Did you think/hope that you'd someday turn "normal"?

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There are no "rainbows" in my notion of the "Autistic Spectrum." There are some positive aspects, as well as negative aspects.

Within the Autistic Spectrum, functioning varies greatly.

There is no "Aspie" version of Cerebral Palsy---but there are people with Cerebral Palsy who hardly show any symptoms at all. And Cerebral Palsy is considered a group of disorders, rather than a single disorder--similar to the notion of the Autistic Spectrum.

No, but I often wish NTs would somehow turn "normal". Because the more I see what's considered "normal" for most people, the more I prefer being a freak of nature.

I don't think normal is really the right word. Since people with autism are not abnormal.

For me at least it's wanting to be disorder free. Disability free. Impairment free.

Either free of or at least reduced.

My sense of the word normal in this case would be that it means having a strong capability to communicate over a broad range of topics. The way I see it, being normal means being able to engage in conversations with little to no substance at all, i.e. small talk. For the most part I ignore people when they talk for the sake of talking. I would be more inclined to listen if I noticed that they had an interest in what they were talking about. In this sense I'm not seen as normal because not responding to someone's meaningless chatter is socially unacceptable. That doesn't matter though. If I see no logical reason to respond then I act accordingly. I certainly never wanted to be normal because it feels natural and peaceful to be quiet and withdrawn for the most part. I appreciate the people I care about for who they are and I am comfortable with myself as well, despite living in a completely different world from them.

I always considered myself to be out towards one end of "normal" - and never expected to shift towards the center. But I've never thought of myself as abnormal. I think of diversity as normal, healthy, and positive, which is probably why.

I've known since kindergarten that I was "different"... "weird"... "eccentric".... but I never wanted to be "normal," mainly because I couldn't imagine what that would be like. I wanted to be me, but I wanted other people to accept me for that. (Not easy, in the '70s). I did imagine that somehow I'd have a normal adult life, and I was pretty depressed when that didn't happen--mainly because there was no diagnosis then and I couldn't figure out why some things always seemed out of reach for me. Once I understood myself better, I was able to make some better choices, though still with lots of mistakes. But through it all, I never once wanted to be the way other people are inside their heads..

Yes

So many important topics discussed in this thread, where to start?
I guess literally answering the OP’s question is as good a place as any. While I would not know I am Autistic until my 50’s as far back as I can remember I knew I was too far from normal to think or hope I would ever become normal.

Autistic is not normal, by definition nothing is that is two percent of the population is normal. For that reason LBGQT people are not normal, Blacks are probably enough a percentage of the world to be normal. Because abnormal has negative connotations and typical has negative ones(bland) many prefer atypical to abnormal. Compared to most politically correct words atypical is more accurate.

There is no inherent disability in the race you are born with. Not straight was definatly a disability prior to artificial insemination. While technology has made it far less of a disability if you want to start family you have to take extra steps to have that happen.

Autistic, black in America or gay you are going to be unfairly disadvantaged because of the combination of descrimination, misunderstanding and “majority rules”. This societal disadvantage is a significant cause of Autistics difficulties as a whole. If we define disability as not bieng able to or having significantly more difficulty then normal as doing things everybody is disabled in someways. Society comes to a judgement as to which differences are described as lack of skills and which are decribed as disabilities and which are described as evil. Since Autism is considered a disability and bieng a 30 year old virgin is considered the definition of failing in life (and makes you damm horny and frustrated) it is tempting to blame Autism completely and not be able to see other factors including those listed above.

Autism is a natural variation. Natural variation is not inherently good or bad. Genius is a good natural variation, spree killer is a bad natural variation. Like with anybody your genetic makeup is going to be combined with environmental factors to make you, you.

The problems with Autism is that there is wide disagreement as to the definition and it encompasses a wide variation from mild impairments and disadvantages to severely disabled. Related to that IMHO is that many autistic traits are passed off as co morbids. IMHO opinion there are two main reasons for that. If you are a Autistic supremicist or just trying to eliminate the notion autism is this terrible thing blaming extreme difficulties on co morbids is a convinient dodge. If you are a Autism scientist and you do not understand how prevelent a “trait” is among autistics or do not understand the link between autism and said “trait” calling it a co morbid is a convenient dodge.

Now that I pissed off people on both sides I had better stop.

Normal in the sense of being a socially accepted person in the mainstream society on this planet? No. The thought of myself being like everyone else feels wrong. Attempting to turn into a "normal" human being is almost as if I'm cheating on myself... Not to mention, it would be like letting society tell me what I should and should not be as if I'm some sort of slave.

I want to be able to handle stress better but not in the way which has me change my beliefs, interests and so forth in order to appeal to the masses, have better relationships with others or because it's "unhealthy" for me and thus it's required that I change. I want to be able to cope with the anxiety, anger, stress, handle being a target in society and still be the way I am and appreciate my own existence.

^ This is what I meant by Aspie Pride...everything you say I believe, as well.

If I took the question in certain context, I'd answer:
"There isn't a need to because I'm already 'normal'. Because this is what and who I'm naturally am as a human and person who is still and always will be learning and growing. If I'm not normal, then I should've been stagnant who couldn't change nor be possible to be able to work around, or trapped or burdened in some fixed way that no amount of time, nor improvements nor change of strategies and environment could remedy it unless if it's quantifiable range or fixed range nuisance to be removed, or a missing part filled or turned on which isn't my case."


If you mean 'normal', you mean, not being different from others cognitively and socially speaking? To be able to fit in? To get into someone else's heads and be understood back? While not needing to play keep up with others??
Once upon a time, I did wished it. Heck, I even wished I'm way ahead of anyone. Then I even resorted with the inversed version that there's something wrong with everyone instead.

Yet, to pretending or simply wishing to be something I'm not doesn't sit well with me, nor did being nailed down with my limitations as an autistic. And nor do simply change others around me with all their ignorance and insensitivity.


So I went to find a way to adapt longterms, while keeping short term coping strategies short term and not to have longterm dependence of it.
Then I decided to aim as functional and adapting as an autistic, instead of pretending to be one or giving up that I couldn't be one within or without. Accepted myself, accepted others even if it's a pain, sought knowledge between 'worlds' and it's layering dimensions of it, understood myself time and time to see if something changed or not -- internally and externally. And see, how much of the world change...
External help or support would be my last resort in my own case, or if I were desperate enough to urgently move on -- yet I choose to move slow, at my own pace with my own terms but very surely.

What did this brought me so far? After numbers of transitions of graduations from school and vocations for years, and a year or so of fulltime work -- it took that long to find out my 'sensory and social stamina' upper limits...
And I'm still playing and working out to catch up, developmentally speaking.

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I just think it would be nice to have that connection that non autistic people have with other people.

This is what I miss and as much as I do "pass" in real life I also know that I will always be detached and I might as well be a million miles away as opposed to in the same room with people.