Hi!

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I've been reading for some time, but just decided to jump on. I am a male in my late fifties, married to an NT woman for the past 23 years with two sons diagnosed with autism, our only children.

As I learned more about autism through my reading, my own past, the bullying from 6th grade through my freshman year of college, the feelings of never belonging to groups, even when the members of the groups treated me like a friend, the clumsiness, the ability to offend people, almost on a daily basis without meaning to, the sexual confusion of my younger years, etc., all started to come together as I learned about a thing called Aspergers Syndrome.

When your only two children have autism, it is evident that heredity plays a factor. It is clear to me where that heredity came from.

Like many of you, I am very smart with a very high IQ, but did not do very well in school until I got to graduate school. Finally, on the doctoral level, I began to get all "A's." I understand why. When other students were reading their assignments, I was reading Edward Albee and Edna Forbes. I was reading about dysfunctional characters who interested me. I had no trouble understanding them, and, today, when I read the works I was supposed to have read, I have no real trouble understanding them either; I just wasn't able to focus there.

As I said earlier, I was bullied every day of my childhodd for many years. In high schooI, typically, belonged to marching band, the drama club, (not choir, I can't sing at all), and my one friend also belonged to those groups. In college, I finally found refuge among the 60's freaks who were willing to accept the "different," although I never really felt a part of them.

I have learned to socialize. As said earlier, I am happily married for the past 23 years and am a tenured senior faculty member at a college, highly respected by my students and colleagues alike. On the other hand, I still know how to piss off people, completely out of the blue.

When I take the little informal surveys linked in these forums, I score well into the AS ranges, even though I try to answer quite conservatively. I do suspect that I know enough about what they are looking for, and about survey construction, to get extreme scores on either end if I sought to be anything but honest.

I envy the younger among you. You understand what is going on with you and why some people respond as they do. For many years, I thought it was me; my parents, of course, insisted that I was fine and that it was everyone else that was no good. I knew that neither of these options, in a sense, was possible.

Of course, for a professionally successful and personally surviving man with two autistic children, being diagnosed and understood myself is a non-priority. My kids presents and futures are my main priority. I've always loved who they are. Knowing more about myself is helping me love who I am.

I'll be around, and will try to be constructive.

Welcome to Wrongplanet, LitGuy!! Glad to have you here It's wonderful that you have found what is different about you It's also very nice to have the more balanced perspective of older aspies here, IMO. So stick around for a while...I look forward to your posts!!

welcome to WP, litguy. if you want to join us in the senior citizens corner, we'll be over here with our cocoa and zimmer frames

Welcome, your prespective will be very welcomed and appriciated. Glad you have succeeded in life and that your children have someone that will be able to help them and understand.

Welcome to Wrong Planet Litguy!

As with your students and fellow faculty, you have respect here at WP, from me, as I see a lot in common between us. Welcome! I have a (mostly) NT son with an NT wife of nearly 20 years, but I am an Aspie.

It's good to have you here and I hope you find Wrong Planet right for you.