Good Eye contact... can it still be Aspergers??

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I'm just wondering about eye contact..

I come from a family of autistic people...

Father: Severe Aspergers as well as Bi-Polar

Sister: Severe Aspergers

Nephew: Autistic 6 years old, taking several anti-psychotics in order to be able to function at all.

I have a lot of symptoms, like coordination, dexterity, i avoid social situations, i get irritated when people ask questions.

I say things that arent meant to be funny, and people laugh unexpectedly and I dont understand..

But I can't tell a joke to save my life.

I can read facial expressions... but, I am awkwardly largely expressive... not in jolts.. but everything is pretty exaggerated

I can't hide feelings.

Anyways... I've been having problems with social and controlled environment anxiety... Even if I'm in good spirits
I dont like to go places where I dont know what to expect

I'm not the typical idea of Aspergers... but this anxiety makes me somewhat reclusive and I miss important appointments

I am female, 27

I would appreciate some thoughts

Go see a therapist or professional, depending on the severity of said issues you're probably on the spectrum in some way. I don't have every single trait of aspergers but my therapist said I'm a classic case in most ways. That's all I can really say.

My case was much of the same. In fact, there are quite a few symptoms of Asperger's that I don't have: I am capable of understanding facial expressions (well, most of them...) and even better at understanding emotion from vocal expressions. My stepmother even complimented my empathy at one point. I am what is described as "friendly"--though I do not have any particularly close friends at the moment, I "get along" with most of the people I know and have an extended circle of acquaintances. I am capable of being intentionally humorous, I understand figurative language, and I tend to be more of a connection-oriented thinker than a detail-oriented one. Despite all of the above, my therapist still mentioned Asperger's within the first fifty minutes of knowing me...and the initial reason for me seeing the therapist was depression and emotional regulation, not Asperger's. Hans Asperger himself had mentioned that "One can spot such children instantly. They are recognizable from small details, for instance, the way they enter the consulting room at their first visit, their behaviour in the first few moments, and the first words they utter." As Belial had stated, it would be wise to seek professional input if the matter so concerns you so.

all this thigs aply for me to, but the neuro (dont know the english word, maybe theraphist) didnt want to dx me with aspergers, since i have a lot of emphaty, so they dx me with NLD, but if i had seen my doctor in an emotionally bad period, and not a really good one as i did, i guess they would said asperger, because the traits are much more vissible then. but as the other says, see a specialist

welcome to wp by the way

I make too much eye contact. I tend to stare people down without realizing it. I have to remember to look away at least every 30 seconds. It can also be a rather powerful tool though, giving the impression of uber-confidence.

http://aspergersmn.org/what-is-aspergers/myths
"Truth: It is true that some individuals with Aspergers make limited eye contact or their eye contact does not appear meaningful; however, this is not the result of making a choice to ignore someone but rather a result of an impaired “theory of mind”.

I hadn't considered this.

Some autistic people can make lots of eye contact, like too much staring.

It's probably best to say that those with an ASD lack appropriate eye contact. Staring through someone isn't appropriate, for example.

(If you come from a family that has lots of people with an ASD, there's a good chance that you'll have symptoms of such in the least, even if it's not severe enough to be diagnosed. Broader autism phenotype is its name.)

You CAN be autistic and have NORMAL eye contact.

You can?

Yes, you can. First, nothing in the criteria REQUIRES abnormal eye contact. I don't think anything specific is technically required for diagnosis. Secondly, eye contact CAN be learned. Anyway, my most recent report said that my eye contact was normally, but I was definately autistic, if mildly so.

There's a guy in my support group who has been diagnosed with Asperger's but is known as 'atypical' because he has what appears to be normal eye contact but enough of the other criteria to fit the diagnosis.

I think you should definitely see a professional if you think it is affecting your quality of life.

Over time typical eye contact can be learned; in children the eye contact traits (both too little and too much eye contact - or simply "inappropriate" eye contact) are much more obvious than in adults, and also they are much more obvious in males than females on the spectrum.

So eye contact becomes less relevant as an indicator to professionals working at the adult level, particularly if working with women.

However, one of the things that I use which is connected is an 'atypical gaze' - the eye contact is there and it is superficially normal but if you know what you are looking for as a professional you can tell whether the eye contact is learned or instinctual.

Women, who are known to mask traits very effectively, are particularly good at mimicking "normal" eye contact but often have a conscious awareness of what they are doing with their eyes that a professional can pick up if they are used to working with AS people.
If you ask the right questions - do you ever think about how you make eye contact? - you invariably get a positive response from an AS person and a blank stare from a typically developing person even when they appear to have similar levels of eye contact.

I have been aware of my own eye contact since I was a very young child and have the benefit of being a trained teacher which reinforced my understanding of how to use it appropriately - my eye contact is exceptionally good for an AS person but it is my conscious understanding of how it works and how to use it is what indicates that it is actually atypical.

This need to learn eye contact cognitively in many AS people is one of the reasons drama and role play are so useful for young people on the spectrum - it helps them build their awareness and proficiency in a social communication area that is often extremely difficult for them.

I know that with myself, I can make eye contact, and I think I do it okay...but it makes me very uncomfortable. Even when I'm making eye contact with my husband during a conversation, something just feels wrong about it. I figured out that I have eye contact issues about 5 years ago (long before knowing about AS), because I was hanging around a NT girl who makes very good eye contact. I asked her if she noticed my lack of eye contact, and she said yes she absolutely noticed it. Since then I've been making an effort to look people in the eyes, but I'm not sure if I do it "right". I usually look them in the eyes, than look away when I can't take it any longer.