Has your AS or Autism 'changed' as you have gotten older?

Post Reply New Topic

This is something I have long wondered about and it is a question I have asked a number of people (whom I know in real life) and gotten a number of different answers.

Personally I find the subjects of Autism and AS interesting, due to the fact that I have AS and that by studying about it I can understand myself better and avoid some of the mistakes that I have seen others make.

I shall only skim though my development briefly, and not go though my entire life story as it is rather late as I type this and I need to be awake for an appointment in the morning, of a personal nature.

0-5

At first I developed most like any other baby or toddler (according to my parents I was rather an adventurous and active tot) but when I was about two I stopped speaking for two years although I would still say short sentences (eg 'me want glass of milk') from time to time and I did not enjoy being hugged as I became hypersensitive, this also meant that I used to enjoy very much running about in the nude.

It was when I was about three or four that I developed an obsession with motor cars as my dad used to enjoy watching F1 racing at the time.

It was then that I started to become quite sensitive to suffering and I have vague memories of crying when I saw women crying on TV.

In time I began to speak again, and by the time I started school I wouldn't stop talking or asking questions.

And yes I liked Thomas the Tank Engine, although I wasn't obsessed by it.

5-9

When I started Preschool I started to get into the kinds of things other little boys get into at that age.

At that time 'Batman' was big thanks to the 1989 Tim Burton movie (although at that time I only got to see a few cartoons and the Adam West series on reruns) and so were the 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' (or 'Hero Turtles' as I knew them) and I would spend many a recess fighting crime as the heroes in a half shell or as Batman and Robin.

However I had my own spin on 'playing cops and robbers' in that I set up my own gang dedicated to fighting school bullies as I felt that if my heroes could fight crime, then why not I?

Later as the years went by, I started to fall behind in my social development, (my school work was ahead of most of my peers) as I would often lash out on my peers if they disagreed with me.

In one case I actually tormented another boy for a whole two months as he did not want to be friends with me.

My guide in life was a weekly comic called 'The Beano', for those of you who live outside the UK, 'The Beano' was a weekly comic which told short (around 1 or 2 pages each) humorous tales of kids getting up to pranks and jolly japes.

As I could see that that the characters involved had no magic powers (ie they did not climb walls or fly) and were presented as normal kids who lived lives I could relate to I would go out and copy the things I saw there as I thought that, that was what being a kid was all about.

That said however I was a very serious child at the time as I felt that it made me more 'grown up'.

One subject I excelled in was history, mostly due to the fact that it was full of the kind of things most little boys like ie wars and killing.

When I was about nine years old I had a meltdown in my class (just for the record, due to my issues I was given my own classroom, which was really a converted storage room) and when my mum was called she saw for herself how much of a sate I would get myself in.

As my mother is also a teacher she saw that something was up.

Some months later I was diagnosed.

At the time it was rather a shock, I had in fact seen other kids with AS on TV and felt sorry for them, but soon I was back on my feet and raring to get on with my life, as my parents looked for a more suitable school for me.

9-16

When I first visited what we shall call 'the Autistic school' I remember being very surprised at all the different levels of ability that were there, as up until then I assumed that all people with Autism were the same, ie like me sadly at the time I was less then tolerant towards the less able students.

Later I began to attend the Autistic school as a 'boarder' (although I would go home for weekends and hols) and made a number of very close friends, and ever time my temper improved and I begun to have more fun and take things less seriously as I must confess that we did not get all that much 'real' work done, however it was then that I began to self teach myself various subjects I found interesting.

It was while I was there that I began to play video games and discovered the joys of Sonic the Hedgehog.

After a regrettable incident where I was suspended for a few months, when I came back I was a day pupil although it was just over a year later I left and went back to mainstream education, as my studies.

The school I went to was actually rather gentile and civilized, and so I went though the remainder of my school years unmolested and with little incident.

16-25

Sometime after I turned 16 I left home to go to a care home, there I was once more met with a variety of people with AS and Autism.

At first I maintained the bigoted views of what I called 'the Autos' although as I got to know them I began to soften my views and make friends with them.

On a less positive note I would spend a lot of my time getting into fights and arguments with the other residents, and would even torment residents who had lots of meltdowns so that they would hit me and then call the police to try and get rid of them.

Sadly this changed very little (although as I got older it happened less and less as my hormones calmed down) during my time at the care home, and would not mature again until I left.

25-29

When I left my care home I moved into a rest-bite unit where I and have many a long chat with the staff about Autism in order to help me understand why other people (and myself) would act in the ways that they do.

For a number of years I was still getting into fights, interfering with other peoples business and was full of nervous energy.

I would also post inappropriate messages in the internet (nothing as extreme as Chris Chan though) and come up with hair brained schemes to get girls to change there personality's to suit me (by giving them notes in the shape of 'dating advice' leaflets) until I just as quickly as the crazy days started I wised up, got better meds, and became te man I am today.

Now

As I approach my 30th birthday, I look at myself in the mirror (plus I ask my friends what they think of me) and see a fairly good looking and well groomed young man, who knows what he wants in life, is content, very laid back, well spoken and civil.

Sometimes I get confused about things, such as why love isn't logical or why people don't just pretend to be nice to everyone, even if they hate each other. But aside from all that I think I'm doing OK.

Last edited by steverogers on 30 Jan 2014, 4:08 am, edited 1 time in total.

This is in response to the thread title, and not in response to the very long opening post. (No offense intended.)

I'm not diagnosed, but am strongly "suspected" by myself and two SEMI-qualified professionals of being on the spectrum.

Someone I've known for 30 years and count as a friend says I've developed much better social skills and am more outgoing than when he first met me.

Others who've known me for a long time say the same.

I've learned that HFA people can "grow" with time, and develope "coping mechanisms" where they manage to make their behaviour and even their thinking (to some degree) more like that of NTs.

Yes, people can change.

As one PUBLIC SPEAKER who was diagnosed as a child (but had a very determined mother) has said on a YouTube video (and he comes across as NT, if you didn't know better), he knows he's still autistic.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6-PwVuYy2Y

Precisely - people change - their autism does not, it's hardwired into your brain, but you certainly learn to cope with it and work around it better as you get older. I think a lot of that depends on what sorts of people you're around. When I've been in places where the people around me basically ignored me like I wasn't there, I faded into the wallpaper.

When I lived in places where people were more friendly and supportive, it was easier for me to come out of my shell and interact more normally, and I got better at it.

Now that I live alone, essentially retired, and have no where to go, I will also tell you that if you are not able to use your social skills on a regular basis, they will atrophy, like an unused muscle, and get weaker. My autism has not "gotten better," but my coping mechanisms did - and now I fear, they are getting rather rusty again.

Sometimes I wonder. I'm reluctant to see the new diagnosticians from the Adult Autism Clinic because I think I've outgrown my symptoms and traits. Maybe I've done a good job of suppressing them, I don't know. I suspect the experts should be able to decide what is fake and what is real.

Asperger's isn't noticeable with me. I'd say it'd take the average person a few hours to see it. I don't refer to myself as much as I used to in the 3rd person. I'm also able to make eye contact. I've learned to control my stimming in public, too.

I feel like this is especially important.

Having understanding parents who try to teach you social skills and understand why you behave the way you do goes a LONG way towards helping people with ASDs function in a social setting. I feel like I would be a wreck of a person without my mom caring about me the way she does.

The only reason I need the Autism Support Program at my University is to give me a kick in the pants when I start to get lazy with my schoolwork. In between reading my Bible out loud in church as a kid and working in my parent's wood shop, I've developed the skills to function in public when I need to. There are still many things that don't come naturally to me, but I would not be where I am today without the level of care my parents showed me while growing up.

Looking back, there is a laundry list of problems I had when I was in middle school that I have largely outgrown. Temper problems, carrying on a conversation, etc. I've gotten better as I've matured, and I feel like it is due, in large part, to my parents.

I have changed a lot as I have gotten older.

Less subtle and less verbal

my autism hasnt changed, i just adapted and learned new things to cope.

I've learned out of fear not to talk about my special interests, or not to want to talk about my special interests all the time.

I'll say these days I'm more reclusive. I'm less talkative. I'm more sensitive to light and sound. I'm more individualistic. I think that has to do more with no longer trying to emulate others. That I've come full circle back to what I was like as a young child. Except that I'm seasoned and polished. I've been around the block a few times.

I'm in a job that requires me to be very social.... and so I've picked up on it a lot over the last 7 years or so. I still suck at small talk and a lot of things, but I can function A LOT better than I did even 5 years ago.

it has changed alot my sensory issues are completly different and in my opinion worse

also i was gifted as a child now not so much

Now I am way better than how I was 2 or 3 years ago.
I think I come across as much less rude compared to when I was a child. My personality also developed into the one of a witty person that laughs a lot and makes bitter remarks.
I am better at remembering stuff because I have learned to write down what I have to do before I forget it and I don't lose things anymore. I still am disorganized but my organization skills are better compared to when I was in elementary and middle school. Now I also remember to wash my hair twice a week; up to two years ago I went even weeks or a whole month without a shower/washing my hair and I only did when my mother reminded me of it.
My posture and gross motor skills are way better and my fine motor skills have got better as well.
I get meltdowns less often.
My sensory issues did not change at all.