Did Any Of You Have Special Role Models?

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ok, I guess this is a question mostly for adult Aspies who were either diagnosed later in life, or maybe not diagnosed at all. (But anyone who wants to can answer it). I was wondering if any of you, in an attempt to understand why you were "different", discovered a certain role model who seemed to have a similar personality with similar traits (i.e., another possible Aspie) that helped you accept yourself, or helped you discover who you are.

I know I did this. At one point in my life, I was fascinated by the artist Vincent Van Gogh. (He was my special interest for a time). Not only did I like his art work, but I was fascinated with his life. I recognized that he had many of the same personality traits as I did, the same social problems and trouble with people that I had, or people misreading him, saying he was too intense, etc., as well as relationship problems. (It is now believed that Vincent was probably on the autistic spectrum). Reading about him helped me immensely in accepting myself and my own personality traits, which I had pretty much hated up until that point. Actually, because I didn´t know anyone who was "like me" at that point, I thought maybe I was the reincarnation of Vincent Van Gogh! (We do even share the same birthday, lol!) I may hasten to add that both my ears are intact...

Does anyone else have a similar situation with a role model?

Well, I don't think I ever met anybody like me, although I wished I did, and I've never been able to imitate anybody, but I did latch on to role models on whom I had a crush -- and for me a crush is all-consuming over-the-edge powerful miraculous love.

When I was 7 I met a saint, a wonderful strange amazing woman who I knew was different and better than anybody, and I made my parents give me to her. I loved her so much and would stare at her for hours on end because she was so amazing. She was everything I wished humans could be, and I was very happy. I still love her intensely, overwhelmingly, totally, forever. She died in a car accident in 1983 but still visits me.

When I was 20 I met my Guru-Preceptor, Paramahansa Yogananda, and He has been my Teacher Friend ever since, no words can describe how magnificent, loving, wise, gentle, joyous, holy, serene, and helpful He is for me.

I had a good husband, a best friend, for over 19 years, but when he was near 49 he experienced a severe mid-life crisis and went berserk and ran off with a deranged married woman. I was devastated, will never recover from that, truly loved him.

Have had a boss since 1989, a nurse I've always admired and respected, only person on earth I have ever respected and feared, and I dreamt about her for years, could not figure out my dreams -- dreamt about her years before I ever met her. Went back to convent to work for her, ended up saving her life. Then my husband unexpectedly abandoned me and she turned around and saved my life. So we decided to make lemonade out of the lemons our husbands had turned into and bought a house together. I've been doing 24/7 eldercare for over 35 years, so our house is our biz and she still works her prestigious over-full-time job.

Turns out Lynn, this boss domestic partner, is an Aspie too! Wow. She understands me. We are littermates, the same species, the same breed. Only she has it to a lesser degree and has learned to adjust and compensate in more socially normal ways. She is participating in my self-discovery and research into Aspergers and is very interested and inspired by it.

It seems connecting intensely to somebody very special, unusual and spiritual has been important, vitally necessary to me. I never planned it or consciously looked for that but it happened.

I don't think of my Guru as my role model because He is so far and above any normal conceptualization and humanimal behavior. He is the ideal, the divine standard bearer, the ultimate, the epitome. But He certainly does help me discover who I am.

Yes. As a teen it was Star Trek characters; particularly the logical ones (vulcans, androids). It makes me feel like a walking stereotype here. But at the time I knew of no one else like this. I could completely relate to such characters, but not at all to people around me.

My role models have typically been fictional characters who have qualities which I desire (bravery, charisma and/or power). Interestingly, one of my therapists pointed out that I tend to dislike people who are too similar to me.

Well this is certainly not a great one, but when I was in high school, Axl Rose. I admired his ability to not give a flying f**k what people thought. I cared too much.

all mine are either sports stars, or gemstones

When I was growing up I was fascinated by Helen Keller and her teacher, Annie Sullivan. I devoured anything I could find about them, and read the books in the library about them over and over and over. I was especially interested in photographs of the two of them together; I have even seen a short film clip of them, and it knocks me out just to think about it.

I'd never realized before why I was so interested in them. It makes total sense now. Something about a nearly blind girl (who grew up in a poorhouse) teaching a person who was deaf and blind how to relate to the world rather resonated with the traumatized mind-blind child I was. It resonates with the adult I am now, too.

I did a lot of copycat stuff, and probably still do, with anybody whose antics appeal to me, and I've very pick-and-mix with it, rather than absorbing large chunks of any role models. But a notable exception was The Beatles. I loved the way they seemed so at ease, with the audacity to say pretty much exactly what they thought, always in everyday language. Just four ordinary guys who were a couple of years older than I was. Later I focussed more on John Lennon.
I know some people think Lennon was an Aspie. I think there might be some truth in that. But all the Beatles seemed to show some Aspie traits, George very reclusive and on the inner path, and both he and Ringo seemed aloof and demanded a lot of privacy. Even Paul - he doesn't do ordinary eye contact, his eyes constantly dart left and right as he talks.

My role models have been scientist, engineers and other great thinkers of the past. For instance Nicoli Tesla, Henry Ford, Benjamin Franklin, Albert Einstein, Laurens Hammond and Thomas Edison to name a few. These are people that have changed the world we live in with their bright minds and thinking, some of which may have even been aspie too.

One time in school I was supposed to do a paper on an American writer, so I did it on Morrissey instead.

(not American, though you could argue that he's a writer)

I think it got an A. I don't remember. I got an A overall for the class, so it got at least a B. I think we're a lot alike, although I wouldn't put him on the spectrum. He's got too much charisma.

Or... maybe he's just a good faker.

The brilliant (and highly idiosyncratic, to say the least) physicist, bongo-player, safe-breaker (etc.) Richard Feynman. It's a bit cliched for young physics kids to idolise Feynman, but the guy was a genuine genius and is certainly considered by many people (well judging by a quick trawl of google) to have had Asperger's.

(edit) And every time I fix something at work by reasoning out what the problem is without taking it apart, I still hear "...he fixes radios by thinking!"

Yes. A leading researcher. But he turned out to be a phony and an a**hole. Not the man people think he is.

Police were my role model with the strict rules and Robin Hood factor.

Became one(Obsession from childhood) and could spot a crim from a mile away. Not affected to an extreme by the violent assaults and murders, SIDS, sexual assaults etc.

Did not do well with all the lights and sirens blasting during a chase. Would be sick for days after the event. Even the urgent duties drives stressed me with the noise. Domestics where my achilles heal and I was lost in a sea of illogical and spiteful emotions.

Not that I can recall. Could never find anyone I related to.

I liked Queen Elizabeth I when I was a teen, I dont remember ever having other role models. Perhaps Anne of Green Gables.

yes