My name is Saul. How are you all?

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I'm not excellent at introductions, I despise talking about myself. I'm also not very clear on which of my issues are caused by Asperger's, and which ones I just picked up through experiences. Today, I was stressing out a lot over trying to write a resume, and I stumbled onto this forum when looking up some general advice for dealing with stress.

You can all call me Saul. It's not my real name, just so we're clear. I am a 23 year old heterosexual white male from Southern California, in the United States. I am a student at a nearby community college and I have a steady part-time job as a caretaker/life skills coach for adults with more severe disabilities.

I was diagnosed with Autistic Spectrum well before I was old enough for anyone to attempt to explain it to me. I'm not sure if anyone ever did, or if I just noticed it while looking through old psychiatry records of myself. I've been diagnosed with several other mental conditions, including Bipolar, Severe Depressive, and Anxiety Disorder. Aspergers/Autism is the only diagnosis that every doctor agreed on, so it's the only one I take seriously.

I don't remember ever being treated for Asperger's, other than a wide variety of prescription drugs given to me from age 4 up to age 19. I was on three different medications when I stopped, and I quit them all cold turkey.

Here are the issues that I recognize as being caused by Asperger's:

-I don't make eye contact unless I'm deliberately trying to. It was only within the last 2 years that I realized that most people make eye contact naturally, and that I seem "shifty" when I don't. I have the most trouble when it matters the most, like job interviews or asking women out on dates.

-I am pretty much incapable of "switching gears" quickly from one task to another. I can usually pass it off around others by saying "Well, you know us men, we can't multitask!", but I know that I'm worse than most. At work, I get really angry at my coworkers when they ask me questions when I'm in the middle of a task. I often snap at people who don't deserve it.

-I love off-color jokes, and my closest friends do too, but I often make them at the wrong time and place. It takes me a long time to figure out the rules with every new social or professional group. I'm self-aware enough that I'll try to be cautious, but I'm not always successful. I'll forget myself and say something horribly inappropriate.

And, because I believe it's healthy to do so, here are strengths I have that I believe stem from Asperger's:

-Like most people with my diagnosis, I am extremely meticulous about my grammar and spelling, even when I'm just texting someone. This has led to some excellent grades at school, and even some paid freelance work as a writer.

-I have been told that I am a very practical and pragmatic person. I am very efficient at saving money, and I have friends who have come to me asking for advice when they want a detached, non-emotional solution to a personal problem.

-As a person who lives based on rules, I am very polite. I open doors for everyone, and say "thank you" and "please" often. Everyone I don't know (and a few people I do know) I call "sir" or "ma'am" or some variation.

And on that note, thank you all for listening.

Welcome Saul
Hopefully you won't ever see me make any spelling and grammar mistakes, your intro post was very easy to read

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

You seem like a cool person, welcome.

Thanks, guys.

I've never been friends with a cone before. Or a chimpanzee or a smoke cloud. This should be a lot of fun.

I don't know where you got the idea that "most" people with Asperger's are extremely meticulous about their grammar and spelling. That simply isn't true.

Personally, I share your enthusiasm for trying to write correctly, but not all Aspies / Auties do. Being a grammar geek is not part of the diagnostic criteria.

If you currently have the expectation that everyone on here is going to be writing perfectly, you will soon notice that your expectation was wrong.

Aspies are from all walks of life. We're a pretty mixed bunch.

Anyway, welcome!

I get that idea because all of my Aspie friends and family are the same way. That, and the quality of writing (most of the time) on WrongPlanet is far better than any other discussion board I've spent time with. You're also the first person to ever disagree with me on this.

Still, I guess I've never read any reputable source that said we're better writers. You're right, it's an assumption, based only on personal experience.

Hi Saul,

Welcome to Wrong Planet.

I see what you did there with the title, what a well thought out introduction, I should really do one for myself but after seeing yours I daren't..Pretty hard to compete with such an impressive opening.

Kudos !

Welcome! Indeed, there are many members of this forum, who are quite...shall we say, concerned with grammar, be it their own, and/or other's. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance!