If it was possible to get rid of AS, would you go for it?

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If an affordable and safe cure was available that would completely eliminate Aspergers and make you NT, would you go for it?
Yes, I would go for it! If you have a golden opportunity to turn NT, why lose it? As NT, I'll be my better self. 40%  40%  [ 22 ]
No, I would not go for it. Aspergers is an integral part of who I am, and I don't want to kill part of myself. 60%  60%  [ 33 ]
Total votes : 55

New-Yorker
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02 Apr 2012, 11:25 pm

If you have been diagnosed, the question is for you especially. If you are not diagnosed, either pretend that you are, or, for the sake of simplicity, interpret the options as follows:
1) "Yes! I would even get diagnosed just to make sure the cure will work right for me (because if I'm not Aspie, then the cure might be simply wrong)"
2) "No! I like my current behavioral habits, whether it's really Aspergers or not. I'm not willing to eliminate those habits, so I would not be interested in any form of 'cure'".



Tyazii
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02 Apr 2012, 11:52 pm

Why would I want to become boring? And quite possibly...Stupid.



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03 Apr 2012, 12:10 am

Strongly opposed to cures, but a supporter of behavioural interventions that can make life easier for the person, but will not push the person too hard...for example, teaching someone how to regulate their stress levels. What I don't support is trying to change the person involved: so changing only specific, realistic target behaviours and not shaming the person for their personality, mindset, quirks, or who they are.

A person can develop NT-like behaviours, but if you are born on the spectrum, you will always be there, and no cure can really change that.



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03 Apr 2012, 12:17 am

No

I know it'd be a zillion times easier, and that I'd most likely have the things I want in life if I were "normal", but I'd miss out on a rather unique experience of viewing the world through the eyes of someone who is detached from the social group.

It doesn't look any better [or worst], no matter how easy "they" have it.



Kaelynn
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03 Apr 2012, 12:35 am

I wish I had a swich so that I could turn it on and off. Some times I like being so different from the rest of the world and other times, like today I wish I could be better at making friends and keeping friends.



birdiethehuman
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03 Apr 2012, 12:42 am

I said no, because it embodies so much of me. I don't know who I would be without it, and frankly that's rather scary. I think it would be something like being Kissed by a Dementor. For those of you who don't know Harry Potter, a Dementor is a creature that feeds on happy memories. It's Kiss sucks out your soul.


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TheSunAlsoRises
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03 Apr 2012, 1:00 am

Naw.

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nikki191
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03 Apr 2012, 1:13 am

yes



RazorEddie
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03 Apr 2012, 3:09 am

This subject must be one of the most common polls. The results are always the same - most would not go for a cure. It would involve so many changes that you would end up a completely different person. Who wants to be boringly average anyway?


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03 Apr 2012, 7:13 am

I really don't know how some peope can really enjoy having AS.

If I could I would get rid of this s**t as soon as possible. I'm not gifted, I have talents but I have talents what anybody could do - I've met NTs who can play the piano from memory. I was taught to play the piano by an NT.

And I hate having to walk down the road and being looked at without doing anything to encourage funny looks.

And my condition goes against me getting a job, and then I get the same dilemma each time I apply for a job or attend an interview: ''will telling the employer lessen my chances of getting the job? Will not telling the employer make things worse by being misunderstood when I come to difficulty in the workplace over something most people would be able to do more easily?'' I just envy people who can write N/A in the disability box and move on.

And I hate being at risk of saying the wrong thing without meaning to. It's as though I don't trust myself. I wish I had normal social skills, like everybody else around me.

And I hate being a target for teenagers to get cheap entertainment from. I find I have to avoid public places when they are all coming out of school, and I've come to dread the school holidays.

I just think you suffer more when you're fully aware of what you're missing out on. I'm self aware to the same extent as NTs, and so I'm afraid to humiliate myself, yet at the same time I'm clueless of how to not humiliate myself, and it causes self-hatred.

It's like Autism is like being stuck forever inside a box with no holes so you can't see what you're missing, and mild Aspies are stuck in a box forever but with lots of holes where they see clearly the world outside the box but can't be part of it properly because you're trapped in this box.


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lostgirl1986
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03 Apr 2012, 7:20 am

Personally, I'd go for it. I'm not one of those aspies who are extremely intelligent, if that was the case I might think of it differently but to me I don't see anything good about myself or the traits that I have. I like how I can really focus on something for a long time but that's about it.



katwithhat
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03 Apr 2012, 7:28 am

I don't want to lose my quirkiness but to be able to wear anything but a black t-shirt might be nice, being able to adapt to change would help in daily life without so much darn stress, the ability to eat different foods, my brain not running 100 mph and maybe having some friends, doesn't sound too bad.


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03 Apr 2012, 9:59 am

TheSunAlsoRises wrote:
Naw.

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I encourage and work toward choices for everyone.

My 'naw' is predicated on certain factors that in all likelihood may be untrue.

*just to clarify

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Alexender
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03 Apr 2012, 10:05 am

RazorEddie wrote:
This subject must be one of the most common polls. The results are always the same - most would not go for a cure. It would involve so many changes that you would end up a completely different person. Who wants to be boringly average anyway?


That is what I dont get, how would I know what would be different unless I can see or know how each version of me thinks? THere are so many different variables that make me who I am that I wouldn't be for sure what would change. But there is an epidemic!! ! and autism is a disease!! ! so we must find a cure!

And in some ways it wouldn't be that different for me. I come off as a quirky non autistic.


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03 Apr 2012, 12:49 pm

The problem with a "cure" for some people is how do I know which parts of me are from whatever is wrong with me and how much is my natural personality? How much would it change me? What if it changes me in ways that I don't like?

For example, if I suddenly became very social I'd be miserable at least for a while because I have very few friends that I barely see and spend a lot of time home alone. I'd have to learn how to make friends and find some and make money to go out and do things with them.

If my anxiety and paranoia just went away I'd be more likely to engage in a lot of risky and dangerous behavior.



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03 Apr 2012, 2:09 pm

Never in a million years would I go for the cure. I don't need to be fixed or cured, because I'm not broken. If I turned into an NT, I would lose a big part of myself that's been with me since I was born. I'm not willing to do that.


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