Does anyone feel that Asperger's is not an actual disorder?

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What I mean by this is, what if the struggles those who were "suffering" from Asperger's had were merely the result of their own unique personality that presented strengths and weaknesses? So, if for example an Aspie had social difficulties and I was a therapist, I would refuse to diagnose them with Asperger's and instead would use therapies designed to improve their social skills without ever giving them a label. Do we label "neurotypicals" for their own unique weaknesses? Absolutely not, so why don't we simply see Asperger's as just another unique brain wiring and focus on helping the people with such personalities via psychological therapy and behavioral modification, rather than telling them they are suffering from a disorder, ruining their self-esteem, opening them up to abuse from ignorant morons who mock that is different and making them feel they'll never be good enough?

When we instead focus on helping a person overcome their weaknesses with therapy and not give them a label, they don't feel as if they are some sort of leper that can never fully fit into society. Anyone else feel that Asperger's does not actually exist and that "sufferers" simply have their own unique personality with strengths and weaknesses that deserve help, but not a label?

It used to be thought that simply being Left Handed was a disorder that should be corrected. I guess even today some people still think Lefties should be corrected to being Right Hand Dominant. I think Left Handedness or 'The Left Hand Path' also used to be connected with the Occult by superstitious people and might still be by some.

I guess I'm just tossing this out and an example of a mainsteam population unwilling to accept a minor human variance and I think to some extent this might apply wanting to rope in Aspies into roles that don't come easily to them.

As for it being a disorder that people suffer from, in some cases I think that is actually true, but I also think the suffering is unnecessarily exaggerated by the mainstream population.

Yes, I agree with the original post. I like when it is simply considered a 'different brain that processes things differently' and not as a disorder. Honestly a lot of the traits I've seen listed when I've researched women with Aspergers are super similar to Highly Sensitive People. Or at least those are the traits I have. And a lot of the supportive texts I've read about introverts suggest that at this time in history, starting in the early 1900s with the boom of big business, is the 'extrovert ideal'. Therefore, many people are seeking to be strong! and loud! or whatever it is that goes with big business....and the traits of sensitivity and such are often seen as weakness or even it is taken as far as calling it a pathology, the way shyness is seen.

Disease? No. Disorder? Yes. Denying that fact means denying the 'cursed' sides of autism.

I'm an aspie without anxiety. Without depression. No form of psychiatric illness or disorder. No form of apraxia, or even any form of LD. No comorbidity at all! And a non-sufferer. While surrounded by people whom I could get away with oddity without the need to mask.

Yet all and all that, I do not deny that Asperger's is a disorder.
AS is more than just the oddity and personality. More than just circumstances.
NTs -- they're just following what their culture dictates, what they thought is 'right', and being human -- they usually do not understand. And are not ready for it.

The lack of comorbidity, the need for accommodate, or state of suffering doesn't change the fact that my reactions are different. My preferences are different. My senses are different. My theory of mind is different. And some few things like the voice, sleeping disorder, crappy penmanship... Those -- I could afford. And I have the energy to do more things after transition, after years of full time work -- without exhaustion, without being overwhelmed.

But it also doesn't change the unreliability of my short term memory and working memory, along with difficulties of multitasking. My misperceptions and mistranslations that translates to misunderstandings. My emotions and how I control them, and take them. My aptitude gap between my verbal ability from the rest. My occasional lack of awareness.
My 'limit' is just not easy to reach. I happened not to cry over or break down on my mistakes and failures. Unless under specific circumstances, I won't blame anyone on it either.

I don't cry over the chaos of what the people, the environment, or my own body would bring -- I take them.


Even with all the curses that annoys the crap out of me on daily basis, I'm still an aspie. Still autistic.

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When you have debilitating pronounced autism like I have, you don't question it being a disorder.

I don't know. Is a disfigured person who still has abled arms and legs really disfigured, or just built differently?

People can not seem to get their heads around that Aspergers is both an impairing disability and a human variant in a similar vein to being black.

If Aspergers were accepted as a difference not a disability the lives of many of not most aspies would be better, a lot better in ways in which we can not imagine. But there would be significant problems also. As a human variant very few taxpayers would want to pay for services, therapies, and accommodations. There would be no reason for the aspie not to be expected and expect themselves to just deal with it. As a person who lived decades in a world where Asperger traits were considered flawed personality traits, I experienced enough of the problems not to want to go back there.

I've been having sort of a low-level dispute with my family over whether or not Aspeger's is real or not. Basically, they know about it, but seem to accept the whole concept of it in a broad or abstract sense, but are more selective when I talk about the possible of me being an aspie or not (awaiting test results). To them, it's not real if it affects how I get things done if I'm working around someone else's ideas of rules or routine, or if it explains how I pursue special interests. But it's real to them when they see problems with executive functioning and possible excuses they can use to try to meddle in my personal life. Basically, they see Asperger's or other conditions as real when there a lot of restrictions one has to endure but not real if the person with the condition can deal with it on their own terms.

The issue I see with your argument is that it's essentially a tautology. Everyone has "unique brain wiring," even neurotypicals. Therefore, while it may be a true statement, it's not a helpful one. Psychological labels (e.g., Asperger's, autism, ADD/ADHD, schizophrenia, anxiety, depression, etc.) have pros and cons. Obviously, some people may have a self-esteem issue after getting diagnosed as "not normal". I went through a bit of an existential crisis myself - "Is everything in my life going to feel like a freaking chore?". Labels, though, are helpful in the sense that they direct people to resources that are likely to be both relevant and helpful. If we abandon all nomenclature in psychology, then I think you'd lose the sense of community that people draw on to help them cope with their various issues. Moreover, the majority of people are not going to seek out a licensed professional to give them professional, personalized advice. So, I predict that you'd have a lot more people who'd feel confused and isolated as a result, which I do not think is a good thing.