my lack of empathy (or rude comment that I didn't think about before saying) made someone feel bad I will be devastated and feel awful about it - probably for much longer than I should. I also sometimes get very emotional very quickly and unexpectedly in response to some situations. Most of the time I seem very normal because I've simply learned which types of generic responses people want to get in different scenarios. (Sometimes I wonder if most people don't just fake it a little sometimes.)

Why don't you take an EQ test? Go for a more extensive one such as the Queendom one (costs about 10 bucks). You'll notice that EQ questions focus more on your ability to recognize and manage emotions both in other people and in yourself. It doesn't measure whether you are nice or caring or not, but how and if you pick up on things, and how you react. Always be honest with yourself. Some of the sections go into describing emotions from situations and even from photos of people. Another quick fun test is the "Mind in the Eyes Test". You may surprise yourself one way or another.

If, even after reading more about AS, talking to people on here, and doing a few more tests on yourself, you are still not sure Asperger's really fits you, you could seriously consider going back to your diagnostician and asking for a review of your life since that time when you were diagnosed as a child. Hopefully they would be willing to reassess you and compare your lifelong changes against the reasons you were diagnosed back then. Maybe they'll find they were mistaken, or that you're one of the rare cases who outgrow the majority of their symptoms.

I would guess if I were to check whether the diagnosis still applies today, I probably still would (though I don't know the exact diagnostic criteria, and also as I was diagnosed as a young child, and the criteria may well differ between children and adults), though possibly borderline with some 'typical' Asperger traits applying to me and others not (everyone's different after all, and also as you say those 'non-AS' traits I listed do not necessarily rule out AS). Regarding 'growing out of it', it's possible but it's also possible I still have it (as in the way my brain/genes are wired) but have changed myself in ways that makes me 'less AS'. Some of my friends notice some aspects of it in my behaviour and if I tell them about AS they can find the link between AS and my behaviour, though they all describe it as rather mild. One person even recognised my AS after meeting me just once (briefly as well, around 3 mins), though that person did a lot of research on AS.

Regarding empathy, actually thinking about it I might not always display it as well as I sometimes catch myself thinking 'how should I act' when someone else is in a difficult situation, though I really try my best to do what I can to help them.

I just did the EIQ test on Queendom but haven't paid for it so don't have the full results (not sure if I want to pay for it yet, might do so later).

Hello to everyone. I am new to this site and i was finally diagnosed and the result is having AS.
Actually i was suspected of having ASD in 2004 but i was on denial. Somehow for the eight years i managed with work and life until my work life got effected every now and then badly.
So now i am here an Aspie and its not that bad after all.

A sweet welcome to WPea.

That's what I meant. Sometimes kids can "grow out" of meeting the diagnostic criteria, but a person who really has AS will always have that kind of brain. It's too bad a set of criteria in a book is the only way there is to qualify if a person has an AS brain or not. Some people do change the way they act and diagnosed kids often become much more functional in their twenties, but you can't really change the "default" things about how your brain works (like what kind of learner you are, and which skills come easiest to you, and what your natural tendencies are when you stop trying to fit in to social constructs, etc.). Currently, even if you meet the amount of symptoms you'd need for the diagnosis, there is still that one section that must be met that says "The disturbance causes clinically significant impairments in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning." However "clinically significant" is measured, I do not know - but a display of good functioning would be my guess as to why some doctors say that people have "grown out of it".

I think it's a huge continuum, and there are probably tons of people who just miss the diagnostic criteria. Does that mean they don't have it? I don't think so.

If you identify with the stuff you read, if the childhood stories, descriptions of mental processes, daily issues, and such, are things you can really relate to - then you probably are. But if you don't relate to the majority of it, then chances are you're not. Part of the problem is likely that you don't know anyone in real life with AS who can talk to, but now you find out about anything you like on here. You'll find that the stereotypes about AS are often quite wrong, and of course, stuff in the media usually only depicts one example of how a person with AS can be - obviously often exaggerated. So just do a lot of reading!

Welcome here