Therapist wishes she didn't bring up AS?

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Now I know I've got a problem obsessing over AS...

Basically, my new therapist mentioned to me I might have AS... I actually got excited about this. Then she said that I was focusing too much on my dx and not enough on my social skills... nowadays, she just says that I have "a neuropsychological disorder causing poor social skills"



It's like she's now avoiding the term. My last therapist I controlled myself more and he called me someone with AS and started working with me on it. The psychiatrists don't agree however and I've never had a dx. I don't even know if the label is right, as I keep saying....

I see the therapist first, then my new psychiatrist in about 10 days... should I discuss this issue head-on? I haven't mentioned AS to new psychiatrist yet, it was my old docs that didn't agree. There is also an autism expert working in the same office, but I don't know how to go about meeting with him.

She sounds like she's a perfectionist. My God, she should just let you live your life. Okay, sometimes you might get keenly interested in Asperger's and read up on it a lot. Other times you might make forays into trying new social skills. (Still other times, you might get interested in peace activism or down-the-middle medical information on influenza---two interests of mine) A person goes through seasons, sometimes interested in one thing, sometimes in another. It's like she's trying to trim your sails too much.

We've had a couple of recent posts about counselors and therapists and so forth, often just not being particularly good.
Family practitioner or internist for diagnosis?
http://www.wrongplanet.net/postp3367721.html#3367721

Self-diagnosis was not confirmed by psychologist
http://www.wrongplanet.net/postt151283.html

You can wish her well and try someone else. That is an option. As a patient, you have the right to see someone new.

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And finding out that there are other people like you is heady stuff!

And I've heard it here on WrongPlanet a couple of other times that a person with Asperger's has been diagnosed with a schizoaffective disorder. Which kind of gets me thinking that we might be able to build a bridge. That maybe a person with Asperger's might find some things relatively easy and be able to coach a person with a schizoaffective disorder. And vice versa. A person with a schizoaffective disorder might find some things relatively easy and be able to coach us!

PS And I'm glad you're mentally interesting!

I posted one (that I cannot find) about my therapist saying that I probably don't have AS because I am socially successful online.

Ask her what DSM code she is using on the medical forms. There has to be an official DX. She can't just say "a neuropsychological disorder causing poor social skills".

Seems like she's worried you'll go all hypochondriac and obsess about your AS to the point that you're not actually trying to solve your problems.

It's not like that never happens... I mean, it can... but having a name for something is generally a good thing, not a bad thing.

Her focus on social skills doesn't really impress me--don't you have issues other than social skills which also have to be addressed? Just focusing on social skills is not always the best approach. (Apologies if social skills are the major focus for you; it's not impossible that they are.)

I wonder if maybe being happy about having a label seems intimidating to them because they see the label as an "enemy" to extinguish rather than an element of yourself to embrace, understand, and use.

Whatever it is, if you are getting the services you need from this person, then I wouldn't worry too hard about semantics unless you need to transfer to a new counselor.

Well, there are other things she wants to work on me with, but she choose social skills as the first thing. My social skills are not absolutely horrible, but my aunt talked to her (my aunt wanted to and I let her) and stuff my aunt said was concerning to her in the social skills realm.

On second thought, I am confused about my social skills ability. I am able to interact with people playing a game of cards for example. But I can't joke around like they do without saying something over the top that is mean and not just joking, it's like I've got a basic understanding, but there are higher up skills that I don't have.

A game of cards has structure and rules. Easy.

People are inscrutable, capricious and emotional. Hard.

I agree with Wavefreak58.

And I would add that a lot of "hanging around" time seems to be loose flowing from unstructured topic to unstructured topic with good-natured joking and teasing that sometimes blurs to not very good-natured. I accept that people like to do this. I also accept that this is not a particular interest of min. Maybe, maybe, if I was with a group of people who shared some of my intense interests, or maybe not even then. And either way is perfectly okay.

I am pretty successful as a low-key leader believe it or not, even though currently living with my parents (after living on my own from 1985 to 2008 with some financial help from my parents), and even though I sometimes stim with a soft T-shirt as a I imagine sports or movies or possible movie scenes. So be it.

For example, at a political meeting, I will sometimes follow-up on someone’s comment in a positive will, or I try to defend a group member who I feel several people are attacking. And yes, if I jump in early and am matter-of-fact, I usually often pull this off. And I find this kind of dynamic approach more successful than if I merely introduce my own topics in a flat way.

And I’m also good at organizing activities, which can be as simple as a drive down to the beach. And even the people who like hanging around also like having activities to go to. (The last couple of years have been a little dry, but I kind of feel a new more open future coming on---and I am very open to that. )