What have you done despite your ASD?

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I've mentioned this before, but figured a separate thread might be good.

It seems there are an awful lot of spectrumites out there that have a preconceived idea of what they can & cannot do in life because of their ASD, especially younger ones. My best guess as to why is that if someone is diagnosed young and then told a whole bunch of things about ASD and how it can & will limit their life, they believe it through & through and then never even bother to attempt to do many things they might enjoy or succeed at.

That said, I think it would be a good & healthy thing for others to share what they've accomplished or managed to do in any area of life that might be viewed by some as being something ASD brained people "can't," or "shouldn't," be able to do.

So, feel free to share, whether young or old, let's hear what you've achieved or managed to do or succeeded at despite your ASD. Don't hold back worrying about "bragging," either - if you've done something, you've done it. Be proud. Share your story to inspire others into thinking they can either do the same or aim for their own goals they may currently believe are equally beyond their reach.

Shatter paradigms, not dreams.

I did a degree, professional qualification and masters as a mature student. Had a good career as a manager in my chosen job. I am married and have two grown children and grandchildren. I have a decent home and drive a nice car. I have travelled to many places. I believe if I had had an earlier diagnosis, I could have better understood what was not so good about my life and worked on some, but by no means all of the issues. In my view, a diagnosis should enable you to reach your potential, not be seen as a reason to limit your aspirations.

On top of having AS, I was also raised in a low income, single parent household..

I'm at one of the best universities in Canada for Mathematics, and I've learned more than double my school work independently in other areas..
I've had pretty good success with women despite my horrendous social skills and asocial personality.
That's about it really.

Traveled.

Got married.

Immigrated to another country.

Had a child who I love.

Been able to work and support myself for several years now.

It hasn't been easy at all, sometimes I feel pathetic in comparison to my peers but then I remind myself where I started from.

Me too. Had a pretty shaky start, lots of jobs in lots of different areas, started and nearly finished a couple of qualifications, but really couldn't make anything stick.

But now I've been married for 10 years - to an NT Got our own place. Held down a good job for 7 years, travelled, emigrated, and can do a really good impression of an NT for a short period of time. Which gets blown out of the water as soon as you spend some time in my company

Played in rock bands.
Released albums.
Became a nurse.
Worked in various nursing homes and hospitals.
Wrote short stories, screenplays and novels.
The longest time I've ever spent in one apartment, seven years, is the one I'm currently in.

Did a try-dive in a 4m deep pool.

Tried horseback riding.

Was a finalist in a beauty competition.

Passed a variety of diplomas.

Passed a course at university level years after leaving school at sixteen.

Worked abroad for a while.

Got justice after I was assaulted by a stranger.

Learned dressmaking (and passed qualifications in it).

Passed my driving test.

Got married and had 2 beautiful little girls.

Last edited by whirlingmind on 27 Mar 2013, 8:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I'm not officially diagnosed yet, so this may not apply, though I definitely have many of the difficulties associated with ASD.

I have earned an engineering degree and was valedictorian of my college (and as a consequence had to give a speech to a very large audience [It makes me nauseous to even think about it]), I passed the first of two exams for a professional engineering license, I am currently working on a Master's, and I have published a professional paper (working on a second).

It has been a very rough road for me, trying to handle stress and faking social skills along the way, but I've still managed to pull it off and hope to continue. Most people would probably be surprised at what they can achieve if they truly are devoted to it.

This is a good idea. To be honest I wouldn't be where I am if it wasn't for some of my positive AS traits. Yes, sometimes it was hell and there was drama but I'm getting there. I have a masters degree and have been offered my dream job because I am different. I've won competitions because of my obsessiveness. I traveled around the world for 7 months, half of it on my own. I have a girlfriend of many years who I love. I will be moving to a different country this year too.

The only thing I would have done differently is got more support through uni so I would have been more prepared for adult life. It hasn't been as smooth sailing as most of my peers but it hasn't stopped me.

Contributed to several books, wrote the entirety of one book, been on the board of directors for a national NPO, had my writing cited in university courses and academic papers.

A few things here and there.

Also, 4.0 GPA whenever I attend college/university, at least before burnout starts.

Last edited by Verdandi on 27 Mar 2013, 9:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Well, one thing I did was become a supervisor. This required people skills, good communication skills, being an authority figure, lots of focus and multitasking. And I was quite successful at it to my surprise. But I resigned from it after a few years because it really did wear me out. I proved to my satisfaction that I could do it and that was good enough. Plus of course it built character and self confidence.

Also after being hermit for ages I started attending a small church fellowship. I was brought up as a church kid so it was familiar territory to me. I'm very participatory and interact with people to a large degree, I still feel like a fish out of water after four years, but I keep sticking to my guns and see it through. There's a lot of huggers there and I let them hug me and hug them back. I've gotten fairly good at small talk and maintaining eye contact. The pastor (who's one of the nicest guys on earth) knows about my autism and tells me about how well I've progressed. How much more relaxed and confident I've become. He even wants me to start and run a home bible study. So I've come a long way in going against my ASD nature.

I attend the #1 public university in the united states and majoring in pure mathematics.

I plan on being an actuary.

I obtained my BSN (Nursing degree). And I just purchased a home.

I don't think of things that I did as things that I did despite ASD. I think of things that I did as things that I did.

Got married.

Got divorced as painlessly as possible.

Managed to get multiple jobs based entirely on my skills, some of which paid well.

Wrote articles that caught the attention of major news outlets.

Founded and organized a community-specific media conference-within-a-conference.

Traveled.

Lived alone.

Drove a car across multiple state lines.

Despite my social awkwardness had a few lovers over the years.

Once went an entire year without a full-on meltdown. (I keep track of them by severity.)

Had some short stories published.

i'm pretty good at occupying space.