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Hi

I've not been formally diagnosed with AS, but I feel I exhibit typical symptoms. All my life I've felt different to my peers, but I've never been able to quantify exactly why. I recently happened to watch an episode of 'The Undateables', it was on in the background really, but when the announcer mentioned that the person had an aversion to eye contact and said that was a symptom of AS, that was like an immense moment of clarity for me, akin to potentially finding a missing piece of a jigsaw.

I'd sincerely like to get a formal diagnosis, mostly to satiate my desire to help me understand why I may be the way I am, but also to explain why I seem to struggle with my current role at work. I've approached my doctor, but her initial advice is that she's not sure what avenues i may have to explore. Fair play, it's early days in my search for resolution so I'm not disheartened by this apparent setback, but there has to be a way for me to get answers.

Here are a few bullet points about myself that I believe may be pertinent (note that I have garnered a smattering of knowledge of AS from various websites, so some items may appear contrived) :

- I'm a loner;
- I find making friends difficult;
- I abhor group activity/interaction;
- I often 'switch off' or appear disinterested;
- I have an inability of expressing emotions at times (this will sound bad, but the last few family funerals I attended I showed zero emotion);
- I'm useless at starting/maintaining conversations;
- Eye contact is difficult, certainly with strangers, slightly less so with people I've gotten to know;
- I'm often very reluctant to try new things;
- I have an appetite for knowledge, particularly the classical sciences (I came top in maths, English, physics & chemistry at GCSE for my year);
- I respect good grammar/spelling (however I do struggle with apostrophes at times!);
- I have very intense obsessions at times (mostly short-term, but often recurrent);
- I really can't multitask at all, eg at work I can concentrate to the point of losing track of time on one thing, but anything else really is neglected;

Whilst the above may be positive signs of having AS, there are some more common symptoms that I don't tend to exhibit, namely:

- My memory isn't particularly stellar, linear recall isn't a strong point;
- Whilst I do have certain subjects that I'm interested in, I couldn't necessarily talk non-stop about any of them;
- I do have occasions of taking things literally, failing to recognise social cues etc, but it's not all the time;
- I wouldn't say I have classic OCD (although I do have a few strange habits - I talk to myself a lot in private, I count the steps when going up/down stairs, I check my pockets at regular intervals, I check my zip several times when leaving the loo, I check the lock on the front door several times when leaving the house, I have to have the volume on anything set to an even number, I'll often play an album on repeat non-stop several times...... etc etc)

I completed an online AQ test a couple of weeks ago, and I scored 28 which apparently is borderline. I'm aware that this may be more indicative than scientific, but it's prompted me to try to discover more.

Any help/advice anyone may be able to provide would be very much appreciated. For info, I'm from the UK and fast approaching my 39th year if that's relevant. I realise getting help on the NHS is for all intents and purposes a waste of time, so I've emailed NAS (national autistic society) for further advice.

Welcome to Wrong Planet. I hope you enjoy using the site.

I would tell you to go to your doctor about AS if you were concerned, but apparently you already have. You'll just have to wait for that reply, I guess.

Many thanks!

I've browsed some of the topics, and have the twitter feed as well, and have to say I do feel an affinity with a lot of the posts despite having no formal diagnosis. I just hope (bizarre as it may sound) that I classify as being on the AS spectrum.

Based on my initial post, would the consensus be that I could be a candidate....?

I believe you may be

Welcome

sounds like you may have AS. I don't have an official diagnosis, but saw myself described while reading about AS when my nephew was diagnosed. i'm in my 50's and don't see what good a formal diagnosis would do me. here's a very brief test based on the criteria doc's use to diagnose AS: www.iautistic.com/test_AS.php

welcome to WP.

Hello, welcome to WP. I think you'll feel better when you have a proper diagnosis and know for sure one way or the other.

Welcome DevilPigeon

the contents of that list sound familiar to me as well