classic autism members what you should know about aspies

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Now this thread is my personal opinion feel free to disagree but I believe it from I that I have learned.

Aspergers is not related to autism Aspergers is autism end of story.
Like the term Autism Aspergers Syndrome does not have a very nice ring to it that is why the cute name Aspie was dreamed up.


My diagnosis says Autism Spectrum Disorder but it would have said Aspergers if it had been a few years ago.
I work full time and I am getting prepared for my driving test in the coming months.
The above two things did not come to me easy I had to struggle.
I am nearly 40 and up until I was 23 I could not hold down a job.

Now everybody is different but here is my list of difficulty's.

I think it's more Aspies who insist on the strict division than those diagnosed with autism (under the DSM-IV).

Even though I'm aware that Aspergers Syndrome and HFA are practically one and the same, I still refer to myself as having Aspergers in casual conversation. Why? Because it's what I was diagnosed with in the first place, and it just sounds better than saying I'm autistic.

I don't really distinguish the two; I use Asperger's and autism concerning my own condition interchangably. I find it more useful to use the term autism when talking to people who may be unfamiliar with what Asperger's is, and occasionally have to point out to my mother when she says, "You're not autistic, you have Asperger's" that they are effectively one and the same.

When my son was diagnosed, they told me he has "Aspergers, a form of autism."

When I researched it I learned that Aspergers was a spectrum, essentially the same in nature as what was often called "High Functioning Autism," though I learned this term was considered problematic.

When my son was diagnosed, and then again when I was diagnosed (within a year of my son's diagnosis) the people I consulted all explained that the DSM was changing and the diagnosis would become Autism Spectrum Disorder after the change.

Some of the doctors said they thought this change obscured a meaningful distinction. I was then ignorant of most of the issues involved, though I have since learned about some of it, particularly thought the helpful comments of Verdandi and Callista here.

It seems to me that there is no serious disagreement that it makes sense to consider Aspergers a form of Autism. If there is a strong reason to further differentiate parts of the spectrum, I'm sure that will happen with time.

In the meantime, the symptoms that define the spectrum are shared and remain something we have to deal with.

I refer to myself as having an autistic spectrum disorder, maybe because I tend to think literally.

Anyhow, you're certainly articulate about the things that you feel or notice; a lot of folks with ASD, AS, and so on have trouble with that.

Also, try the book "Look Me in the Eye" by John Elder Robison. If I had a nickel for every time I could relate to something he described about himself...

When I look more into myself and realise how "Aspie" I really am, I do tend to use ASD to label myself, over Aspergers, because I am not as high functioning as I could be.

I've only used Aspergers when talking to people who don't understand ASD is a wide spectrum.

hello

I am posting from my phone in work now so I have to make it short.

But thanks for all the replies.

It all confuses me to tell the truth. About what is what. The one thing I know is that up until last year I was in a special school that was almost entirely kids on the spectrum. And no one ever differentiated us between classic autism kids and asperger kids (at least no where we could hear it). It wasn't until I started going online that I started seeing those terms being used.
I thought there was supposed to be a noteworthy difference between classic and aspergers. When I see a thread addressed to aspies, I feel like it does not include me. Which seems silly now that I think about it. And with me personally I don't know how much of my disabilities are from autism and how much are from dysparxia.

I'd like to go back to the way things were in school, where none of us said "you are a this and I am a that"
The one thing we could all say is, "we all know why we are here".

I strongly agree and I'm glad we're all under the Autism Spectrum Disorder label now.

Sharkattack, I aspire to have a life that's something like yours in the future. Right now I'm a uni student living with my mum and I'm almost 30. By the time I'm your age I'd like to have a job as a librarian, either full-time or with enough hours to give me a salary on which I can support myself. I'd like to learn how to drive too, I'm not sure if I'll be able to but I may try taking lessons once I get my library degree. Getting married and having a family isn't even something I consider as a possibility for myself nor is having a normal social life.

I also personally find it comforting to see myself as being autistic, rather than a separation via Asperger's. I dislike the term "Aspie" because I find it's too cutesy in relation to what is a serious issue. NOT saying you can't have pride, though.