Hello. I think I have some kind of ASD

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When I was in school, nobody knew much about Autism unless it was pretty severe. I'm 49 years old, and somebody told me she thinks I have ASD (she is a Special Education teacher/administrator where I work).

How do I know for sure? And what can I do about the problems it causes, especially at work?

Here is a quiz. It is by no means definitive as only a professional specializing in this field can know for sure. Still, it's at least a signpost.

Link to RDOS quiz.

Thank you. I took the quiz and the results show I do have some tendancies.

Or, a person can be self-diagnosed, like I am. I think both possibilities are valid. (And in several important times in my life, I have not been real impressed with so-called mental health professionals.)

And really, if it's someone saying something to you, you probably want to take it slowly at your own pace.

Okay, for me personally, Asperger's-Autism Spectrum gives me a conceptual whole that explains both the parts of my life that go well and those that don't. And pretty much like anything else, I want to play to strength and be matter-of-fact about deficiencies.

I think there are 5 components of the Spectrum (although not necessarily all five for every person):

1) sensory issues, like to fluorescent lights, or flashing lights, or repetitive noises, or high-pitched noises, or strong smells. And the more I think about it, the more I think sensory issues should be listed first.

2) social awkwardness, even though we might very much want interaction. And part of this might be that we're just interested in different things.

3) intense intellectual interests,

4) stimming as a way of dealing with sensory issues and helping concentration, and also just as a way to really get into something. And the funny thing is, 'normal' people stim, too, just somehow the way they stim is viewed as more socially acceptable (and really, no such thing as 'normal' anyway! ) and yes, I'm all in favor of a private and public distinction, and learning and modeling more low-key stimming appropriate for public, and

5) meltdowns.

And again, not all people on the spectrum have all five.

And here is an autism advocate's creative, spoof re-write of DSM-4, which I think is better that the original!

http://www.journeyswithautism.com/2009/ ... or-autism/

And, by the way, welcome to WrongPlanet.

I can definately relate to 1, 2 and 5 from your list. As for stimming, my husband just hates it when I rapidly tap the steering wheel when I am driving while anxious. Could that be stimming? I feel like it helps me stay focused and perhaps "lets out" some of the anxiety energy.

Yes, that could be stimming. (but then 'normal' people stim, too )

I guess we just stim more.

love the name

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

Sweet greetings to WPea



From Mick and Peahawk

I just joined this site. I haven't even posted an introduction yet, but I ran across the link to the quiz.
First, a little about me:
I am a 39 year old female, married with 3 kids. My oldest, a boy, is 19 and has been professionally diagnosed with (a various points in his life) PDD/NOS at age 5, autism at age 8, and Asperger's syndrome at age 13/14. He receives special education services through our school district. He lives at home with us.
Ever since we started the diagnosis process for my son, I have felt an odd familiarity with the traits/symptoms, but convinced myself that maybe I was just being hypochondriac, or however you describe that "me too" feeling.

I took the quiz for myself:

Your Aspie score: 144 of 200
Your neurotypical (non-autistic) score: 77 of 200
You are very likely an Aspie



I have avoided pursuing a diagnosis for myself because:
1. I function "too well"; I have a job, a husband of 20 years, a house, 3 kids, hobbies, and I can usually talk to people. That being said, over the years, it has become increasingly obvious that I am NOT, in fact, like 'everyone else'.
2. I've always found some other explanation for the things I do. I have "quirks". I'm just weird, etc.
3. I wonder what good it would do me to pursue a diagnosis. What if I really am just insane? Would I be laughed at or judged negatively for walking into a psychologist's office and saying 'Hey, I think I have Asperger's. Can you diagnose me?'
4. I can appear 'normal' for varying periods of time. Eventually, I break down and have to spend hours (or days) in a recovery phase where I feel paranoid and depressed, and cry about everything.
5. I recently discovered (self-diagnosed after DECADES of thinking I was insane) that I have Misophonia. It's where you have a strong negative reaction to certain sounds like eating, swallowing, etc. I don't want to seem like i'm just pulling disorders out of a book and saying, 'Yep, I have this too!'


Sooo.. There's my story in a nutshell. Would having a diagnosis do me any good? Would it help me understand myself better? Would it "fix" anything?

Hi amyb73, Welcome to Wrong Planet, too!

Okay, the part with not liking the sounds of eating or swallowing, I have heard that elsewhere on Wrong Planet. My issues are more like repetitive noises or unpredictable noises. For example, a smoke detector with a low battery that is chirping. How can I get into a task, and let myself go and really give myself permission to concentrate, if at any moment this doggone thing is going to have this sudden unpredictable noise? And I think the chirping detector bothers 'normal' people, but not like it bothers me. (and no such thing as 'normal' anyway, and how boring the world would be if there were! )

I used to think I kind of had an artistic mentality, where I would feel things more deeply. And I would sometimes read books on artistists and autobiographies, as an effort to understand myself more.

So, one thing knowing about the Asperger's-Autism Spectrum gives me is that I can give some slack to neurotypical people. They're just as smart and care just as much and feel just as deeply. Just their brains are wired up a little different, and they feel and care and think in different ways. Or rather, my mind is wired up a little different, and I care and think and feel in different ways.

For me, calling the insurance company and having a brief conversation with an employee (who is likely to be disengaged) takes just as much energy as a personal conversation with a classmate or friend. I think I have less boundary between myself and strangers than is typical. This helps me as a writer and occasional public speaker, but it also makes life more difficult in other ways. And so, I understand about too much people, too much interaction, and then crashing, and not exactly crashing in positive ways. I think people here can give advice about both weathering the storms and also hopefully avoiding some of them and making them less likely. Maybe. It's still real difficult at time.

I largely have had negative interactions with psychologists and other so-called mental health professionals. In fairness, other people here at WrongPlanet have had positive interactions. I am comfortable being self-diagnosed. But then, I'm not trying to get educational assistance or disability.

In fact, I hope the Spectrum develops more in line with a civil rights model. Maybe more like what has happened in the UK, even though by no means perfect, I think they are ahead of us in some regards.

Last edited by AardvarkGoodSwimmer on 01 May 2013, 3:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

Oh I TOTALLY understand the smoke detector thing. I'm like that too.. not necessarily with smoke detectors, but if I am aware that an unpleasant/disruptive sound MIGHT happen, I get hyper-vigilant... I start clenching my jaw, knitting my eyebrows, etc. People sometimes take that as me being pissed off about something. One day, in a meeting at work, someone across the hall from the conference room had a runny nose, and would sniff at random intervals. It was driving me MAD, and I sat there for the whole meeting "scowling" and could not explain why. (I knew why, but I was hesitant to share the real reason, so I just made something up about the specs not being right, and having a headache.)

I think that's a fine occasion for a social lie and not embarrassing the person.

Yeah, I learned pretty early that "I have a headache" is a lot more socially acceptable than "your sniffling is making me want to punch a hole in the wall!"