Woke up feeling normal today...

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Well more accurately, I was at work yesterday and I got a sort of rush. Soon afterwards, I realised that for the first time in my life, I felt 'normal'(theres no other way to describe the feeling really). Went to school today, and immediately began socialising (Note: successfully) with a handful of people in one of my classes-Something that either AS or Social Anxiety Disorder(whichever) would have prevented only a few days ago. I felt both the drive to do this, and also that I had the ability, usually I feel some degree of drive, but this is partnered up with a terrible anxiety and lack of confidence.

After that, got partnered up into random trio's in another class, and felt no awkwardness or anxiety whilst working my impromptu partners, which again is different than my usual self, and was able to talk to them almost as comfortably as I could with someone that I know and that I'm on fairly good terms with. So a vast improvement over my normal reserved state of mind in such a situation, and what I can confidently call 'normal'.

Have a horrible feeling that tomorrow I may wake up and be my old self, so in the meantime, can someone please explain what just happened? I've got some theories of my own, but they are mostly stupid and/or fail to fully explain the situation, so I'd like to hear what WP has to say...

Manic episode? Perhaps you are bipolar.

Did you socialize a lot the day before, or watch a long movie in which you related to one of the characters? Because it may have had the effect of switching off the hyper-systematizing in your brain which lead to you believing you could socialize normally and so you did.

For the last few days, I've been reading a self help book, and pretty much just willing myself to be more normal, perhaps this is what triggered it?. Isn't Bipolar that thing where chemical imbalances cause people to have very strong emotions? No idea what a manic episode is though.

As it stands now, I've realised the source of the 'normal' feeling; instead of being one person, and acting another around people, I've changed myself to be more like the way I would like people to think I am. Thus my new self is more inline with what people call 'normal', and so I feel this way.

Must be some good book !
Just retrace what you did prior to this morning/day. Like reading this book again.
It would be like the " Butterfly effect" and every morning you could be 'cured' again.
I am sorry, I am beeing synical :O)
We all have days were we feel more social then on others and the book more then likely gave you a confidence boost...
no need to lay on a "bipolar" diagnosis so suddenly, gee !

Must be some good book !
Just retrace what you did prior to this morning/day. Like reading this book again.
It would be like the " Butterfly effect" and every morning you could be 'cured' again.
I am sorry, I am being cynical :O)
We all more then likely have days were we feel more social then on others and the book more then likely gave you a confidence boost...
no need to lay on a "bipolar" diagnosis so suddenly, gee !

Um...if you're Autistic, you can read all the books you want, but it can't transform you into a normal person; our brains are hard-wired to be different. It'd be like giving a penguin a book on flying; not gonna happen, unless he happens to be a criminal in Gotham City with a very cool umbrella!

I have days of acting more normal. Well, nights. It's when I'm drunk.

Congrats for being sober and able to socialise/not have anxiety.

Yeah, the secret to socializing and not feeling too anxiety ridden is to not care what anyone else thinks of you.

Honestly, if somehow you're able to "turn it off" as you say you are, I question whether you are indeed Autistic or not. And I'm not saying that to insult you, btw.

I don't think it is impossible for us to create new neuro-pathways in our brains by simply changing our point of view and keeping it consistent. Its like learning to ride a bike. Perhaps you learned something that changed the way you think and therefore changed the way you viewed things. Reading A LOT of motivational books has tremendously helped me. It helps give you confidence as well as spell out people skills. Kudos!

I understand what you're saying, and I suppose it makes sense. It just, to me, sounds a little too much like a brain being entirely re-programmed just by some reading....and while philosophies can change, I figured a brain works how a brain works...just certain things are viewed differently.

I think the stuff that has motivated my philosophy the most are:

Ayn Rand's Objectivist philosophy, and that piece the 48 Laws of Power.

I started seeing things in ways I never did before.

There has to be a willingness to process and apply positive suggestions .
Alcohol I would definitely NOT recommend as a tool for becoming more social.
I thought you gonna give exercise a try, pensieve?

It's too cold out. No, I've just put it off. I should get back into it.

Don't worry, I'm not offended. It is possible that I am not AS, and I'd rather be NT than AS to be fully honest. I got a prof diagnosis of mild AS at a young age, but now I'm becoming more convinced that at least some of my 'symptoms' are placebo's. Fingers X'd that it turns out to be the whole thing...

But yeah, strangely enough, everything AS/AU turned off. Including increased sensitivity to light, minor clumsiness, and any other physical traits that I have/think I have/whatever.

If you're on the mild end of the autism spectrum, it's possible to get into a 'zone' where you can get by almost normally. I've had similar experiences, though not as extreme, when I'm on a fixed routine and things are going well. Never lasted very long, unfortunately.

I have the exact same thing. Once every season or so I feel "normal" and can socialise well, people talk to me (they usually don't), and I feel great. Then it ends

You might have been misdiagnosed...you might have something different that you CAN recover from. Here's an example from the barest of googlings of something that could cause all your symptoms, persistently, and then might "go away":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyme_disease

And yes, the possibility of a connection has already been recognised:
http://autism.about.com/b/2007/01/10/is ... autism.htm

In one sense, this is yet another example of the curebies-on-crack brigade http://www.lymeinducedautism.com (90%? Will ye GET REAL...90% of autistic aren't even in areas where they COULD ever be within 5 miles of infection) but, it seems to me that Lyme Disease could easily be misdiagnosed as a few conditions, including schizophrenia and autism, and when it actually IS Lyme Disease instead, I think it might be wise to surrender autistic pride and get the antibiotics? Not least because not all symptoms of Lyme Disease are as benign as AS.

In other words, in all seriousness, if this sense of "normality" persists, I think you need to go see a Doctor to find out what was really causing your problems and make sure the "normality" lasts.

As long as you are happier, it's all good.

Last edited by mechanima on 02 May 2009, 1:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.