How accurate is it.. maybe I should get tested.

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Hello all,

I'm Andrew and this is my first post. I'm 56 and I learned just yesterday that maybe I have Asperger's.

Several times over the years, I've wondered why I'm so different from most people. (Oh so cliche, huh?) First I discovered that I'm an introvert, and learned all about what that means. (Many thanks to a great book on the subject: Quiet, by Susan Cain.) Somehow over the decades I intuitively learned much about living in an extrovert world, but still something was missing. Up to a point I can "perform" like a regular person, and that performance has become unconscious habit - then again, each day I'm reminded that there's so much I just don't get.

So yesterday I started reading The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion. (I thought about reading it before, but it took a tweet from Bill Gates to motivate me.) It's an amusing story about an Aspie who comes up with a survey to help him select a wife. I've only read the first 60 pages so far, but I started to see things in the character that were like exaggerations of some of the things I do. I do love to research things, so I went online and searched for questionnaires. Knowing that such things online are often either unreliable or even misleading, I took 3 tests which all seemed similar variations of each other, with 50 questions. (If you know the tests I'm talking about, I scored 34 to 35.) They said the results almost certainly meant I have Asperger's, but as they were so similar, I discounted them.

Then I found the 'rdos' test. I took the test and read several of the background pages, which appeared to give it some validity. The results were, 135/200 on Neurodiverse and 82/200 for Neurotypical. I guess that means the next step is to go see someone about it now.

It would explain a lot of things, and at this early stage I'm tempted to be a little worried. I don't much care how people see me, but more about the practical things, like career and my precarious marriage. I told my wife about the test results, and she jokingly said, "I could have told you that." She's had to put up with my peculiar habits, my ease of distraction, my lack of talking and innumerable moments where words and facial expressions have been a problem. Along with that has been occasional periods of depression, my inability to meet deadlines, issues with noise aversion and a whole bunch of things.

Sorry about this long winded introduction.. the words just seem to be spilling out. At my age, I know I've managed so far (sort of), but this impacts on hopes and dreams, emotions, intimacy and so many things I had hoped to get right some day.

Anyway, I'll leave it at that for now. Thank you for listening.

Andrew

You are probably describing the University of Cambridge Autism Research Centre http://www.autismresearchcentre.com/ Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) screening test. It uses a 50-question and a 10-question format depending on the test. I have seen slight variations (usually to adjust UK English phrasing to American English phrasing) of the AQ-50 but the scoring remains the same. If this is what you completed, it is very valid as a screening test, not a diagnostic test. However, in the absence of an accepted standardized diagnostic test in the United States for adults with Asperger's Syndrome (AS), the AQ test is the best tool we have. Cambridge also publishes downloadable and printable factor tests to examine various characteristics which a person with AS might have more strongly than other characteristics. The best part is that all the tests are free online.

By the way, an AQ-50 score of 34 or 35 exceeds the new threshold of 26 (the original threshold was 32) among people known to have AS.

And, welcome!

Thank you David, for the welcome and the information.
Much appreciated!

and only recently did I learn enough about Asperger's or High Function Autism Spectrum Disorder to reach the idea that it is just quite possible that I may have this same neurological condition. I've certainly been regarded as a bit strange all my life and I have always had certain nervous ticks that could be noticeable at time - but having been previously diagnosed more than 20 years ago with OCD and general anxiety disorder - I had never even given much thought to the idea that I might have a mild form of Autism. I guess the idea just sounded too far out to me. It was actually from watching a fictional character in a fictional movie based on a fictional novel - "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" a 2012 film staring Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock with first time child actor Thomas Horn playing a character, little Oskar Schell who was thought to probably have Asperger Syndrome that got me thinking about the whole thing. I thought to myself, "well certainly as a child, I was just as tightly wound, just as given to panic attacks and tantrum and twice as socially awkward and odd as little Oskar. " That got me looking up numerous criteria and symptoms associated with this condition and discovering that I matched most - but not all of them. I then took a total of five different online screening test and all five put me in the in Autism Spectrum range to varying degrees. I even retook most of those test consciously trying to answer the questions more conservatively - yet still I always ended up scoring within the Neurodiverse or Autism Spectrum/Asperger Syndrome range.

I suppose if someone even two months ago had suggested that I was "autistic" even mildly so - I would have been horrified and insulted. But I look a the evidence and conclude that it is probably so. I ask old friends of mine who have known me for a long time and they tend to think that I probably do have something there.

Like you, I guess the next step is to look into it more formally. I do know one Psychiatrist from where I work - I suppose I will broach the subject with him when he gets back from his vacation with his family.

Of course also have to ask - although I had a terrible childhood and probably numerous problems over the year that may have been greatly exacerbated by this condition - if that is the case - I now am living and working fairly comfortably. Sure it took me to my mid 30's to learn how to make eye contact and to acquire enough basic social skills to avoid constantly pissing people off - The only problem associated with this possible condition now is my general but constant nervousness. But then I have worked in a fairly high stress health field career for more than 30 years and have pretty much pulled it off. I guess the main benefit in having an official investigation and possible diagnoses is that - it may grant me some peace of mind to understand something about myself that I have never really understood - like, "why am I so weird?"

Hi Andrew, welcome to the forum!

I remember starting to come to the same conclusion myself this time a year ago, and after doing some online tests, I consulted some of the people here, and summoned up the courage to go and see my GP. I had written down a summary of the key similarities amd he took me seriously. I went for a diagnosis in September to a specialist ASD diagnostic place in the UK which deals with both NHS and private (amazingly, I was covered by my health insurance) referrals. I was given a diagnosis of autism (I had quite notable speech delays so Aspergers was ruled out). Has it made a difference? I'd say on balance that it has been helpful to put into perspective some of the reasons for feeling "outside" a number of social situations and explaining a number of embarassing things in the past (I should have said I'm 47). As someone relatively high functioning, it hasn't changed the day to day stuff, but if this is the route you are now contemplating going down, I'd say go for it and good luck.

Fear of being "found out" and then excluded - professionally mainly - has always been at the back of my mind. And each faux pas (when I'm aware of it) only adds to that.

Yes!! The perspective is helpful. How this new knowledge plays out in things each day is yet to be discovered.

Thanks for the welcome.

Hi and welcome Andrew.
I score about the same as you, and I got dx´ed last year (at 60).
My observant neighbour knew before I did

If you are still curious, you could try RAADS (Ritvo). It is one of the more reliable online tests.

double post

Last edited by Jensen on 28 Jul 2014, 2:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.

welcome to wrong planet narrator.

From a fellow 56 year old welcome to wrong planet. If you do go to a professional, see a specialist who knows how Aspergers/Autism presents in adults. This field is new and adults especially older adults do know how to mask some of it so many generalist clinicians will miss it.

The Complete Guide to Aspergers by Tony Attwood is recommended. He practices in Brisbane.

I took that test just now. I found the questions gave no choice of degree. One of the columns perhaps should have been "Sometimes." But I guess that would have complicated the criteria the author was using - as in 'now' and 'before the age of 16.'

I scored 160, which put me bang in the middle of the majority of respondents with ASD. My reaction? OMG!

Thanks for the welcome and the suggestion.

Thanks

Thanks for the welcome and the recommendations. I'll look up the guide.

Cheers