PEOPLE WITH "SEVERE ASPERGER SYNDROME"

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So you're referring to a basic requirement for an AS diagnosis - not being able to function in the "real world" in one way or another. What you're talking about seems clear to me, and consistent with the AS diagnostic criteria - normal to high IQ and significant impairment in one or more major aspects of life, such as employment.

from what scientific articles ive read on aspergers it seems that we don't. apparently our brains are actually fully functioning, we just have different behaviour patterns to normal people i.e. aspergers is a behavioural problem not a developmental disorder. when you look at the problems this causes us with things like, socialising, employment and generally fitting into society then i suppose it would appear to be a developmental disorder but in purely scientific terms it is not.

Asperger's is a PDD--Pervasive Developmental Disorder.

The behaviours are due to the atypical development.

Yes. So saying "people with AS have a developmental disorder" is like saying "people with AS have AS". Kind of a duh.

well. yeah. but no.

because they are not interchangable.

not all people with a pdd have AS. so it's not like saying AS is like AS. it's saying people with AS fall under a grouping called PDD.

They don't make it real clear what they mean(perhaps because it can vary), but they DO make it clear what they DON'T mean!



Have *I* had trouble in employment? One reason my actions have changed from being a kid is that my bosses didn't like questions, taking things too literally, lack of desire for teamwork, etc.... Even THAT was slow to change. I didn't become as I am now until like my 30s!

Employment really has LITTLE to do with cognitive ability. MANY STUPID people are employed LONG times at HIGH PAY! Some GENIUSES are unemployed, and MANY very smart people make a rather paltry sum. BESIDES, most of the highest paying jobs are SOCIAL!! !! !!

MOST CEOs are there because they know they right people and/or BLUFFED! Most managers stay in their jobs because they get along with certain people. Look at OPRAH! Do you think she is there because of intelligence or looks? It is VERY well known that she is social, and has on people a lot of women like. BTW before she was on those shows where she became RICH, she was a weather girl in a small market in Chicago!

Besides, entertainer and salesperson are among the highest paying jobs. You can't say those require a lot of intelligence.

yes- pretty well describes me... i have a really hard time coping with change, am not working, though inteligent and well educated, and get as over excited as a child about some things...

it is REALLY hard to articulate..

i can do lots of complex things, but often not simple things- eg- often cannot cook as i just can't get my head around it- and will buy a load of ingredients for a simple meal, but only eat the ready to eat bits- eg- just cheese, then leave the rest of it, until it goes off...

my social interaction is weird...

and i still have unease about things that changed 30 years ago, as well as things i liked more recently...

Well, yes, she is likely to be highly intelligent. Leave the sexist stereotypes out of this, please.

I didn't see any problem with what ALLADIN_1978 wrote except that he didn't mention sex differences along with family, race, etc.

Whats the problem and why is mentioning a person tantamount to sexism?!

2ukenkerl did not mention "its" (the object of our discussion, the disadvantaged black female) sex. YOU did!

Last edited by Hashberry on 19 May 2008, 11:05 am, edited 1 time in total.

I would think Oprah whilst no doubt fairly intelligent is there more because she is good at social networking and climbing of ladders. Perhaps she is also a freemason?

I've got a little bit of everything you've listed above (underemployed, etc. etc), act & look younger than I really am, and so on. The only part that doesn't match up is the Imagination portion. I have a healthy imagination and always have had it as far back as I can remember. I'm female, though, and from what I understand, there are some differences between male and female brains, especially in regard to Asperger/ASD traits. These criteria will more than likely be adjusted and changed over the years as psychologists study it further.

That must be it.

Actually, I think you have to be a man to be a freemason.

"Clinically significant impairment" is a criterion for most DSM diagnoses (maybe all?). Its meaning has been explained to me by various mental health professionals. There is some variation in the extremity of its interpretation, and there are some less scupulous doctors who stretch things in order to over-diagnose.

But "clinically significant impairment" means something that prevents you from carrying out a major life activity to the extent that would be expected for someone in your position (age, level of education, etc.). So that could mean working at a gas station when you have a masters degree, or it could mean that you can't succeed in school without accommodations, or you have great difficulty talking to anyone outside your immediate family, among other possibilities.

Specifying areas in which there should not be impairment simply narrows the definition.

This "clinically significant impairment", or severe interference with one's ability to lead a normal life, is what separates people with DSM diagnoses from the rest of the population; otherwise, everyone would be diagnosed with a lot of different things.

STEREOTYPE?
SEXIST?

I simply said the TRUTH! It was a truth I would have, and HAVE, said of a man! OK, let's say PHIL DONAHUE!! !! !! Feel better!?!?!? He is an IDIOT that simply encourages OTHER idiots by PERVERSION! And GET THIS EVERYONE!! !! !! !! !! ! He is a WHITE MAN! OK, FEEL BETTER!?!?!?

Anemone,

By your SEXIST and RACIST comment, you have simply solidified my position! Your comment was SEXIST because YOU brought it up and accused one of the other sex of racism that he did NOT bring up! It is RACIST because you probably figured I was white and spoke of stereotypes, etc...

All the same, I brought up ANOTHER example that is the SAME sex/race that I am!

With respect to Oprah: I've been a member of several high IQ societies, as well as been in male dominated environments where everyone is supposed to be a brain (or at least well educated), and it is my impression that when women look or act feminine (e.g. large breasts, or talkative) they are automatically assumed (by men) to be less intelligent than men. Example: Marilyn Monroe and Albert Einstein and the joke about her looks and his brains vs his looks and her brains - people tend to assume she was less gifted than he was, but she was extraordinarly intelligent as well. I am very tired of this. If this is not what you meant, then I guess I overreacted. On the other hand, there is a lot of that out there. So be careful. You may be reflecting sexist stereotypes without realizing it.

I didn't think racism had anything to do with it.

The original point was that Oprah's social skills had something to do with her success. I think that's obvious, but that doesn't mean high intelligence wasn't also a factor. A lot of successful people are highly intelligent (and also somewhat lucky) but not all highly intelligent people do well, since it takes more than intelligence. You did imply lack of intelligence. And I guess I took it as a sexist stereotype since most people in the position you were discussing are male, but you chose a female example. Usually women have to be smarter/more talented than men to do as well. Of course, Oprah benefitted from affirmative action programs as well - she was just plain lucky that way (her timing was good).

I dont know anything about Phil Donahue, though if I were going to pick a famous successful person known more for political skills than intelligence, he probably wouldn't be my first choice even if I did . . . .