We’re all the people that achieved something Aspergers…

Post Reply New Topic

Einstein
Darwin
Newton
Motzart
Ect.

When I first concluded I was probably a High Functioning Autistic one of my first thoughts was: I wonder if there have been any famous ones?

As you probably would expect, on the Internet I found a lot of candidates.

It was a little depressing. It took me awhile to work around to realizing their fame and success did not mean all Aspies should achieve that kind of fame and success. Rather, I realized it meant it was not impossible for an Aspie to do that well. I think that is something the parent of a newly-diagnosed young Aspie would welcome knowing.

Fnord is correct that none of them have been formally diagnosed. And I'll agree that some of them might not really have been on the Autism Spectrum. Though, from what little I know about them I think Bartok, Beethoven, van Gogh, Asimov, Kubrick, Jefferson, and Tesla are good candidates. Warhol is recent and there seems to be a consensus he probably was. And Newton and Einstein are said to have likely been on the Autism Spectrum but not on the Asperger's spot--Einstein was slow to develop language skills and Newton seems to have had...um...a lot of "issues". Of course, it seems unlikely we'll ever know for sure but if even one-third of the usual suspects really were on the Autism Spectrum then I think that would be neat!

Supposedly Hans Asperger (reportedly also an Aspie) said “It seems that for success in science and art, a dash of autism is essential.” (But, he wouldn't have said it in English, would he?)

Whether or not these names associated with achievements are associated with the label autistic in any way or form...


... Are those achievements just as yours??
Or anyone you've known in this present?

If not, of course, does it inspires many instead of isolating?

Still, more importantly, yours--??
Whether in does impact in daily living or at worldwide, does it apply? Does it contribute?

If not, it's irrelevant. Only some bragging via association.


Find other ways to fight against the stigma or find other forms of inspiration.
Or, find other ways for you to uplift yourself and others, do what you can and must with what you or everyone currently have and plausibly will have right now.

Gained Number Post Count (1).
Lose Time (n).

Lose more time here - Updates at least once a week.

Yeah compadres, I get the (valid) criticisms and all, but gotta tell ye -
I'm kinda with Technic1 on this.
Not hard over --- but kinda. I see what T1 is saying

Yeah, ok, we each face the firing squad of life alone.
- But what harm is there in noticing and then saying: "hey my friends and compatriots, y'know -- we have contributed to the endeavor of humanity. We have a place in the sun."

(For example, I suspect the Wright Bothers to be so afflicted/blessed. - And Tesla.) (Not the car, but Nikola )

I mean, what is the harm in it?
Technic1 is just trying to share with us his pals: "hey, we done okay."

(Was no ASD diagnosis when these lived, but even post-mortem, a solid case can be made of these having been on the spectrum)

We have no way of knowing if these historical figures were autistic or not. We can suspect these people were autistic but we will probably never know. What we do know is that these people had traits associated with Autism. In my humble opinion this is how one should deal and not deal with this information.

One should never make a blanket statement that these people were(or were not) autistic.
One should not compare oneself to these people, you are you, they were them.
When seeing historical and current “autistic” geniuses it becomes easy for some people to fall into autistic and aspie supremacism. Supremacism of all kinds historically have lead to great pain and death. Don’t go there. It is possible to recognize difference without supremacism. Good skills do not make you a superior person.

IMHO all of this retro diagnosing and celebrity diagnosing is an overcorrection to all the ableism, discrimination, bullying, othering that had at times made us feel like s**t people.

So far this post has been about how not to react. I do not advocate ignoring this information. Use the knowledge historical figures of greatness had autistic traits to prove your life is not doomed to failure, that you might earn considerable success someday. That might not be as emotionally satisfying as believing we are superior people but it is no small thing, it is a very big deal.

That’s because Aspergers wasn’t invented until Hans Asperger.

There are great people like Bill Gates and Elon Musk, it would be normal that great people in history had Aspergers.

I think it's just a way to make people with autism feel happy within themselves and not feel like autism means stupid.

But these days the public don't think autistics are stupid any more. They think autistics are heartless psychos, which I think is WORSE than being called stupid.

Yes there were so many people with Asperger’s syndrome who achieved great things they just got there mill ticket, we haven’t - Yet