Have you ever experienced doubts about your diagnosis?

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The primary difference between AS and ADD are the inattentiveness and inability to pay attention that manifest with ADD. Most aspies are able to hyperfocus on whatever they're doing, even if it's not one of their all-consuming interests, whereas people with ADD have a very short attention span and cannot adequately pay attention to things that don't relate to areas of interest. Also, special interests are an almost universal symptom of AS, but not of ADD; people with ADD tend to have relatively normal interests both in type and intensity of focus. I'm sure there are other differences between the two, but I don't have my DSM on hand at the moment, the point is effectively that AS and ADD are not the same thing, and there's an even bigger difference between AS and ADHD because of the added hyperactivity and impulsivity element.

Many people with AS/HFA score low or just average in school despites their high IQs because they can't focus or do it properly/for a long time on anything else that is not their interests. Or at least it was like this three years ago when I was diagnosed with AS. I don't know if the "experts" have changed their mind again in three years.


I was again told by the experts that people with ADHD/ADD can become obsessive about stuff just like people with AS.
There is a type of ADD called the "hyperfocus type"-those who become so obsessive over something that they just think/do/talk about that thing and can't move on (that is another type of inattention: one is not able to pay attention to other stuff because is too worried paying attention to just one thing).
Also the OCD-like symptoms that many people with ADHD/ADD have contribute to this obsessiveness.


Again according to the experts that diagnosed me, impulsivity/hyperactivity can be seen in kids with AS as well.
There are kids with Asperger's syndrome that act as "class clowns" (I have heard this from the experience of diagnosed people with AS online) or that were disruptive/impulsive/hyperactive kids.

So again if there is any difference, I don't know/understand what it is. They even did brain scans to both people diagnosed with AS and people diagnosed with ADHD/ADD and as far as I know the brains seemed to look pretty much the same.

I have had doubts about the diagnosis (which I received in April, 2013). I am not certain why. Most certainly, I am skeptical by nature.

One odd thing I noticed -- I have become much more aware of my behavioral symptoms following diagnosis.

I get like that a lot. There's a lot of AS traits that I don't have. In fact I have more NT traits than not, but I still seem to have enough to meet the diagnostic criteria of AS.

I often think about my IQ and feel so below average compared to NTs and other Aspies. I only seem to know the basic stuff about everything, and I just can't seem to grasp new information, or if I do, it takes longer than it should take to learn. I have read a lot of times on WP about being good with learning other languages. I done French and Spanish at school, I struggled so much at French, and Spanish I was better at, but I still struggled to catch up with the other kids in the class. Spanish even came a special interest of mine, and I brought some books on how to learn to speak Spanish because I was determined to be able to speak Spanish. But I still couldn't. Soon the special interest faded away and I dropped out of learning languages.

Anyway, back to the question. Yeh, I sometimes feel that I am an NT with severe shyness and anxiety issues and don't need a diagnosis of AS any more. Then I think of things I have said or done recently and I think ''oh my God that is so Aspie!'' But then I say and do other things that aren't Aspie, and I just feel that I no longer need a diagnosis of an ASD. But maybe I'm still in denial about a few little things. A bit like when I call sleet rain because I so badly want it to be raining instead of snowing, even though sleet is related to snow and can mean it may snow later or in the very not too distant future. I just get in denial about snow unless it's really snowing. So when I have a quirk or a trait that could possibly be common in non-Aspies, I say ''no that's not to do with AS, anyone could be like that'', even though it could still be to do with the AS even though you can still have the trait without having AS, if that makes sense.

You probably already have a great grasp regarding what I'm about to say, but I just couldn't resist jumping at that bolded statement upon reading it, just in case you were feeling down. =(

An IQ has and will always be a number that indicates only what those who created and approve of the test perceive to be intelligence in limited areas. An IQ test does not gauge your ability in far too many areas for me to even bother listing them, and therefore does not even come close to encapsulating intelligence. I think it's a stupid misconception that intelligence is always thought of as something related to maths/logic (I know there's more). It MOST CERTAINLY requires a DIFFERENT type of intelligence to excel in physical activity or to be a fantastic musician/artist for example. There is way, way too much emphasis put on the few types of 'intelligence' that most people think of as a result - it's a feedback loop I suppose.

I've seen one of Einstein's quotes used quite a lot on this forum - 'Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.' Far more than just a solid quote, it holds more meaning than everything I've attempted to say here.


Anyway sorry for the tangent, but in relation to the original topic the one reason I've constantly considered, but never accepted that I could have Asperger's throughout my whole life is due to the cognitive dissonance generated by my conflicting traits. For example, I'll have a relatively good day socially and then almost completely neglect/forget about all the bad ones. I'll be thinking things like 'That was so easy, there is no way I'd ever have failed at this before!' It applies to everything of mine!

I have been in doubt every now and then, but after meeting up with others with the same diagnosis in real life, I'm no longer in doubt.

I'm an intensely skeptical person by nature by *if* I am able to go all the way and get a formal diagnosis, it would just be a formality. I might not present any of the stereotypes but I am a 100% textbook example of an Aspie. I've got it all and nothing else can even come close to explaining it. It's scary how well I fit the textbooks, right down to my weird quirk I can't break of refusing to eat foods that touch each other.

I know Aspergers/HFA wasn't a valid diagnosis when I was a kid but you would have to be brain dead to miss it. I have no doubt if I can afford an Autism specialist they will pick up on it instantly: my last psychologist did within an hour but can't diagnose it in adults.

I have horrible anxiety, sensory issues, clumsiness, no social skills, stim like crazy, have always felt different,have never been a lemming, have executive dysfunction,and can never seem to put my appearance altogether.[ plus other stuff]

But, when I was diagnosed, I was going through a period of time where my son, being in excruciating physical agony, for hours and hours every day and begging me to help him die. I was very quiet and distant during that time with pretty much everyone other than my youngest son and a few of my family members. I was totally obsessed with my son, and nothing else. I probably spoke in a montone..That is the person the psychiatrist who diagnosed me saw.

LJ is still ill, and probably always will be,but he is doing so much better. So I am doing better. And I am starting to question my diagnosis.

For one thing, though I do get emotionally drained easily, I really like being around people. I like being "a part of," I believe strongly in co-operation. And when I am happy I tend to bubbliness. I am also not very smart and I have an incredible imagination. I am technology challenged and, if anything, I have overdeveloped empathy.

So, because of these things, I really wonder. And, if I am not autistic, then why am I so flipping different than everyone else?

I've wondered my traits are more to do with Dabrowski's overexcitabilities, since I have particularly strong sensory difficulties but my working memory and executive function is actually above average and whilst I prefer to speak literally I can understand non-literal language better than even most NTs. However I am clumsy, stim, and find eye contact weird.

I'm glad he pulled through that, and is doing better!

I've found that my own autistic symptoms get worse when I'm under a lot of stress, or dealing with a depressing or traumatic situation. Maybe you're right on the border - you can pass for NT under the best of circumstances, but your autistic traits become more apparent under stress?

You mention most of the classic hallmarks of AS.



There is nothing specifically un-aspie about this. Aspies/HFA´s have empathy like others and they don´t HAVE to technological geniuses. Don´t fall for the stereotypes.

If these questions really bothers you, go for a new evaluation - but see to that it is done by a professional with specific insight.

I agree with everything said here

No, I have no doubts. I fit 95% of the criteria, and I accept that I am an Aspie. There's something comforting knowing the word for your condition. I will say, I have been sliding towards the milder end of the spectrum, but I will always be an Aspie in some way or another. I have never needed to stim, nor have I ever been extremely anxious, but I do have intense interests and am socially awkward, and am somewhat clumsy. I used to hate loud noises and crowds, but I don't really have that problem anymore. That or I'm already losing my hearing. :/

Last edited by modcom77 on 17 Jan 2014, 12:46 am, edited 1 time in total.

Yes. I typically don't talk formally unless I'm addressing a teacher or someone else in a position of authority, or practicing for a job or scholarship interview. I no longer have one really strong interest; I have multiple things that I like.

As a young child I was diagnosed with both ADHD and ASD. When I was 12, I took the TOVA. Do you know what my impulse control score was? Well, I don't know, except that I know it was more than 5 standard deviations below normal (<25 in standard score).

I realize it's a bit odd to reply to your own post, but...

After some additional thought, I think one of the reasons why I have doubted my diagnosis is that I was diagnosed during a time that I was depressed (though, not clinically depressed) with elevated anxiety. I had been out of work for almost a year and aimless.

Sometimes, I wonder if my frame of mind impacted the Psychologist’s evaluation. Yes, the Psychologist conducted a battery of neuropsychological tests (including tests for IQ, Executive Function and Memory). Yes, the Psychologist delved into various areas of my life, including my childhood.

Yet, sometimes I wonder if my state of mind at the time moved the proverbial needle from not diagnosable to diagnosable (one of the criteria, mentions that “the disturbance causes clinically significant impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning”). Since I doubt I will get re-diagnosed, I will probably never know.

As a note, I am working now (part-time). Fortunately, my depression and anxiety has subsided a bit. Yet I remain aimless.