I think I can recognize Asperger's just by looking at people

Page 1 of 2 [ 32 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2  Next

Man
Butterfly
Butterfly

User avatar

Joined: 8 Nov 2022
Age: 33
Gender: Male
Posts: 10
Location: Pakistan

01 Dec 2022, 8:51 am

The other day, I was looking at my childhood photos and right off the bat I could tell I was an Aspie. In most of the photos, I basically have the same facial expression, like I'm freezing or something! And even in the ones where I'm smiling you can tell that it was basically an "emulation" of the 'expected' human behavior, and not a genuine expression.

It's difficult to explain but... you can tell that my upper face (eyes, forehead, eyebrows) is not in 'sync' with my lower face. It's like I'm just spreading my cheeks (< I know).

Another thing I'm starting to notice is that my forehead basically has no wrinkles and I'm 33! I just don't use the upper part of my face to express my feelings, merely because I don't know how to.

I've been also watching interviews of Aspies on YouTube etc. and in most cases, it's actually quite apparent... at least to me.

P.S While I've Asperger's, I don't face difficulty recognizing other's facial expressions.



kraftiekortie
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 4 Feb 2014
Gender: Male
Posts: 87,510
Location: Queens, NYC

01 Dec 2022, 8:54 am

I was severely autistic as a child. Not Aspergian.

One cannot tell that I was autistic on the basis of photographs of me.



usagibryan
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 13 Jul 2020
Gender: Male
Posts: 273

01 Dec 2022, 9:34 am

I do not have... whatever the ASD version of gaydar is. I've only met one person who was very obvious in his mannerism and speech patterns, everyone else I've met who said they were on the spectrum didn't appear to be unless I got to know them more.

Man wrote:
Another thing I'm starting to notice is that my forehead basically has no wrinkles and I'm 33! I just don't use the upper part of my face to express my feelings, merely because I don't know how to.


Whoa, I don't have forehead wrinkles, I'm pretty sure I use the upper part of my face to express things though, maybe I didn't growing up? I know I didn't really smile as a kid.


_________________
"The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents. We live on a placid island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of infinity, and it was not meant that we should voyage far. The sciences, each straining in its own direction, have hitherto harmed us little; but some day the piecing together of dissociated knowledge will open up such terrifying vistas of reality, and of our frightful position therein, that we shall either go mad from the revelation or flee from the deadly light into the peace and safety of a new dark age"


Last edited by usagibryan on 01 Dec 2022, 9:53 am, edited 2 times in total.

Doberdoofus
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 31 Dec 2021
Age: 51
Gender: Non-binary
Posts: 1,166
Location: Orbiting Wrong Planet

01 Dec 2022, 9:46 am

Quote:
I think I can recognize Asperger's just by looking at people


You may have a superpower, or you may be letting your bias influence your interpretation - who knows which is true. :)


_________________
I don't follow society's rules. But that doesn't mean there aren't rules I have to follow when the Dark Passenger calls.

Don't be so eager to be offended. The narcissism of small differences leads to the most boring kind of conformity.


Caz72
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 20 Feb 2013
Age: 51
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,394
Location: England

01 Dec 2022, 12:27 pm

i dont think i look autistic


_________________
Have diagnosis of autism.
Have a neurotypical son.


shortfatbalduglyman
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 4 Mar 2017
Age: 40
Gender: Male
Posts: 9,710

01 Dec 2022, 12:40 pm

OP:

unlike down syndrome, asperger's does not have a "look".

furthermore, standard operating procedure requires a psychologist that specializes in autism spectrum disorders, to make that diagnosis. even then, they do not just look at a picture of the client to differentiate between "asperger's" and "neurotypical".

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Caz:

Among the many people that I disclosed my autism diagnosis to, by far, the most popular statement they told me: "you don't look autistic."



2cat007
Velociraptor
Velociraptor

User avatar

Joined: 27 Sep 2014
Age: 26
Gender: Female
Posts: 439
Location: Candy Land

01 Dec 2022, 3:02 pm

I can’t tell if someone is autistic from photos, but I can suspect it immediately right after communicating with them. Usually when I talk to neurotypicals I can feel a theoretical wall between us. However, when I talk to autistics, we click better. It doesn’t feel like a theoretical wall is between us.



Caz72
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 20 Feb 2013
Age: 51
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,394
Location: England

01 Dec 2022, 6:49 pm

autism seems to be based on stereotypes so if you make regular eye contact and can have a conversation without talking about your special subject and you dont speak in monotone or flap your hands or rock or whatever then you will likely get away with passing off as nonautistic at least


_________________
Have diagnosis of autism.
Have a neurotypical son.


ASPartOfMe
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 25 Aug 2013
Age: 66
Gender: Male
Posts: 34,252
Location: Long Island, New York

02 Dec 2022, 12:17 am

Sometimes one is able to tell if a person has autistic traits, but that may not be the same as the person actually being autistic.

I do not think looking at pictures of yourself or aspie vloggers is a good test of your "aspiedar" abilities.


_________________
Professionally Identified and joined WP August 26, 2013
DSM 5: Autism Spectrum Disorder, DSM IV: Aspergers Moderate Severity

“My autism is not a superpower. It also isn’t some kind of god-forsaken, endless fountain of suffering inflicted on my family. It’s just part of who I am as a person”. - Sara Luterman


Jakki
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 21 Sep 2019
Gender: Female
Posts: 10,122
Location: Outter Quadrant

02 Dec 2022, 12:40 am

Caz72 wrote:
autism seems to be based on stereotypes so if you make regular eye contact and can have a conversation without talking about your special subject and you dont speak in monotone or flap your hands or rock or whatever then you will likely get away with passing off as nonautistic at least


This is a good description of high level masking … just hard to do for extended. Periods of time . For me .
But kinda. Enjoy the people , i do not have to mask with .. all three of them. 2 of them kinda appear like undiagnosed ASpies


_________________
Diagnosed hfa
Loves velcro,
Quote:
where ever you go ,there you are


Elgee
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

Joined: 20 Dec 2021
Gender: Female
Posts: 370
Location: Med West

02 Dec 2022, 1:37 pm

I've been to many socials now for autistic adults. MOST do not "seem" or "act" autistic. Lower functioning ones you can tell immediately. HFA's it may start being apparent as they explain things, and I see their quirks with mannerisms and facial expressions, but MOST simply seem like "normal" people -- yet they've been diagnosed on the spectrum. My giveaway may be little facial expression and the way I describe things, maybe looking away too much WHILE I describe or explain. Outside of that, I don't have any odd mannerisms or peculiar prosody or weird looks on my face. Are these typical-appearing auties masking? Maybe, maybe not. I'd think they wouldn't be masking much AMONG EACH OTHER. My lack of peculiar prosody or mannerisms isn't masking. It's jsut that I don't happen to have these traits with my autism. I have plenty others, though!



rse92
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 14 Oct 2021
Age: 64
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,076
Location: Buffalo, NY

02 Dec 2022, 2:29 pm

Everyone who you have described that you could tell were austistic, you knew they were all austistic beforehand. Do you see how that might cast doubt on your superpower?



lostonearth35
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 5 Jan 2010
Age: 50
Gender: Female
Posts: 11,790
Location: Lost on Earth, waddya think?

02 Dec 2022, 2:33 pm

People couldn't tell I was aspie just by my appearance. but then again Asperger's wouldn't even be officially recognized until 1994, and even now NT people think saying you have Asperger's is Nazi and ableist. Sorry, I didn't mean to offend myself. :roll:



kraftiekortie
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 4 Feb 2014
Gender: Male
Posts: 87,510
Location: Queens, NYC

02 Dec 2022, 2:36 pm

Actually...people wouldn't think those with Asperger's are "ableist and Nazi."

Most people don't know Hans Asperger. They almost certainly wouldn't know his Nazi connections.

I've never been diagnosed with Aspergers; I was diagnosed with classic autism when I was a very young child in the 1960s. I would never be diagnosed with Aspergers because I had a major speech delay.



Jakki
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 21 Sep 2019
Gender: Female
Posts: 10,122
Location: Outter Quadrant

02 Dec 2022, 7:01 pm

Well… need to say here is you could judge autism et Al. By appearance . Then something is very weird ..
Because by appearances , my Younger sister who was pretty much completely non verbal .. had much more of a traditional NT appearance than most all aspies , i have met . Nothing in her face . Even when she was not responding. Would betray anything of a Aspie look .. even on her worst days . Her face had more of a knowing look.
And we lived in the same location until she was 15 vears old. A lot of her hour to hours physical interactions might have betrayed the situation .


_________________
Diagnosed hfa
Loves velcro,
Quote:
where ever you go ,there you are


Elgee
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

Joined: 20 Dec 2021
Gender: Female
Posts: 370
Location: Med West

02 Dec 2022, 9:43 pm

Knowing beforehand was irrelevant. In fact, at numerous functions I've asked people if they were autistic because there were NTs at these functions. I was trying to find autistic people to introduce myself to, and it was simply a matter of keep asking till I get a hit.

There were others for whom it was obvious based on hygeine or condition of their body (higher rate of sedentary lifestyle among even HFAs). But as far as quirky strange body movements and mannerisms, I've found this to be quite uncommon among HFAs. I'd never know it for the vast majority. In fact, before I embarked on my dx journey, I would've passed off the quirkier ones as geeks, nerds and just really smart people rather than, "Hmmm, he's autistic!"