I dislike being compared to Autism.

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To the OP, I respectfully suggest you read the actual DSM-IV/DSM-IV-TR critera before posting on this issue. There's at least one statement in the OP that is not supported by any critera I've ever read.

Yeah, that's probably a good idea. I feel stupid for now admitting that I haven't read anything about it. At least not those.

Yeah, I was talking only about my own specific case. It's entirely possible to be gifted and have a speech delay, just like it's possible to be gifted and dyslexic or gifted and ADHD.

I spoke on time, about the same time as my peers, but I was quite far ahead on academics. I think I actually used my early reading ability to teach myself how to speak--when I learned to read, my vocabulary and ability to make my own sentences increased enormously; before that, it was just memorized phrases. When I moved from Germany to the USA at age 6, I used reading to teach myself English so that by nine years old I was reading English books written for adults. I think that if I had not been gifted, I would have been delayed in speech, because as a gifted child I was still learning speech at about the same rate as my non-gifted NT peers. If I had had about the same ability in spoken language as I do in written language, I would have been noticeably ahead of the average NT child.

When I say that about myself, I'm not implying that it generalizes to others. Maybe there are others in my situation--gifted autistics who used their giftedness to compensate for what would otherwise have been a mild speech delay. More of a delay, and it would've shown up despite any mitigating effect of giftedness and without having to be any less gifted.

You did respond to my question here.

If you feel that being included with the Autistics is uncomfortable then that will inevitably be seen negatively by some. I'm not upset, it takes quite a lot to offend me personally.

If you consider that being on a spectrum there can be no stereotype.

I also think that you are little confused on the subject and you would benefit from doing a bit more research.

I do not believe I have ever seen anyone argue this on this forum at any point in the time I have been here. Obviously I have not read every single thread in that time, but I recall in the past you reacted to people as if they were saying this when they were saying something different (for example, that Asperger's and autism may not be two separate things - but that is not saying that there is no difference, any more than it is saying that there is no difference between two people with cerebral palsy - one who needs braces to walk and one who is unable to move much at all, even though both have the same diagnostic label).

I do not see what separates autism and Asperger's beyond criteria defined in such a way that people with AS are/were excluded from an autism diagnosis due to speaking on time and having IQ in the typical range or higher. This does not mean that someone diagnosed with AS and someone who is nonverbal diagnosed with autism have identical presentation (although I can think of one person diagnosed with severe autism + autistic catatonia and another person diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome who have fairly similar symptoms that are not common among all autistic people).

I've found that every list of distinguishing features for AS and HFA that I've ever seen includes traits in both lists that I have. Or dichotomies are presented that leave me firmly on the HFA side in that specific dichotomy: For example, "Asperger's children generally want to socialize, but not quite sure how to...while as the autistics have no interest." On this forum alone, there are many people diagnosed with both labels who fall into both categories - and I believe some who have been in one category at times and the other category at other times.

I am not very neurotypical like.

I have seen many people with AS on youtube who seem quite NT to me, but I have seen people who were diagnosed as children with autism, who were nonverbal for a significant period of time, who appear just as NT to me.

I guess I don't understand what it is you're trying to distinguish here. It's not as if everyone diagnosed with autism is significantly more disabled than everyone diagnosed with AS, and it is not as if the diagnostic label in childhood is 100% predictive of how people will turn out. Aside from history, what separates you from - for example - someone like this?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6-PwVuYy2Y[/youtube]

I don't mean to shoot down what you're saying - how you see yourself is up to you. What I am trying to understand is why this distinction is important and what you get from it.

It really doesn't matter how much you protest. I am Autistic, people who have Aspergers are on the Autistic spectrum, like it or not. Besides in the new DMV manual there will be no Aspergers, only Autism. So get off your high horse and join us on the ground.

Exactly. There aren't two disorders, one for cerebral palsy with intellectual disability and severe problems and one for mild problems associated with cerebral palsy. Both are cerebral palsy. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a spectrum. Some people with it have normal intelligence but specific learning problems , ADHD and motor skills and other problems where as other people have severe intellectual disability due to FAS. Why is autism so special, why should it be treated any differently? I understand that some people want to be associated with geeky intellectuals and not kids who can't speak rocking in a corner but some people with ASD are the latter and people just have to deal with it.

My sentiment exactly.

Makes sense.

Just like two kids could both have PIQ 30 points higher than VIQ, but one has a VIQ of 50 and PIQ of 80 (and likely a clinically detectable speech delay) while the one has a VIQ of 100 and a PIQ of 130.

Doesn't mean there couldn't also be a kid with VIQ 50 and PIQ 130...

Makes sense.

Just like two kids could both have PIQ 30 points higher than VIQ, but one has a VIQ of 50 and PIQ of 80 (and likely a clinically detectable speech delay) while the one has a VIQ of 100 and a PIQ of 130.

Doesn't mean there couldn't also be a kid with VIQ 50 and PIQ 130...

The problem is... Asperger's Syndrome is an Autism Spectrum Disorder as outlined by Hans Asperger.

Maybe I'm the odd one out, but I feel like I can relate and connect very well even with nonverbal autistic people, and don't mind being compared to autism at all. I, fact, I feel like I have trouble connecting with NTs and some people with AS as well as I do with nonverbal or more overtly autistic people on the spectrum.