Why are many people happy to be diagnosed with AS?

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Having the diagnosis helped explain a lot of what went wrong in the past and why I've never had any friends. I'm not so much happy I have AS, it's more that I know why I'm so different from the majority of people.

He didn't assume anything.




Ergo, he's addressing only those that did.

Why are people unhappy to be diagnosed with AS? I mean, you can get access to services that you need because of it (not always, but the diagnosis is the first step). You can also understand why you are the way you are, which clears up all the confusion (which can be very damaging).

Stigma is not a legitimate reason to not be happy with a diagnosis (in my opinion) because you'd only be re-inforcing the stigma if you are ashamed of the diagnosis. The first step to fighting stigma is to accept (difficult but doable).

Not wanting to be treated differently is also a silly reason to not want the diagnosis because chances are that the people around you won't treat you much differently anyway. They know you- they recognise you - they aren't going to suddenly treat you like a changeling just because of the diagnosis (unless they're stupid). Also, if people start to treat you negatively because of it, f**k them- they're idiots!

Wanting to be "normal" (similar to the stigma issue) is not a good enough reason to not want a diagnosis because "normal" is such a subjective term. Why would you want to be like "normal people"? Why is that so important? What is the definition of "normal" to you, anyway? Will it make you happy? I doubt it.

Sorry if i sound bitchy, but I wanted to make that point.

That's a bold statement. It would be interesting to see if there's any large-scale research into it.

Though it tallies with personal experience:

Doctor: You're depressed.
Me: Well yeah, but that's not it.

Doctor: You're avoiding society.
Me: Well yeah, but that's not it.

Doctor: You're angry.
Me: Well yeah, but that's not it.

Doctor: You're sexually confused.
Me: Well yeah, but that's not it.

Get the idea? ^^

I really don't think the statement was meant as blanket fact, but rather an admission of the OP's perception. If taken as such, perceptions are what they are, and don't require research. That statement, taken in conjunction with the question, "Why are some happy with it?" reveals the OP clearly understands there are different reactions with different people. He simply wants to know why those who are happy, are.

No harm in asking though, I suppose.

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My feeling is that people want correct diagnoses.

A diagnosis of central auditory processing disorder (CAPD), when it fits, is better than misdiagnosing the person as having perfect hearing or being completely deaf. A diagnosis of ADHD Inattentive, when it fits, is better than misdiagnosing the person as having a type of epilepsy such as petit mal/absence/complex partial and so on or as being completely neurologically normal. A diagnosis of Asperger, when it fits, is better than misdiagnosing a person as having learning disabilities when they have Asperger, not learning disabilities.

I believe that a correct diagnosis tends to produce happiness and an incorrect diagnosis unhappiness.

That's my understanding.

People hate being wrongly diagnosed due to wasted time and money due to the ignorance of the persons involved in a wrong diagnosis.

By the way, Asperger is not a mental illness any more than dyslexia is.

http://www.hbo.com/movies/temple-grandin/index.html

Last edited by pgd on 21 Aug 2010, 10:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.

When my son was diagnosed with autism at the age of six, it was like a huge weight lifted from my shoulders.

He used to do all kinds of socially inappropriate things, especially when he was with groups of other kids. People would say, "He's testing you. You need to be firm with him." So I'd take away privileges and sternly tell him how unhappy I was with him. That just made it worse, not better. So I tried offering him rewards for appropriate social behavior. That backfired too, because I was asking him to do something he couldn't do. Knowing that he was unable to earn the reward just put more pressure on him, and made him do even more "weird" stuff.

At the time, I had no clue that he was unable to "act appropriately". I could not understand why he was choosing to be defiant, but I didn't know what else it could be. If he had been mentally ret*d, or had some kind of physical difference, then I might have guessed there was some kind of neurological problem. But he was brilliant and articulate.

When I learned about AS, everything fell into place. It was such a relief to know that he wasn't being "defiant" and I wasn't a bad mom. I just needed to approach parenting in a different way with him. Just knowing that was a huge help.

My reasons:

It finally confirmed that there was a reason for my problems besides laziness and stupidity.

A correct diagnosis increases the likelyhood of getting useful help.

Because it's nice to have a fairly well-known term to describe my quirks and atypical thinking processes?

People with AS know they're different, usually from a very young age. Being diagnosed merely gives us the terminology to describe ourselves.

Um. The diagnosis didn't GIVE us Aspergers or Autism. We had that before.

People with AS know they're different, usually from a very young age. Being diagnosed merely gives us the terminology to describe ourselves.

I was happy. I'd been on the diagnostic merry-go-round, and finally having a diagnosis that actually fit was a huge relief. Actually defining the problem goes a long way toward solving it.

That said, I'm happy to be autistic because I'm happy to be me. It's really not any more complicated than that.

Hi flyingkittycat,
I would like to clear up any confusion. I never suggested anyone should be ashamed about being autistic. I just wondered why some people (not all of them) are only happy once they get diagnosed with AS and are not happy before that. In addition, a few people on this forum get disappointed when a health professional tells them they do not have it. I do a lot of reading here, just don't post that much.
In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with not being diagnosed with anything at all as long as you get help for your specific problems. Those problems don't really need to be united into a syndrome, and sometimes they are not medical problems at all, just common everyday problems.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I would like to ask you a question: when they called you those names, did you think something was wrong with you? I am more inclined to think that something was wrong with them.

Are you sure you never had ANY friends? One or two good friends is quite enough, I think.

*Tip toes quietly out of the room before incendiaries ignite...*

Get the idea loud and clear.
how about this:
Doctor: There is nothing wrong with you, you just need to worlk on your self-esteem.
You: 'Well yeah, but that's not it" - thus proving the doctor right.