quick rant/ confusion

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Why does it seem like autism and asperger's is only recognized in children? NEWFLASH!! ! For every autistic child you see there is an adult too. I wish there was more recognition that just as many adults struggle with this because those children grow up. I just wish asperger's as an adult was more accepted. It's a lifetime thing.

Because it is a slowed development, eventually an Asperger is assumed to normalize as they age. So some (most?) people who test as AS as children do not continue to qualify as AS as adults. They become "normal-enough-anyway."

If you want to talk about how "agism" affects an emotionally 18 year old mind in a 36 year old body - I'm your guy, right here.

I was not aware that so many people age out of Aspreger's. I definitely did not

Last edited by nikaTheJellyfish on 03 Oct 2011, 10:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.

According to wikipedia its about 20% of people who meet the diagnostic criteria as children become sub-clinical (but usually still having some issues) as adults. It has a citation listed, but I've not looked into the journal article linked to.

To the best of my knowledge and belief, we don't grow out of it: we're still different, but learn to mask the difference better. And at that, most of us don't become indistinguishable.

I agree with Sibyl. We get good at masking the difference, because the social penalties are so harsh for not masking it. And it's upsetting that people don't realize how much work we've had to do just to "pass" as normal. So much energy spent that could have been invested in other things.

Makes me wonder what is the distinction between "masking the difference" and "not being different anymore?"

Who is to say that NTs aren't merely "masking their differences" with each other?

Or that adult AS who "grow out of it" have not merely leaned to "mask the difference" to their psychologist, in order to be free of the AS "stigma."

I suspect that NTs merely learn such masking skills much faster. Or accept such skills as being morally OK.

This bothers me too. The same with ADD.