Diagnosed as Aspergers despite speech delay

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The DSM-5 seems to have been rapidly adopted, despite the pre-release controversy.
From what I've seen, most new autism diagnoses seem to be DSM-5-based.

A question to other late language people: Do you know why you didn't speak?

I have absolutely no idea why I didn't speak until age 5 1/2. None.

My diagnosis was DSM-5 based, but a lot of UK adult autism clinics still seem to be using the ICD-10 criteria and, thus, Asperger diagnoses.

As for your question, I don't have the faintest idea :-/ I have no memories of that time of life at all. All I know is what my mum has said: apparently I wouldn't speak until I was five. My parents took me to get my hearing tested (which was normal of course).

My mum's memory isn't that great, so I can't say a lot more than that. The only other things I know are I got booted out of nursery school because I didn't get on with the other children and that, when I did start first school, the head teacher told my mum I ought to see a psychologist (I didn't, at least not for another 20 years or so).

I completely agree. The DSM-5 solidifying the diagnoses as a spectrum is definitely a good start. I've personally never seen a distinction between Aspergers and autistic disorder so I don't get the confusion either, but apparently some people see them as completely different diagnoses. (I've actually seen some people rant about how they want to petition the DSM to separate the diagnoses again because according to them, aspies can't get the support they need.)

edit: As far as I know, PDD-NOS does fall under ASD. I've also heard some say Rett's is included, but I'm not sure about that one.


I'm actually hoping some studies are done on this in the future. One thing I've heard some parents say is that they felt that their children didn't speak on time because they felt they weren't ready or were afraid they would make mistakes. So when their children did start speaking, and they were grammatically correct (as someone else already mentioned), some parents weren't surprised in the least bit. There's some old threads around here with parents talking about this.

I have a brother that was basically speech delayed, but he's definitely not on the spectrum. For him, it seems like he just really didn't have anything to say (he was very shy as a child, but is extremely outgoing and extroverted now). Perhaps some autistic children just felt the same way... they had nothing to say.

In the search for the "solution" to my lack of speech, I was inadvertently given the impression that I had brain surgery to "cure" my autism. I used to tell people, until my early teens, that I had brain surgery, and that "I used to be ret*d."

Once, when I was nine, I had to be forcibly removed from a school for "ret*d" people because I was so fascinated by people with Downs and other disorders. The school was right next door to my apartment building. I told the people escorting me out: "But, I used to be ret*d."

It turns out that my "brain surgery" was actually an electroencephalogram (EEG). They were testing me to see if I had epilepsy.

For those you were unable to speak until a later age, does that mean you never (ever) uttered a single word, until that age -- including "ma ma" or "ta ta" or whatever?

Also, if you wanted something (like milk or juice), how did you indicate that desire? By pointing?

As a note, I am curious to understand what precisely is meant by speech delay. Up until I was 4, I made speaking sounds, but my Mom had difficulty understanding what I was saying.

There was a tendency to diagnose people with Aspergers despite not technically qualifying because it has better rep. That's part of the reason for the change in DSM V.

That's actually one of the reasons Asperger's and autism were merged -- there were too many professionals making up their own rules.

I.e. "if the person meets the critera for ASD and not Asperger's, but doesn't look 'low functioning,' then give them the Asperger's diagnosis."

Or, "if meets critera for autism and not Asperger's but age is greater than 12 then give the Asperger's diagnosis."

Those were apparently happening a lot (and I guess still are?!).

I honestly don't know how I expressed my needs; perhaps my needs were met for me, and I didn't have to "do" anything.

I was never assertive in asking for things even after I acquired speech.

PDD-NOS means that someone with autistic characteristics meets an INCOMPLETE criteria for Kanner Autism, Aspergers Syndrome, Rett Syndrome, or Childhood Disintegrative Disorder. This is an example of PDD-NOS, someone could meet most of the Criteria for Aspergers Syndrome but had has great social skills. But with the DSM IV criteria for Kanner Autism is very broad and simple in the sense that they explain 3 seperate problems for diagnosis: Communication, Socialization, and Repetitive/Steryotypical behaviors. When I matched my behaviors and past experinces with that criteria, I completley met with the official Classic (Kanner) Autism Criteria. I have a high IQ, but the official Kanner Autism criteria says nothing to do with cognition. Actually I might meet most of the Aspergers criteria, but that speech delay had actually easily landed me in the full Kanner Autism criteria. That could actually happen to some people who are nearly Asperger like. It might seeem like a wall betwen Classic Autism criteria and Aspegers by languasge delay part. But other parts could make an individual seem like if he has both Aspergers Syndrome AND Classic Autism in the same person in the area of communication for example under communication, which at least one of the following is required is:*) In individuals with adequate speech, marked impairment in the ability to initiate or sustain a conversation with others and *)Stereotyped and repetitive use of language or idiosyncratic language. Both are often common in Aspergers.

I can't help it:

I see people with Kanner autism, no matter their intellectual level, as exhibiting strengths in the visual realm--and in the "performance" realm as per the Weschler Test.

I see people with Asperger's, no matter their intellectual level, as exhibiting strengths in the verbal realm as per the Weschler test.

Obviously, there are exceptions. And the "distinctions" are rather simplistic. But I find the above to form a general guideline.

I'm definitely in the 2nd category (i.e., "Aspergian")--but was diagnosed with Kanner autism (the only kind in those days) when I was 3 years old. The only diagnosed people with what would be called "severe" Autistic Disorder" with autism in those days.

Under the DSM IV, I would have met the criteria more for Kanner autism than for Asperger's Syndrome.

GoldTails m8, I've had a couple of beers.

Break down the wall of text for me, please. I get about halfway through before I start seeing double. Probably be seeing triple after a couple more bottles.

Verbal is non-intuitive and effortful for me.

NCOT: Do you have 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall?

I had my own language until I started school. Only my Mum and sister could understand me and had to translate for me to other people and I definitely have Asperger's.

I had no verbal language until age 5 1/2