What if your childhood self and your adult self met?

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This should be a very interesting discussion. Let's say your self as a child and your self as an adult somehow met each other. Don't worry about how---assume it's a time warp gone haywire or something. What would happen between them? Would they: (A) get become best friends the minute they meet, (B) fight and bicker like sworn enemies, (C) part ways like ships in the night due to having nothing in common, (D) or something else entirely?

I hate to say it, but my childhood self and my adult self wouldn't get along. For much of my childhood, I viewed all adults as egomaniacs, liars, and hypocrites. (I gave a partial free pass to Chuck-E-Cheese employees and actors playing Santa Claus.) For example, limiting my water intake, giving me homework, making me take naps, or enrolling me in swim lessons during the hour my favorite TV show was on, "because they care about me". When in reality, they just liked having power over me and limiting my pleasure, with "caring" being an ironclad pretext I couldn't fight against. All while they themselves drank water and watched TV any time they wanted, combined with having access to alcohol to drown out their misery whenever it got too much to bear. As a child, I already "knew" that alcohol was the reason adults are so happy all the time, even though drinking was not something my parents did every day.

So, Child Aspie1 would probably view Adult Aspie1 the same way, assuming the worst. So, he'd most likely not want to meet him, preferring to be left alone. First and foremost, Child Aspie1 would resent Adult Aspie1 for having 24/7 access to alcohol and full control of his life. Second, CA1 would most likely put AA1 into the "egomaniac, liar, and hypocrite" category, forgetting that he is the same person of a different age. So, AA1 would be stuck in a dilemma: try to win over CA1 by giving him a screwdriver (the drink, not the tool), or respect his wish to be left alone? Any ideas for AA1?

I hate to say it, but CA1 wouldn't be entirely wrong: to a certain extent, I became the very "egomaniac, liar, and hypocrite" I once resented all adults for being. And the "worse" I become as I age, the more people seem to respect me. Not to mention, I don't even like kids, so it's debatable whether I'd like my own childhood self.

Hey there dude nonconformism is great but do not take it too far. Makes your social life hell when you develop psychotic like behaviors around strangers due to willful self isolation. Give yourself a break and enjoy life and go to talk to those classmates who have tried to contact you. They like you... so give them a break.

This is an interesting topic, even for NTs.

Like most people, I have the same sort of personality as I did when I was a child but I'm just a more adult version.

If I met my 7-year-old self, I would probably be worn out because I was such a hyper child. I was also very whiny, so I'd probably tell her to enjoy what she has around her and to chill out a little.

If I met my 14-year-old self I don't think I would like her very much. I would tell her to cool her obsession with her crushes down before it got out of hand, and I would also teach her some teenage-appropriate social skills to help her be more accepted by her peers instead of being laughed at or rejected. I would also warn her that some of the embarrassing things she's doing will come back to haunt her when she's a bit older, then maybe she'd think twice before doing such daft and embarrassing things.

I would have begged Adult me to rescue and raise Younger me, preferably on a farm, near the sea ...

I would cuddle her.

Adult me would tell Child me some important things, like "yes, you really are going to need to know math". Child me probably wouldn't listen.

The way to get rid of painful existential philosophical questions is: Do not spend your time alone.

I would be beside myself.

If child-D&D knew who adult-D&D was, she would be very disappointed because she thought she'd be a veterinarian living in a house full of animals by age 26, not unemployed and still living with her parents. But child-D&D would love to hear adult-D&D tell her all about her current obsessions that child-D&D hadn't discovered yet, and adult-D&D would be ecstatic that someone else shared her interests and happily talk to her all day.

Oh that's quite easy. The younger self would quickly look for a very tall cliff or a very short pier...

Yeah, life sucks.

Many things could happen...
If she's 5 or so, heck yeah I'd coddle her without spoiling her.
If she's like 7 or 8, I'd challenge her capacity, turn her thinking around about things.
If she's about 10 or so, I'd likely keep some distance while still challenging her with certain concepts.
If she's around 14, I'd connect to her in ways she only knew and comfortable with.
If she's 17 and over, I'd support her in ways she could understand.

All these age groups were violent and confusing times, but mostly good times.

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Like I said, I don't like kids. But since I'd be meeting my childhood self, I'd find it within myself to at least give him some mentoring and guidance. It would depend on how old he is.

At age 5:
I'd tell him to NOT be a good kid. Like I said in another thread, parents respect bad kids more. Fleeting praise and approval they give to good kids doesn't hold a candle to the deep, profound respect they feel toward bad kids with dominant personalities. I'd also tell him to be a horrible, rotten kid, and when school starts, keep all good grades to a minimum. After all, if he gets good grades early on, his parents will demand them for the entire school career.

At age 10:
I'd tell him that he has five very miserable years ahead of him. I'd also tell him that the therapist he'll be seeing for the next six years is a dangerous idiot who will try to make his depression worse. I'd also teach him what types of answers therapists require. This way, he won't be blindsided when his therapists starts mocking or gaslighting him. While he figured it out himself at 12, I'd teach him to find alcohol in common ingredients, like cooking wine.

At age 15:
I'd do three things. First, I'd print out some internet articles on how to attract girls, and give it to him to read, as to help his dating life, as well as tell him there's nothing wrong with kicking time-wasters to the curb. Second, I'd tell him that the bulk of what's taught in schools is self-serving liberal propaganda, and not to pay attention to it. Third, I'd urge him to move far, far away for college, like Alaska or Hawaii, for true freedom he will never have at home.

She'd despise me and freak out.

My views and beliefs have shifted so much that it can seem odd at times to think that my childhood self and I are the same person. I think that she would panic about the thought of growing up to be me.

"No, you're lying. You can't be me! That's not how my plan is supposed to go. I won't let that happen. Not listening to you anymore, go away! I don't want spoilers and these can't be true spoilers because I refuse to believe that I grow up to be someone like you".

Then child me would start having an identity crisis.

Pushing all time paradoxes aside for a moment, it's probably a good thing that adult me will never meet childhood me for the sole reason that it would be too much for child me to handle at once. Don't get me wrong, I'm not unhappy with my current self. However, back then I had rather different ideas of how my life was going to go and what it meant to lead a successful life. Over time my personal goals shifted and so did how I view myself.

I would see a quiet, withdrawn child and not see anything wrong with her.
We would both prefer no hugs and have ice cream instead.

My childhood self would be horrified if he knew he was going to grow up to be me.