Social understanding "too good"!?

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Hi, I'm dx with HFA at the moment.

I had a language delay as a child and was "typical autistic". I still have a lot of sensory issues and some routines, but I developed a normal social understanding. The only thing I still have with the social understanding, is the language, that I tend to understand things literally, but I understand humor and also very often double meaning.

So, since a fiew years I started feeling strange telling ppl that I have HFA, because they kept telling me, that my social understanding is just fine...!

So, could I fit better in "social comunication disorder" or what?

Uhh isn't that pragmatic language disorder or something?

My mom and I actually talked about PLD the other day, but we both didn't really understand the cut off to HFA!?

Oh, I also had dyslexia as a child and was also dx with "auditory processing disorder".
A lot of ppl in my family have dislexia or stuttered as a child or had a speech delay. I guess I tend a bit more towards the autism spectrum, but in the end it's a bit something else I guess.

I also once had the diagnosis ADHD with autistic tendencies, but ADHD also didn't fit quite well, so I was redx with HFA and at the moment I just have a suspicion of HFA, because my old shrink also toled me that my social understanding is "too good", but she wrote about problems with the comunication in the sessions and she didn't know at all what to do with me and where to put me so she just wrote in the report, that I propably don't have autism and because of that I also couldn't have problems with the comunications and because of my high intelligents I just wasn't telling the truth and because of that I propably would have Borderline.
But she didn't dx me with anything, just those suspicions in the report and that's after nearly two years ambulant in this hospital. That's what they came up with.

Last edited by Raziel on 10 Nov 2012, 6:24 am, edited 2 times in total.

Well I would just say "Im on autism spectrum". Aspie or HFA, I dont know is there a significant difference after all when you're older

I think the thing that is really different with all people on spectrum that are a little bit more affected by the symptoms is:
Our perception is different than normal

There are better and worse days for me.
Some days Itll just go fine with social things some days it doesnt

Not that much of a general problem to me to communicate with people, especially when feeling that everything is going fine.
Ill always find some workaround

Well and our coping strategies can be just so advanced that other have it difficult to see the differences.

Okay, I understand that argument.
But I still don't know if it makes a lot of sence to me dx just everyone who tends in this direction ASD (HFA, Asperger's or whatever) or if it's better to splitt it further into: NVLD, PLI and so on...!
For example: my cousin has sensory processing disorder, dyslexia and a low language IQ (with a high IQ in other areas), but never ASD, not even close, but I still see that there is a spectrum towards my problems.
So I find it a bit difficult and ASD is getting on of the "big lables" like Borderline or schizophrenia where you can explain nearly everything with it. Nearly every developmental delay is considered as a form of ASD these days. I recognice the relationship and that it's one big spectrum but just don't know if it makes a lot of sence putting everything in this direction under one lable!?

But that's a matter how you fiew it, I guess...!

I personally think or feel that symptoms can be quite similar within many of those things
AS (not ASD the disorder) is though totally disconnected from this. Diagnosis goes out for detecting the disorder, so telling you dont have it doesnt mean you're not on the spectrum, just that (in principle) the symtoms are not strong enough to give you the ASD diagnosis.

Thiking so, you could even say that there could be times you're on ASD (the disorder) and times when you arent, because the disorder can be worked out or the symptoms can be "treated". Youll be, however, always on autism spectrum, which isnt really a problem as such at all.
And... Depression and anxiety can make you drop into it and when youve find your way to deal with it your symptoms can become better or less disturbing.
Then you wouldnt fullfill the disorder criteria anymore.

That would make sense in such a way that the disorder is the "sickness" to be treated and the spectrum is the state of brain that youll be in whole of your life.
The spectrum doesnt need any particular treatment, just the symptoms

All this I wrote, however, mostly applies to mild spectrum cases that can go on and off in the ASD. Though I guess this counts for many aspies...

And I sort of also like the idea to call everybody on the spectrum from very mild to middle severe symptoms "aspie", including all HFA cases and maybe even mild general autism cases, in principle all that can connect to our world. "Aspie" though relates to asperger which is clearly defined.

All people on the spectrum share common properties thus there should be a name for that. That thing that makes you recognize and like other people on the spectrum.

Sometimes I just wonder how easy this is to recognize these people...

Do you really have normal social understanding, or do you or your therapist just think that you do based on some paper tests? Can you use any of your social understanding to act like an NT in real-world social interactions, or do you still act like an autistic person in real-world social interactions?

My old therapist (who is not my therapist anymore ) actually didn't have enough knowledge to answer this question for certain.
She writes about "communication problems" in her report. But I have no problems reading body language I would say.



I would say in between.
I would guess that my social understanding is quite good for an autistic person. I understand humor and most social situations.
I have trouble with knowing what the other person feels and also in social situations involving the spoken language. I'm good in recognicing facial expressions, so the difficulty that it's left is mostly language based now.
But my mainproblems are my overloads, that I NEED my routines and that I have low energy.