Jerry Seinfeld thinks he is on the spectrum

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MadHatterMatador
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07 Nov 2014, 12:41 pm

PlainsAspie wrote:
Butterfiend wrote:
WOW! I had my suspicions!

I love how he refers to it as an "alternate mindset". and not a disability.


Yet he has participated in a fundraiser for Autism Speaks, who think autism is a tragedy and all who have it a burdens.


Silly, that was before he decided he had it.


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Butterfiend
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07 Nov 2014, 1:26 pm

PlainsAspie wrote:
Butterfiend wrote:
WOW! I had my suspicions!

I love how he refers to it as an "alternate mindset". and not a disability.


Yet he has participated in a fundraiser for Autism Speaks, who think autism is a tragedy and all who have it a burdens.


Maybe he's changed his mind? Either that or he's fallen victim to their lies. I think he's a good guy.


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eggheadjr
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07 Nov 2014, 2:18 pm

Hey Jerry - pull up a chair. Always room at our table for one more.


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andrethemoogle
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07 Nov 2014, 2:22 pm

Neat

I always liked Seinfeld and thought Jerry was a great guy.



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07 Nov 2014, 5:39 pm

I need to remind everybody he said thinks he is on the spectrum. He is not claiming anything else, it is we and the media who re putting more into it which I am also shamelessly going to do now. He did not use "high functioning" but "drawn out" which I interpreted as the same thing. Maybe he does not like the phrase "high functioning". Like Daryl Hannah I can definitely see a showperson be it an actor or a musician on the spectrum. Acting or scripting is something we do everyday. For those who don't know, Seinfeld is an observational comedian. I can see closely observing and studying people becoming a special interest for a person who does not naturally get it. For many years I was interested in voting patterns. Of course as a black and white thinker I would have selfishly wanted him to say he was diagnosed. He certainly has the money for that. On the other hand why should he? Things are going well for for him in his professional life and seemingly in his personal life as he has been married to the same women for a long time now. Without knowing how serious his investigation was I have no way of knowing if he is just an introvert who thinks he is autistic, or there is good reasons to think he is autistic. All I can say is he thinks he is on the spectrum and he described a few core traits.

What I do believe is for those of us who do not believe we are hopelessly broken we are going to need a Autistic celebrity of his ilk using their money to counter Autism Speaks ( If they are NT but get it I'll take it :wink:). Seinfeld may not be that person or he could be. Acceptance and understanding can be quite a long process.


Autism Advocates See Hope in Jerry Seinfeld's Disclosure

 
http://www.nbcnews.com/health/mental-health/autism-advocates-see-hope-jerry-seinfelds-disclosure-n243636


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Last edited by ASPartOfMe on 07 Nov 2014, 7:31 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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07 Nov 2014, 6:09 pm

As much as I appreciate the thought of it, having watched his shows, I simply do not see it. He has directed and created so much comedy that his thought process is evident to us all. As comforting as it is to see a celebrity have a desire to "come out" as being on the spectrum, the fact of the matter is that unless they get a diagnosis, it's just a hypothetical, and I wouldn't devote any serious amount of time into thinking about it outside of just chit-chat like we're doing here.

That all being said, I wouldn't mind a neurologist proving me wrong :wink:

(And a side note: before I frequented here, I was ignorant of the horrors Autism Speaks had brought upon us, so I supported them in my own ways too before I knew better. Can't exactly blame someone for doing something they do not know was wrong in the first place, and I would be made as a hypocrite quite fast if I did :) )



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07 Nov 2014, 6:51 pm

Shep wrote:
As much as I appreciate the thought of it, having watched his shows, I simply do not see it. He has directed and created so much comedy that his thought process is evident to us all. As comforting as it is to see a celebrity have a desire to "come out" as being on the spectrum, the fact of the matter is that unless they get a diagnosis, it's just a hypothetical, and I wouldn't devote any serious amount of time into thinking about it outside of just chit-chat like we're doing here.

That all being said, I wouldn't mind a neurologist proving me wrong :wink:


This is how I feel. I don't think any of us think we are hopelessly broken, I just want to wait until he's more than just a guy going around saying he has a disorder, and that the disorder is not a disability. That's nice for him, but I want to see if he actually has room to say that before I start getting excited.


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07 Nov 2014, 7:43 pm

Oh yeah, I can totally see it. I think Ray Romano is on the spectrum, as well----and, Drew Carey----and a bunch, more.

Just because a person is a celebrity doesn't mean they are alright around people. I've heard lots of celebrities say they get stage-fright, as well, and one would think that they would LOVE performing in front of people and that's why they became an actor / musician / whatever, but that's not always the case----it's the CRAFT they love / is their "special interest", NOT the people. I think most of us here put-up with stuff that we may not feel that comfortable with, just so we can fit-in / get-by / or, whatever.

Also, maybe being sociable isn't their "deficit", and they're lacking, GREATLY, in other things. Being sociable is not a deficit for me, as I LOVE being a waitress, for instance, and that's not very Aspie, at ALL!!

Also, when you're a celebrity and say, somebody is around you that's freakin' you out, all you have to do is tell someone to get them away from you and people will fall all over themselves to kiss your butt. 'Course you can't / don't want to get-rid-of an audience----but the audience isn't touching you, for instance.





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07 Nov 2014, 9:43 pm

Seinfeld is obviously intelligent, and it's obvious he's been thinking about it for a very long time.
I think he should have focused on high functioning, because now some sites are talking about low functioning autistics being trivialised by his self-diagnosis. The main thing to come out of this is that HF Autistics can have a sense of humour. He's one of many comedians who have or probably have Asperger's.
-Peter Sellers
-Graham Chapman
-Andy Kaufmam
-Rowan Atkinson



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07 Nov 2014, 9:46 pm

I'm some kind of autistic, and I could be a regular riot at times.



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08 Nov 2014, 3:25 am

I think he might be right, as there are some extroverts on the spectrum as well. His pal Larry David also comes across as if he might have Asperger's. Like Jerry said, you need another mindset to be funny :)



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08 Nov 2014, 4:18 am

In my opinion, social skills are a trap for one thinking they're autistic.

There are so many conditions under which an individual may develop poor social skills, and personality traits such as introversion (as another has posted) predisposition people for such suspicion.

In my own case, I am NT, but despite efforts was always socially awkward with a 'worse-than-average' ability to interpret body language and make eye contact. I also have a history of rituals/routines and literal thinking, but that's due to OCD, and I can easily describe the basic difference:

. Autistic rituals/routines are something the individual wants to perform, as to avoid distress. Obsessive, compulsive rituals/routines are something the individual does not want to perform, but feels compelled to do so to prevent intense anxiety.

. Literal thinking in autism is due to frontal lobe differences where abstract (conceptual) and affective thinking are thereby altered (they are essentially the same). In OCD, it is conditioned from a previous/ongoing need for precision.

I can think of similar examples involving conditions such as ADHD, where a person may think that they stim but will simply be fidgeting in excess. Popular examples (which I also have one of) are tic disorders, where tics may be mistaken for stims. In the typical population, stimming such as leg shaking/bouncing is commonplace. That's not to say an autistic will not bounce their legs, rather when they do it is likely not for the same purposes as their 'autistic' stims.

There are so many reasons as to why a person may feel how they are. It's why professional diagnosis is almost necessary. It's definitely true that some self-diagnosed individuals are correct and do not need to bother seeking out professional diagnosis, but they really do 'fit the box', rather than just one major part of it; self-diagnosed individuals typically have sensory issues, routines/rituals, stimming (of autistic variation) and/or alexithymia, and consider those first, rather than social impairments.


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08 Nov 2014, 12:18 pm

Wow, Norny, if you started a thread on here, entitled "Do you think I have an ASD?", I would totally think you do!! It seems like you've thought alot about this, and have researched it, alot----GOOD JOB!! !

I agree about the different "leg shakes", for instance----I have a different one for each of my what I call "sidecars" (comorbidities). I can tell the difference by the amount of control I have / don't have over them.



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08 Nov 2014, 12:32 pm

Cool 8)



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08 Nov 2014, 1:30 pm

Toy_Soldier It is interesting that you think that being a professional entertainer might not be associated with autism. I see that because for so many of us it is very hard to socialize, however, acting is "acting"?which means you learn a script and don't really have to come up with things on the fly. My son has been diagnosed twice and yet he loves to be center stage and says he wants to be an actor. He loves to be around people many times, yet is not very good at following "social cues", etc.

I do see your point though, but again, I think the "acting and learning a script, even in stand up comedy you usually prepare a script", might be a way that they can indeed do this while still being "awkward when it comes to normal everyday conversations". :-)

PS I am thrilled he is saying this and I hope that he gets a formal diagnosis so that all these parents of autistic kiddos currently slamming him (I am in a group and they are slamming him big time for coming out), will finally take a step back.



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08 Nov 2014, 1:40 pm

PS on the whole autism vs. Asperger's vs. high-functioning vs. low-functioning, I find it interesting that if indeed it is later proven he is on the spectrum, some feel he should be labeled as "high-functioning or AS" so as not to hurt those "with classic autism or low-functioning". Yet when I speak to parents who are enraged he has dared say such a thing, they CONSTANTLY get upset when people say "high-funtioning vs. low-functioning" if their kids are on the "autism or low-functioning" side of the spectrum. It seems that the only ones attempt to keep EVERYONE in the same group and let the world know that regardless of where on the spectrum they fall, they feel at ease with others on the spectrum vs. NTs, are the actual autistics themselves.

Anyway, this will get interesting. At this point I feel the ONLY ones who truly need to be heard are autistics, regardless of low or high functioning?not parents constantly expecting their kids to change their personalities or talking about them as if they were monsters.