My Difficulties Summed Up in One Sentence

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I have been thinking a lot lately about the paradoxal reaction I seem to get: children and teens take to me and dates never seem to make it past the first one (if I am lucky). Why is it that I get such a reaction and why was I bullied by teens when I was one myself? Then it struck me. Apologizes for not giving proper credit as I cannot recall who said it here but here is my problem in one sentence:

As a child, I was adult-like and as an adult, I am very child-like.

As a child, I felt like I was an adult stuck in a child's body. At the time I felt like I was recently reincarnated and the more I learn the more I realize that's not as crazy of a concept as I thought. I even had frequent dreams about another life (where I lived in a farm with brown wallpapered walls and a sun room in the front porch) and my research confirms this was a common design in the 60s but I digress. I always felt out of step with my peers and preferred the company of adults and mom always had to usher me away from the adult table to the kids table, which I hated with a passion. I also preferred being around the teacher and talking with her after class or at recess until she practically threw me out the door politely. As you can imagine, I had few friendships and once the last one moved away at age 12, this soon made me target #1 due to my Aspie social naivety and posture difficulties. Mothers in general always commented on how well behaved and polite I was growing up.

Fast forward to an adult and I recently asked why married women and mothers seemed to universally take to me and why babies and toddlers are drawn to me like a magnet. I now realize it's because I feel like a child in an adult's body and almost like a big brother rather than a father figure to the young children I know. Ditto to the reason why I suspect two different people implied I was a pedophile behind my back because I relate to children on their level and will discuss Bob the Builder or Thomas the Tank Engine like I watch them regularly (gotta love that Aspie memory!). I always felt I would make a great Mr. Rogers or Mr. Dressup (RIP) even when I was a kid myself as I remember my childhood well and how difficult and scary life can be as a child even with a loving family and how few people knew how to talk to children without being condescending. I suspect dates think I will be a child in a relationship, which is in no way the truth. I am more than capable of taking care of myself and any future children I might have and had a strong sense of honour and am very protective towards those close to me. I also wondered why when I had my then girlfriend with me I was treated with ten times more respect and now I realize it's because people saw I AM a capable adult who can hold down a serious relationship and not childish or a weirdo. I would bet the people who made those borderline defamatory remarks would have considered me father of the year material if I had a wedding ring on.

It's almost like when everyone else went from childhood to adulthood, I went in the opposite direction, like I missed out on my childhood because of my serious, intellectually obsessed, rule following personality at the time and had to experience it like everyone else and am trying to 'catch up' with other adults. I think my 2+ years at WP can be summed up in that one bolded sentence. Can anyone else relate to this?

I do very strongly relate to that sentence: "As a child, I was adult-like and as an adult, I am very child-like."

As a child I was ahead of my peers academically and in certain gifted areas. I had a sophisticated vocabulary, and although I was fully capable of being a child and enjoying kid things, I often couldn't relate to other children, didn't feel part of them, and got along better with adults.

Now, as an adult myself, I don't relate to adults! Children and teens are drawn to me because I'm a lot like them in many ways and can speak with them and have fun with them in their kind of way, because it's pretty much my way too. I enjoy adult things but I also enjoy childlike things and I still have a childlike quality in my reactions and enjoyments and pastimes. I like cuddly toys and I love animals and I talk to them the way you more often finding kids talking to them.

I'm an independent adult who lives alone, and I've even been married (and divorced....) so I've got the "grownup stuff" downpat, but in my personality I am definitely childlike.

I am now 52 and still don't think I have much in common with other grown women my age. Younger women than I seem to me like they are the grownup and I'm still somewhere much younger -- it's not always a good feeling. I don't fit in anywhere.

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When I was a kid, I always wanted to be an adult.

As an adult, I don't want to be a kid again.

I went through so much as a kid--primarily because of my dependent status. Now that I'm independent, I doing better (though with some difficulties).

I grew up in the 60s and 70s. Houses built at that time were pretty similar to previous houses. They didn't have the "open concept" type design. If the house was a colonial, the bedrooms would be upstairs, and the attic (if there was one, comprised a 3rd floor). If it was a ranch, the bedrooms would be in the back. Wall papering was still pretty common.

The phones were on the wall and on tables. One didn't have 3-pronged plugs until maybe the late 70s. There weren't many homes which let in the sun, yet. The television was almost always a console-type thing in the living room; many times, it contained a stereo as well, especially during the 1970s. Color TV became common in the early 70s. some kids had TV's in their room; most didn't. Stereos with radios became common in the 1970s. Before then, radios and record players were usually separate entities.

I grew up in an apartment; my mother's boyfriend bought a colonial-type house, which wasn't too old, in 1976.

I can relate to your sentence a lot my self also.

I can relate where I am not adult yet, I was very adult as a child and even a young teen where as now iv gone to starting to become more teenager at 17.

Totally relate. It's almost like everyone else starts at point A and slowly matures and progresses to a point B, while I only have one point C. I started at point C and expand outward but will always remain at point C, which clearly never coincides with anyone's journey from A to B.

I was also very touched after watching the curious case of benjamin button and realized that I really relate to the misunderstandings that happen when Ben is treated as an adult when he's a kid and as a kid when he's actually an adult. Interesting metaphor for something misunderstood suchas aspergers

Me too. I never felt like a child growing up. I felt like I had to pretend to be a child. I feel more child-like now.

Also have found since I was a teenager, children are often very drawn to me and want to be near me or touch me, or just become sort of entranced with me. I'm not really comfortable with it though.

I have extensive memories of other lives, from my own dreams and visions, and from what psychics have told me. At times I am aware of myself existing in more than time/place life at once and I see how those different lives interconnect and influence each other.



Yes I feel like I did the same thing, and I don't know if I will ever catch up (or if I really want to??) I feel like I'm not good at being a grown up, like I would have been better at it when I was 10 than I am now.



Probably so, it's sad that people think that way, but they do.