Asperger Syndrome (AS) question

[lesher]

Few days ago, I go to library to do some reading about psychology (although there isn't any school tasks), hoping to know what my social/personality problem, hopefully without seeing a psychiatrist. (unless really necessary)

Anyway, I found a book regarding differences between male and female brain, and probably found the possibly best description for myself...

According to the book, ppl with AS are:
- Not very good (or bad) at daily communication
- Not interested with (or hate) chit-chat
- Dominantly male brain, which means Systematic>>Emotional, which suggests the person as "emotionless"
- Have unusually strong interest toward something (not about sexual)
- etc, which I forgot

For myself, most of the symptoms are true (that's why I wrote "possibly best"), although several are not true (but not opposite). For example, I have only few friends and whenever they are around, we will just sit and not talk much. But sometimes, I fall in love with someone, but still acts as if I'm an anti-social person.

Therefore, this makes me confused, whether I'm half-normal half-AS, 100% normal or 100% AS...

And... this is my actual question: Do you think that people with AS actually need help?

Btw... Thanks for reading (or replying), tell me if I really need to go to psychiatrist...

[Mr. Smithers]

Symptoms for any disease, disorder, are not going to be the same for every single person.

The only way to find out if you have Aspergers is to talk to a school counselor, probably a better choice would be a psychologist as they are the only person who can, and could diagnose you with Aspergers.

As far as do people with the disorder need help, depends on what help is. Many people who have it, like you said, are normal people, but there are some people who can't function, talk, or anything of that sort so it depends on what the help is.

[Jean Poutine]

Few days ago, I go to library to do some reading about psychology (although there isn't any school tasks), hoping to know what my social/personality problem, hopefully without seeing a psychiatrist. (unless really necessary)

Anyway, I found a book regarding differences between male and female brain, and probably found the possibly best description for myself...

According to the book, ppl with AS are:
- Not very good (or bad) at daily communication
- Not interested with (or hate) chit-chat
- Dominantly male brain, which means Systematic>>Emotional, which suggests the person as "emotionless"
- Have unusually strong interest toward something (not about sexual)
- etc, which I forgot

For myself, most of the symptoms are true (that's why I wrote "possibly best"), although several are not true (but not opposite). For example, I have only few friends and whenever they are around, we will just sit and not talk much. But sometimes, I fall in love with someone, but still acts as if I'm an anti-social person.

Therefore, this makes me confused, whether I'm half-normal half-AS, 100% normal or 100% AS...

And... this is my actual question: Do you think that people with AS actually need help?

Btw... Thanks for reading (or replying), tell me if I really need to go to psychiatrist...

For someone interested in psychology, I'm surprised that you do not know the difference between asocial and antisocial.

You can't have half of a psychiatric condition. You either have it, or don't.

The traditional e-diagnosis (or book diagnosis, which is essentially what you're doing) for Asperger's Syndrome is "wao I'm like smarter than average and not good with/hate people". It's untrue and only scraping the distance. If only because AS people tend to be just as smart as the average. There is no inherent intelligence boost that comes with the condition.

The social mode of AS is "outgoing but unskilled". AS people do not inherently hate communicating with people (your book is wrong - my kin likes smalltalk, we're just scared to do it, which is a big difference), simply that due to bad experiences in the past, they tend to be more reserved to avoid getting hurt again. I was reading my preschool teacher's notes towards me and she wrote that I was outgoing and very much someone who wanted people around me. Nothing now could be farther from the truth. My theory is that I was outgoing but failed often due to my autism-borne differences, and I got burned so many times I eventually retreated. It's something I fight even now.

Furthermore, there are a lot of symptoms associated with AS and I have the sensation you're getting only a very small part of the picture and deducing from it. Here is a non-exhaustive list of all my symptoms that were readily associated to AS by my psychiatrist :

-sleeping problems : waking up often, trouble falling asleep
-worsened digestion
-extremely picky eating
-alexithymia : trouble discerning and explaining emotions
-unique walking pattern and gait (my standing gait is my repetitive physical behavior : left leg on the toes, slam heel on the ground, up again, repeat)
-trouble looking people into the eyes
-comorbid general anxiety
-great difficulty to read body language and other visual cues
-little or no empathy
-orderly problems : schedules, daily life
-flat intonations when speaking, little or no pitch change, "robotic" voice
-tendancy to use formal vocabulary where inappropriate
-dry sense of humor, or inability to understand humor outright
-misuse of pronouns when young (I used to refer to myself as "he" when I was young, for example)
-trouble understanding idioms, figurative speech or literary devices (my interest lies in literature, so I eventually learned to recognise them)
-verbosity (I take three thousand words to say what a normal person says in 10)

In addition to :

-excellent verbal memory
-driven stubbornness towards a subject of choice

As you can see, Asperger's Syndrome isn't just about "hay guyz i haev few friends". It is a common misconception that being a loner is not normal, and it shows in the number of people professing AS on the internet. It is actually a rare condition in real life, but everyone seems to have it online. We are too quick to blame personality quirks onto psychiatric conditions that must absolutely be treated. You should go see a psychiatrist.

As for your question : must we be helped? Yes, absolutely. Helped, not changed. What most of us need to realise is that we're more than able to fit into society with a few adjustements. Histrionics like Wrong Planet members that seek to reverse discriminate against "neurotypicals" are complete retards. Most of us need to look past our failures, adapt, and try again another time. I realised this recently. I am not unable to learn "the game", I am simply born without it. Sure, socialising is much more tiring for me because I have to be alert for visual cues, process them and understand them with brainpower, while for normal people this is done subconsciously. However, it is not impossible. I think I'm on the right track.

[Kaius]

For someone interested in psychology, I'm surprised that you do not know the difference between asocial and antisocial.

You can't have half of a psychiatric condition. You either have it, or don't.

The traditional e-diagnosis (or book diagnosis, which is essentially what you're doing) for Asperger's Syndrome is "wao I'm like smarter than average and not good with/hate people". It's untrue and only scraping the distance. If only because AS people tend to be just as smart as the average. There is no inherent intelligence boost that comes with the condition.

The social mode of AS is "outgoing but unskilled". AS people do not inherently hate communicating with people (your book is wrong - my kin likes smalltalk, we're just scared to do it, which is a big difference), simply that due to bad experiences in the past, they tend to be more reserved to avoid getting hurt again. I was reading my preschool teacher's notes towards me and she wrote that I was outgoing and very much someone who wanted people around me. Nothing now could be farther from the truth. My theory is that I was outgoing but failed often due to my autism-borne differences, and I got burned so many times I eventually retreated. It's something I fight even now.

Furthermore, there are a lot of symptoms associated with AS and I have the sensation you're getting only a very small part of the picture and deducing from it. Here is a non-exhaustive list of all my symptoms that were readily associated to AS by my psychiatrist :

-sleeping problems : waking up often, trouble falling asleep
-worsened digestion
-extremely picky eating
-alexithymia : trouble discerning and explaining emotions
-unique walking pattern and gait (my standing gait is my repetitive physical behavior : left leg on the toes, slam heel on the ground, up again, repeat)
-trouble looking people into the eyes
-comorbid general anxiety
-great difficulty to read body language and other visual cues
-little or no empathy
-orderly problems : schedules, daily life
-flat intonations when speaking, little or no pitch change, "robotic" voice
-tendancy to use formal vocabulary where inappropriate
-dry sense of humor, or inability to understand humor outright
-misuse of pronouns when young (I used to refer to myself as "he" when I was young, for example)
-trouble understanding idioms, figurative speech or literary devices (my interest lies in literature, so I eventually learned to recognise them)
-verbosity (I take three thousand words to say what a normal person says in 10)

In addition to :

-excellent verbal memory
-driven stubbornness towards a subject of choice

As you can see, Asperger's Syndrome isn't just about "hay guyz i haev few friends". It is a common misconception that being a loner is not normal, and it shows in the number of people professing AS on the internet. It is actually a rare condition in real life, but everyone seems to have it online. We are too quick to blame personality quirks onto psychiatric conditions that must absolutely be treated. You should go see a psychiatrist.

As for your question : must we be helped? Yes, absolutely. Helped, not changed. What most of us need to realise is that we're more than able to fit into society with a few adjustements. Histrionics like Wrong Planet members that seek to reverse discriminate against "neurotypicals" are complete retards. Most of us need to look past our failures, adapt, and try again another time. I realised this recently. I am not unable to learn "the game", I am simply born without it. Sure, socialising is much more tiring for me because I have to be alert for visual cues, process them and understand them with brainpower, while for normal people this is done subconsciously. However, it is not impossible. I think I'm on the right track.

I've got a form of asperger's called Semantic pragmatic disorder. Couldn't Agree more with what you've just said really.

[Mal]

According to the book, ppl with AS are:
- Not very good (or bad) at daily communication
- Not interested with (or hate) chit-chat
- Dominantly male brain, which means Systematic>>Emotional, which suggests the person as "emotionless"
- Have unusually strong interest toward something (not about sexual)
- etc, which I forgot

This, combined with Uchimatas post, is why I don't really believe my doctors diagnosis that I have it. As Uchimata said, there's a LOT more to it than just being a little logical and a tad unsocial. I mostly just have the list I've quoted. Then again, maybe I just have a much milder form of it than Uchimata does.

Anyway this thread isn't supposed to be about me. Yes, those with aspergers would like some help (I think need is a little strong, it's not like they can't walk or something), but really all we need to do is be a little more patient and not ridicule them for it. Thankfully, people around here seem to be pretty accepting of differences, so it hasn't been a very big deal.

[woody92]

Symptoms for any disease, disorder, are not going to be the same for every single person.

The only way to find out if you have Aspergers is to talk to a school counselor, probably a better choice would be a psychologist as they are the only person who can, and could diagnose you with Aspergers.

It took me years to findout that I had it throught a school couselor. I went to the Dr and they saw I had it so quickly compared to the school couselor.

You can't have half of a psychiatric condition. You either have it, or don't.

Totaly agree with you here, you cant have part of one and not the other. But you could have the same symptoms that lead to another type of autisum, because autisum is in grades.

Furthermore, there are a lot of symptoms associated with AS and I have the sensation you're getting only a very small part of the picture and deducing from it. Here is a non-exhaustive list of all my symptoms that were readily associated to AS by my psychiatrist :

-sleeping problems : waking up often, trouble falling asleep
-worsened digestion
-extremely picky eating
-alexithymia : trouble discerning and explaining emotions
-unique walking pattern and gait (my standing gait is my repetitive physical behavior : left leg on the toes, slam heel on the ground, up again, repeat)
-trouble looking people into the eyes
-comorbid general anxiety
-great difficulty to read body language and other visual cues
-little or no empathy
-orderly problems : schedules, daily life
-flat intonations when speaking, little or no pitch change, "robotic" voice
-tendancy to use formal vocabulary where inappropriate
-dry sense of humor, or inability to understand humor outright
-misuse of pronouns when young (I used to refer to myself as "he" when I was young, for example)
-trouble understanding idioms, figurative speech or literary devices (my interest lies in literature, so I eventually learned to recognise them)
-verbosity (I take three thousand words to say what a normal person says in 10).

I have may of these symptoms my main one though is worrying a lot, and socializing.

In addition to :

-excellent verbal memory
-driven stubbornness towards a subject of choice.

In my room I have everything in an order. If my mum or anyone for that matter walks in and moves something I go nuts! I start shouting and swearing and ending un kicking a wall with so much anger. ALL over nothing!!

(NOTE: I NEVER hit anyone though!!!!!)

I was born with it and I have been told by my doctor in the UK that I had it! I have had countless tests, etc... and I have been given loads of help! I was born with other birth conditions so that doesnt help matters!

If you dont belive what I am saying then thats YOUR problem!If you have any other questions about my aspergers feel free to PM me!!

If there is something that I am not ASHAMED of its this because it is WHO I AM!!!

[lesher]

For someone interested in psychology, I'm surprised that you do not know the difference between asocial and antisocial.
Well... I'm interested, but I'm also very new to psychology (never had psychology class, ever), which is why I need some comment/reply/correction :( btw thanks for telling me

-sleeping problems : waking up often, trouble falling asleep (T)
-worsened digestion (F)
-extremely picky eating (F)
-alexithymia : trouble discerning and explaining emotions (T)
-unique walking pattern and gait (F)
-trouble looking people into the eyes (T)
-comorbid general anxiety (T)
-great difficulty to read body language and other visual cues (not sure)
-little or no empathy (T)
-orderly problems : schedules, daily life (T)
-flat intonations when speaking, little or no pitch change, "robotic" voice (T)
-tendancy to use formal vocabulary where inappropriate (not sure)
-dry sense of humor (T), or inability to understand humor outright (F)
-misuse of pronouns when young (Not sure)
-trouble understanding idioms, figurative speech or literary devices (F)
-verbosity (T)
-excellent verbal memory (Not sure)
-driven stubbornness towards a subject of choice (T)
These really helps on diagnosing myself, thank you very much :)

Oh btw, I'm quite sure my problem aren't because of personality quirks, because I'm having problem socializing with people ever since I was a kid, about 7 years old, even today

Well, I'll take your advice, I should meet a psychiatrist then...

[CaptainObvious]

As you can see, Asperger's Syndrome isn't just about "hay guyz i haev few friends". It is a common misconception that being a loner is not normal, and it shows in the number of people professing AS on the internet. It is actually a rare condition in real life, but everyone seems to have it online. We are too quick to blame personality quirks onto psychiatric conditions that must absolutely be treated. You should go see a psychiatrist.

I totally agree with this, but alternatively it also occurs to me that since one of the defining features of the Internet is the ease with which you can control social interactions, a higher than normal incidence of AS sufferers would make total sense.

But of course, self-diagnosis of psychological conditions is highly unreliable. OP, if you think you have a problem, see a professional. Books and self-diagnosis just don't cut it.

[Jean Poutine]

These really helps on diagnosing myself, thank you very much

You kinda missed my point. You can't diagnose myself, and I can't diagnose you either. I posted my symptoms to make people realise that it is much more far-reaching than most believe, not to help you self-diagnose. In MY case, they are part of my autism. In yours? Maybe not, assuming you have AS. You could certainly have some of the stuff in the list and STILL have something else.

If you're unsure then go see a psychiatrist.

I totally agree with this, but alternatively it also occurs to me that since one of the defining features of the Internet is the ease with which you can control social interactions, a higher than normal incidence of AS sufferers would make total sense.

Normal incidence is 1-4 in 1000. I've found a lot of communities where every fifth person "had" it. I've even seen an AS e-diagnosis used to defend the lack of artistic value of a person's drawings. Indeed, a lot of people claim AS, to have a claim at something that will absolve them of criticism. Any fuck up, and you get "hey fuck you it's not my fault I have AS". Even in some circles, mental illness is cool to have. It makes you non-comformist.

The wannabes give me a bad taste in the mouth, as a true sufferer. This is why every time I get someone self-diagnosing AS, I get a kneejerk reaction. Autism shouldn't be a fad. By appropriating themselves the diagnosis, they're diluting the very real suffering of those who truly have it.

[CaptainObvious]

Normal incidence is 1-4 in 1000. I've found a lot of communities where every fifth person "had" it. I've even seen an AS e-diagnosis used to defend the lack of artistic value of a person's drawings. Indeed, a lot of people claim AS, to have a claim at something that will absolve them of criticism. Any fuck up, and you get "hey fuck you it's not my fault I have AS". Even in some circles, mental illness is cool to have. It makes you non-comformist.

Sounds a lot like you're describing this forum. :P

The wannabes give me a bad taste in the mouth, as a true sufferer. This is why every time I get someone self-diagnosing AS, I get a kneejerk reaction. Autism shouldn't be a fad. By appropriating themselves the diagnosis, they're diluting the very real suffering of those who truly have it.

I agree. Sadly, lots of people just completely fail to understand the complexities of psychiatric diagnosis and treatment.

[Antares]

E-diagnosis isn't always the best route.
I am not sure if you have a psych class at your school but I would recommend talking to them if you do have one. They could probably diagnose you just by knowing you.
Or you could talk to probably...your school counselor...someone along those lines and they would probably say you don't or you do...depending on their job and background.

When I was in psych class we had two kids AS kids in our class. It was cool to see them basically do the same thing. If I knew you, I think I would be able to compare you with those two and maybe get some type of notion whether you have symptoms or not

[lesher]

You kinda missed my point. You can't diagnose myself, and I can't diagnose you either. I posted my symptoms to make people realise that it is much more far-reaching than most believe, not to help you self-diagnose. In MY case, they are part of my autism. In yours? Maybe not, assuming you have AS. You could certainly have some of the stuff in the list and STILL have something else.
No no, I mean, after reading your list of symptoms, I'm now sure that I need to go to psychiatrist...


Any fuck up, and you get "hey fuck you it's not my fault I have AS". Even in some circles, mental illness is cool to have. It makes you non-comformist.
Well this is actually kinda true in my hometown... I guess

[Jean Poutine]

No no, I mean, after reading your list of symptoms, I'm now sure that I need to go to psychiatrist...

Good choice.

[cezisnotdead]

I wish that everyone with a mental problem could just be bloody diagnosed, go to a bloody doctor. When I was in primary school there was one girl who every called the 'class idiot' because she was socially awkward, 'lazy' (she refused to do work) and slightly over weight (you know how kids are). But even the teachers encouraged us to be horrid to her in the hope it'd make her work... it didn't, it made her miserable, and when she was 13 she was diagnosed with aspergers. You know, after she'd become so miserable she self-harmed and attempted suicide multiple times.