Oh, there is nothing wrong with you.

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Since I was a child every time I did something unusual and out of the ordinary my mother would retort “Oh you ain’t crazy, you just playing crazy.” and when I went to a child psychologist at 6 she took my test results that read ADHD and ripped them to shreds. So yeah she’s been in denial for the last 15 years.

That's how my mom is about my brother and I hate to admit that I kind of played along. I guess because I've always had to struggle so much to get anything done but I did manage, I just figure he needs to do the same. But then he and I are probably very different. I know he has a lot more trouble with eye contact than I do and probably has a more severe case of AS.

That's exactly what my MFT said today. I told him what my friend said and that my friend is a psychologist. He immediately said "OK, but how much experience does he have with Asperger's?" He looked very skeptical.

After our 1.5 hour session, my MFT says that I have a lot of traits that put me on "the spectrum" as he called it but that if I do have AS, my AS is mild in the sense that I have been so high-functioning. So he seemed reasonably confident that I'm on the spectrum. He gave me a kind of pep talk too. He pointed out that some people end up being tremendously successful BECAUSE they have AS and gave me some examples. He was extremely confident that I at the very least have ADHD and that I would benefit a lot from one of the newer medications out lately. He's refering me for further testing.

Thats great news Dalebert...I am glad you are going to get the "pills" that can help you....Now get written....Let us know when the book comes out!! !

I have this same problem with my dad and his wife. They just don´t have a clue about Aspergers and how it affects me, even though I was diagnosed more than ten years ago. What´s worse they just don´t want to know. I haven´t seen them for a while now, I just can´t deal with it right now.

I usually feel like kicking the b@$tard in the b@11$. Let me explain what's going on here, because it's a number of factors. The NT in question wants you to be just like him, even though your not. He knows it in the back of his mind, but he tells himself "mental disorders don't exist". Because in actuality he isn't able to see AS as anything other than a disorder.
You should tell him "yeah, I'm not aspie, I just like being isolated, subordinated, marginalized and robbed of my voice and left to an inhumane fate for the fun of it. I enjoy being a shadow, I'm not really here I'm just a figurement of your imagination."

People always told me that nothing was wrong with me EXCEPT... and then proceed to tell me all the odd things about me that they were convinced I was doing of my own free will. A few months ago I found out all of them were quite normal. For an Aspie.

Because I've not actually been diagnosed I dont think I could tell my dad or my step mum that I think I might have AS. I know they'd probably just say "yeah ok" but not take me seriously.

The other night I was saying goodnight to my step mum and dad. When I say goodnight to my dad I put my hand up and he puts his hand out to mine. I dont like hugs but I dont think he knows that, he just thinks its something I do. My step mum said. "I'm reading a book at the moment about a boy with Aspergers and he does the same thing." (meaning the hands touching to mean I love you or goodnight or whatever) I was so close to saying I think I have aspergers but something stopped me. I really do want to tell someone but I just feel as though noone is going to listen.

I've been observing this interesting phenomenon in the way people seem to treat me...

Like most Aspies, I can "fake NT" for a short time if I have to. It comes in handy for job interviews and such.

Lately, it seems that my NT friends/coworkers/family are convinced that I am "giving in to my Asperger Syndrome", and that if I tried harder, I would be normal; because they've seen me do it. They also assume that I WANT to be "normal".

I don't want to be normal, though. I want to be closer to that "ideal me" that I see in my mind's eye; and that person has AS traits... Some AS traits are positive; and people just don't seem to recognize that.

It's as though, if it's called a "syndrome", it must be all bad, and I must be literally insane for not wanting to be rid of every vestige of it.

I want to make them understand--maybe not agree, but at least understand--but I don't know how. Can anyone tell me how to make the NTs see that I really just want to be myself, and that my having AS isn't some sort of tragedy?

To those who ask "Why dont you just act normal all the time?" I tend to counter with "How long can you hold your breath?"

If they dont get it I usually dont bother trying to explain further and they lose points in my book

I haven't really bothered telling many people because I learned from earlier illness/injury experiences that if people can't see your illness or injury - if there's no spurting blood, deformed limbs, or hideous sores - then those people will not believe you are ill or injured. I suffered a skull fracture and spent 9 days in a coma. Once my hair grew back in and my scars faded everyone figured I must be perfectly normal. I must have been talking funny and walking weird just for the hell of it. I still have brain damage issues including a really annoying hiccup-like sound that's completely involuntary and an inability to use my left hand to do anything "intelligent" like write or type. I get yelled at all the time to "just use your left hand to type" even though I've explained my problem repeatedly. Even more easy to explain is that I'm totally deaf in one ear and co-workers still try to talk to me when I'm on the phone.

If I can't communicate a problem with (IMO) easy to understand defects like brain damage from getting my head bashed in or partial deafness I'm not even going to try communicating about my AS.

I KNOW WHAT BOOK SHE'S READING!! !!

It's called The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, and it's by Mark Haddon. I've read it recently after my mum bought it (she had no idea what the story was about) The story is told in the perspective of a 15 year old boy with AS, and he does the same thing with his parents! You should ask if from her once she's done with it, it'll be quite interesting!

Oooh, thank you. I'll have to take a look.

Hey Pancho, have you read that book I suggested yet?

That was a pretty good book. And at first, my grandmother refused to believe I was anything other than normal. But now everyone in my familiy accepts it.

Not yet, I'm gonna start it as soon as my step mum is done with it, she's nearly finished. My step mum is a slow reader

I might look for it in the library tomorrow...actually I dont know why I didn't think of that sooner