Saying Hello. Hello!

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Hello and welcome. I am almost embarassed about the reception that you have received. Please don't allow the comments of a very small number of members represent the rest of us.

I find the majority of the members here to be intelligent, considerate and helpful. I am not diagnosed myself but choose to stay for the socialization and information here.

Has it occurred to anyone that the preceding posts are an excellent example of communication on the Autism spectrum? Children playing so well together.... New guy - Welcome. Really. We're not a bunch of nasties. We just come across that way sometimes.

Ladybug's and whatsisname's (sorry, dude, bad memory/lazy today) advice to see a doctor may not be a bad thing in the aspect of there could be a lot of things going on that can be mistaken for Aspergers or Autism. As LB said, some of those illnesses do mess with your mind, and some of them are treatable. Some aren't. If it were me I'd sure want to have those ruled out! Granted, having a medical professional wave his/her magic wand over you and pronounce a diagnosis isn't good for much other than getting certified in case you need the paperwork, and they do make mistakes. ("C"s get degrees in medical school just as well as "A"s do, after all. ) But a thorough evaluation is much more important in what it rules out.

If you're the only person in your family (include extended family) who fits the description you see of Aspergers or any other Autism spectrum disorder in yourself, it really might be a prudent thing to do to check for anything else that might be going on. It's my understanding that, though it's possible for a spectrum disorder to just randomly pop up in a family, typically there are others in the family that show the same type of behaviors or have similar problems, to a lesser or greater degree. You could be the mutation (sorry!), or you could find others in your family who could use a hand, or you could find there's something else going on. That may not matter to you, but it would to me - hence my "thirding" the suggestion. (Nobody please ask me for references on that - I'm really very tired today. Google it, if it's needed, ok? It's out there.)

Hello and welcome. I am almost embarassed about the reception that you have received. Please don't allow the comments of a very small number of members represent the rest of us.

I am the parent of 3 children diagnosed (by a pediatric neurologist) with AS and have more than a few characteristics myself. I find the majority of the members here to be intelligent, considerate and helpful. I am not diagnosed myself but choose to stay for the socialization and information here.

...(a bunch of antagonistic snipes)...

Are you embarassed by your children too?

Here's something for you to consider. If negative comments continue to be posted, their posters will likely find themselves without access to the forums. This really is the final warning.

No, I'm not. My oldest son is enrolled in the Gr.11 International Baccalaureate program and was just accepted into the National Honors Society. My middle son is first goalie on the city rep soccer team and president of the Gr.9 leadership club, my youngest son, who has a non-verbal learning disorder and AS is at the top of his class, and my AS daughter is in Gr.2, has straight "A"'s, and is a violinist.

I will be sure to use your behaviour today as an example of how "not" to treat other people

And people like you claiming to have aspergers when you really don't just add to the stigma that this is a made up thing.

I have never heard of anyone claiming to have aspergers when they really didn't, except in an effort to get a diagnosis so that they can lay around on the couch all day and collect disability, and I don't personally understand why anybody would want to do that.

I didn't write that, being your shortsighted translation. And it's dishonest for you to make a quote that I did!

You may also have misinterpreted Myrkabah's original intention when he mentioned his music. It was merely a short remark in a post of moderate length. Many people list their interests when they introduce themselves, and he listed others as well. That doesn't sound like a commercial plug to me. If the music is not only his hobby, but he can earn a living from one of his special interests, good for him. I haven't visited the site, but from a remark in another post, I think he linked to free samples, not something you have to pay for. Many of the artists on WP link to their artwork. There are whole threads dedicated to those topics. I don't think Myrkabah was out of order.

I disagree. I think many aspies are more accurate in diagnosing themselves than their doctors are. The doctor doesn't need any specialized knowledge in order to diagnose asperger's. Most people who think they're aspie fit the criteria to be diagnosed as aspie.

Yes I am self diagnosed. My first "official" diagnosis was when I was three or four years old.
My foster parents thought I was mentally ret*d. I was either mute or hardly spoke at all,
and it took them almost four years to toilet train me. The doctors thought I was brain damaged
because of poor motor coordination and I was slow in learning new things. I always wanted
(and still do) to be off by myself. Later I went through two other foster homes. Social Services
were trying to have me placed in Willowbrook State School on Staten Island, NY. This was in the
1960s. That institution was eventually shut down because of the terrible abuses going on in there.
For more info on Willowbrook go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willowbrook_State_School. Fortunately
I was never sent there. My diagnosis was "upgraded" to "Minimal Brain Damage" then later my
I.Q. tested to be 120 or greater depending on the test given or the test conditions. My guardians
kept sending me to one Freudian von Shrinkendork after another trying to find why I "tick but don't
tock, or tock but don't tick". I kept forgetting what I was told to do, had a hard time understanding
people, I did very poorly in school, but I did manage to graduate high school on time. Not many
foster kids got their H.S. diplomas back in the 1970s. And yes I was bullied, and picked on a lot.
I survived. I learned electronics and worked in that field for more than 20 years.
Today I am not working in electronics, I work on a loading dock at a factory that makes windows
for schools, and residential complexes, and other institutional buildings.
As for my condition; I can't stand loud percussive noises, being touched, and sudden or abrupt
changes in my routine. I seem to be here, but my mind or parts thereof are in a different universe.
My left brain could be thinking about the Quadratic Prime Series, at the same time my right brain is thinking about Pentominoes.
Autism is called a spectrum condition because we have different "mental colors, notes, or wavelengths."
I call myself an Autie, I may have some, but not all, characteristics in common with Aspies.