Are you unemotional?

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Okay, thank you -- may I ask about what you value? Like what is your morality like and what makes life worth living for to you?

No right or wrong answers but a little detail would be very appreciated

I was typing up a much larger post that would have gone into a lot of specific issues including morality when my computer crashed. I'll have to work up the motivation to redo the whole thing, but I probably won't post it here. I was having a lot of trouble striking a balance between honesty and holding back things I'd rather not publicly reveal. There's a good chance I'll PM you tomorrow or the next day.

As for a reason to live, that's not something I've really put much thought into. I can't think of anything in particular, but I'd definitely much rather go on living and experiencing new things.

I should also probably mention that I used to be much more emotional. It all just sort of started fading in middle adolescence, and I have no idea why. Depression might explain it, except I really don't think I'm depressed. I don't feel sad or hopeless or anything, and I already mentioned a total lack of suicidal ideation. The least unlikely explanation I can think of is schizoid personality disorder. It's not officially diagnosable alongside ASD, but I agree with your position on official diagnostic manuals. They were made up by fallible humans whose objectivity is often ruined by pride, pet causes, laziness, etc., and their rules reflect only a distorted, fuzzy version of reality that doesn't deserve any particular authority.

i don't think i can say i'm either emotional or unemotional, but rather that i think i have the emotional maturity of a toddler. i don't know how to properly express genuine emotions other than bland ones or extreme ones (generally negative), so normally i just don't express any genuine emotions, and it makes it hard to tell what is it that i'm "actually" feeling (most of the time i can only tell that there's an inconsistency). guilt is something i do feel sometimes, but it's generally not for something i do believe i'm responsible for, and it tends to quickly turn into anger. it's often a trigger for obsessive phases/episodes (trying to figure out what the hell is going on and how to fix it, because it just doesn't add up). regret is something i don't fully comprehend, and i'm not sure if i've ever experienced it emotionally

i find it hard to understand how people get attached to pets. it took me a long time to realize that that kind of attachment wasn't a figure of speech or just something only crazy people experienced. i don't think i would kill or harm a mammal without a reason, but i don't understand it when people say they feel guilty for killing bugs or other pests. i used to be afraid of large bugs (and if i'm totally honest, i still am ), but when i was little i used to play with smaller ones and test their physical limits. although as far as i know that much is perfectly normal (i'm just mentioning it to illustrate that i'm not oversensitive in that regard)

@op: i think it's fairly obvious that you have a cluster b personality disorder (complex or not). which exact one(s) it is, i think is irrelevant, because the "science" (lol) on the subject just doesn't have much to offer you beyond that vague description. other than that, it's mostly just formalities for insurance or forensic considerations. you say you're okay with the way you are, but i find it hard to believe. it find it more plausible that you're trying to resolve some cognitive dissonance by looking for evidence that you're as self-aware as you like to believe you are (and that you're not going to get caught doing something you shouldn't). you may be good at seeing through other people's BS, but seeing through your own is always infinitely more difficult

i am very skeptical of all that psychopathy-related "science" and terminology. it's another word for my list of meaningless/misleading/conveniently vague words, actually. empathy, love, feminism, psychopath. there's never a true scotspath. it's the kind of modern myth that people just love to hear about and talk about, as if it's a real thing and not just a collection of loosely related anomalies. and that means funding for so-called research, and book sales and such

Sorry about your computer --- crashes are completely the worst. I do very much hope you can find time to PM me as I'd love to hear your story and talk further.



Absolutely agree I find psychology fascinating but the more official and establishment psychiatry wing isn't interested in checking their models against evidence or logic.



I'm so sorry you find imagining people being different from yourself difficult. I totes understand -- it took me years of hard work to achieve awareness that other people really just don't basically think or feel like I do. But I promise you it's totally worth it and if mostly the only strong feelings you have are pain I think maybe you should try. Human neurodiversity is like diversity in general -- learning to be cosmopolitan is awesome and travel broadens the mind.

I assure you I love who I am --- I'm proud of my life and don't want it any other way. I have a delicious sex life, a decent standard of living & a fulfilling career. I get up in the morning and do exactly what I want. I never feel guilt or shame & rarely feel depressed or anxious. If you need to believe I must be unhappy to prop up your feelings or ideology you're quite welcome to believe anything you like.

I don't care.

well that was easy

Am I the only person on the spectrum who is emotional? Because I sure do feel that way around here.

I don't think so. If you mean this thread then keep in mind the leading title is going to create selection bias for people where unemotionality is a salient issue. Even so if you read through the comments there are plenty of people here who are emotional like you

I don't think AS makes people unemotional or lack affective empathy. I think what's going on (besides NTs mistaking lack of expression cues or not responding emotionally at the right times because cognitive empathy issues) is that AS is hugely comorbid (like half the population) with alexithymia and the more extreme forms of alexithymia lead to an inability to feel emotion which works out the same as no emotions. I think it's not the core Aspergers or autism issues which create unemotionality but alexithymia --- but alexithymia is really common among AS people.

Ive been researching this for years and have been reading every thread on this site dealing with emotion issues going back to like 2008 at least and backreading every poster until I get a cause for any professed unemotionality. In the majority of cases there's clear evidence of alexithymia and the others are an interesting mix of additional psychological conditions (depression and dissociation mostly but a few schizoids and schizophrenics and likely narcissists and psychopaths). I haven't found a single case where there's lots of data, weak emotion/affect, no alexithymia, and nothing non-neurotypical besides autism/aspergers

So no you are not alone. At least I don't think so.

I am emotional when I cannot adequately express myself. Unfortunately this is a common occurrence because of low self-esteem, anxiety and sensory overload.

but then again, i just watched a video of a parrot and it reminded me that birds are awesome. though i wouldn't actually want to take care of one

my opinions and attitudes tend to be consistent, but i tend to have simultaneous conflicting perceptions most of the time, especially when it comes to attachment. it's amazing that i even have any consistency at all. my existence is deliberate. or is it? lol, i don't know. i wouldn't be surprised if this has something to do with limited communication between brain hemispheres. my complete lack of stereoscopic vision seems to fit that theory