Who here was officially diagnosed with autism or Asperger's?

I've seen it said that Asperger's is an "internet disorder", that it doesn't exist, and that every nerd likes to diagnose themselves with it because it's the "cool" thing to do.

Well, I didn't say my first word until I was 3 years old. When I was a baby, I was pushing away any and all attempts by my parents to hug me. I have the real thing, even though you probably can't tell now.

It's affected me. I used to blurt out inappropriate things without thinking (now, if anything, I think too much before saying things so I don't accidentally cause offense, that it slows down my conversations), and am not very social at all in person. But I don't want to go into detail about my life, just wanted to say that I'm not lying and I'm not one of those trendy "I must have 'Asperger's' because I'm a nerd and it means I have a fancy name for it" people.

Who here officially has one or the other, and has actually been diagnosed for it? Not "I think I have it", but you legitimately do? And, if you feel comfortable talking about it, how has it affected you in the real world?

I was diagnosed by one. Another shrink said I'm completely normal. And another one told me I'm a mild Sociopath, so that explains the Apathy.

Which one it is...

Well, to me it's Juan.

I don't have it, and I don't know anyone who does. Granted, if I know anyone who does, they haven't told me.

I dated a guy once who was officially diagnosed with Asperger's. He was a pretty cool dude until he started worrying too much about everything.

It's a difficult thing to prove, and does seem to be a trendy diagnosis. Asperger's, not autism. It was easier to prove in my case - I was a weird baby before I was a weird kid.

If someone told me they had it but seemed to be fairly normal, I'd have a hard time believing them.

It's probably more convincing if I tell someone, in person, that I have it, because I have a funny sounding voice that I used to get made fun of for my whole life. Fortunately, it has evolved to the point where my brother tells me "it sounds like just a voice." But before, I'd had people ask me what country I'm from (the US, where I've always lived), be told that I sound "Southern" (I'm from New Jersey, and always lived here), and be told that I sound like an alien. I've also been mistaken for being younger than my age, and I imagine my voice might have something to do with it.

Darn. Worrying is common among us, myself included. Wish I could stop it.

edited 31st Jan '11 10:59:05 AM by BonsaiForest

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Enh. Even if I did fear that I have autism/Asperger's, I'd be a little nervous about getting an official diagnosis. Probably because I'm already quite paranoid about my job prospects, and I'm pretty sure that a diagnosis would only harm them ^^;;

...yep, paranoid.

@Dove: There are alot of tropers diagnosed with Asperger.

To any Aspies who post here: How has it affected you? I mean, socially, and such, or do you tend to have a set range of interests that you focus on a lot? Do you fit any of the typical views of someone on the autism spectrum?

If you feel comfortable talking about it, of course.

edited 31st Jan '11 11:02:23 AM by BonsaiForest

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I have Asperger's/high-functioning autism.

edited 31st Jan '11 11:05:34 AM by Charlatan

Okay, could those of you who say you have it please state if you were officially diagnosed, and also, perhaps, when?

I was diagnosed as an infant.

Oh no, he had it. He did the whole "awkwardly bad jokes that aren't funny" thing, like someone telling him that their dog died, and him making an unfunny joke about it. He was honestly making an effort to understand why people didn't like him, and what he could do differently, which is why I say he was a pretty cool dude.

But the LARP scene we were involved with was toxic. He got turned into the official scapegoat, and was laughed out of the game. He got really depressed and bitter, and very, very controlling. We hadn't dated for a while, but I finally had to cut all ties in general because I was starting to worry for my own safety.  ^*

I really do feel bad for him, because I remember when he was fun to be around, just awkward and dorky.

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Thanks for the details, Drunk Girlfriend and Black Dove. A real shame about that guy, Drunk GF. It's sad that he broke down and then got controlling as a result. I feel sorry for both you (for what he did to you by becoming so threatening) and him (for ending up in such a position). It's a real sad situation.

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It really is. I'm mostly mad at the social group for treating him (and everyone else they don't like) so badly. I get a feeling that if it wasn't for them, he wouldn't have gotten so weird.

edited 31st Jan '11 11:20:25 AM by DrunkGirlfriend

A LARP group treating an Aspie like dirt?

Bizarre. I thought nerds were a bit more inclusive of Aspies.

That's what I thought. Turns out this particular group was worse than highschool. The only way to be treated "fairly" in that group was to be an attractive young lady that people wanted to sleep with, or kiss up to the popular kids.

Drunkscriblerian and I quit because of the elitist "lulz ur not good enuf at playing pretend to game with us" attitude.

...Jesus. So much for honor among rogues.

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Me. With Asperger Syndrome. When I was eight or nine.

I think they did it because diagnosing kids with ADD was going out of style 'round my time.

I just pretend it never happened.

edited 31st Jan '11 11:35:05 AM by annebeeche

Yeah. I can't blame him for losing it after that. Lord knows it killed my self-esteem too.

My son was diagnosed with autism back when he was 2-he didn't walk until almost 16 months old, he didn't say his first word until nearly 3 (he's 5 now, has a vocabulary of maybe 2 or 3 dozen words, barely speaks more than three word sentences when forced, though he can count to 20). He also wanders around in circles while making weird humming noises, pulls apart anything he can get his hands on (the carpet, the paint on the walls, yarn, the cat's fur, etc.), has no social skills at all, won't look directly at people, is overly sensitive to noises and light and is in a special preschool class to help him develop ways of dealing with his problems. So far he's done pretty well-when he first entered the program at age 3, it didn't seem like he'd ever develop any further, still acted more or less like a big baby. He still has plenty of moments-seperation anxiety is huge, he demands to be picked up instead of walking, etc.-but he's getting better.

Also-myself, never been officially diagnosed but my mother, herself a medical transcriptionist who deals with these kinds of cases all the time, as well as my son's therapists all believe I have Asperger's syndrome. From what I've read of it, wouldn't surprise me if I did.

It wouldn't surprise a lot of people, actually.

From what I've learned over the years, there seems to be a fine line between people who could be diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome, and people who actually need the diagnosis.

edited 31st Jan '11 11:45:33 AM by annebeeche