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jk1
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26 Dec 2013, 10:51 am

coffeebean wrote:
Japan also has a collectivist culture,


Exactly. While I can think of some good side of Japan for ASD people, this collectivist mentality can be a huge problem. Those that don't conform will be mercilessly rejected and excluded. So there is a good chance that an ASD person will be considered "selfish" and shunned.



Fnord
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26 Dec 2013, 11:11 am

Fnord wrote:
Mr_Alex wrote:
... does Japan suit people who have aspergers?
Not usually, unless the Aspie has done something really bad.

Oops! I thought it said, "Does Japan shoot people who have aspergers?"

:oops: ... my bad ...



eric76
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26 Dec 2013, 11:15 am

Out of curiosity, I did a quick web search and found this from http://forum.gaijinpot.com/forum/living-in-japan/relationships/99680-having-aspergers-syndrome-and-having-a-successful-life-in-japan:

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the locals do not look kindly on those who are mentally handicapped, like yourself. You will be fired, and rather quickly, I would imagine, if your employer ever learnt of your condition. The fact that there is no Japanese version of Bill Gates is proof enough. If you just want to be another quirky gaijin, no one will consider you odd in any way. You just may have to explain the reason for your behaviour from time to time...

...

You really need to start "caring what people think about your behaviour", especially in the workplace. Unlike the US, your condition will not give you an excuse here, and while you think that "making people uncomfortable" is okay, its the kind of thing that will land you in Japanese prison for 23 days. "Suspicious" Is enough in this country.



naturalplastic
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26 Dec 2013, 12:19 pm

Have long wondered about that.

Japanese culture seems very aspie-flavored to me.

But on one hand- Japanese society is brutally intolerant of odd individuals, but on the other hand- if you do conform you're conforming to a norm that is more aspie-like than that of American culture. So I figured that its probably a double edged sword.

But I met a NT lady at the local aspie/autie support group (with her severely PDD grown son) who had long worked for the State Dept. in Japan. She said she knew many successful Japanese who "probably couldnt make it here" because of thier aspie traits. So on balance some aspies might indeed be better off had they grown up in Japan.

But ofcourse- for any American (NT, AS, or otherwise) to move there as an adult and try to integrate into Japanese society is something else entirely.



Mr_Alex
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26 Dec 2013, 7:12 pm

I have long suspected that Asian countries would treat people with Asperger's better



Callie
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26 Dec 2013, 9:52 pm

Mr_Alex wrote:
I have long suspected that Asian countries would treat people with Asperger's better

Same although I don't know why. 8O



threequarters
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26 Dec 2013, 10:21 pm

I have lived in Asia for a decade. I was far more comfortable there than in the US. It is expected that you will be quirky, and it is obvious to everyone from your appearance (assuming you are not Asian in appearance yourself) that you are an outsider. People take the time to explain what's expected. People cut you more slack (usually). It is also easier to make acquaintances abroad -- anyone who is a fellow foreigner is to some degree a "friend", but not the sort of friend who wants to get so far into your head and be everything to you. It's useful to have people to do things with without having all the emotional baggage. Also, if you are above-average intelligence, the fact that you need to deal with a different language and culture keeps things interesting enough to avoid boredom.

I was never in Japan specifically, however, so I can't speak to possible specific annoyances, like sensory issues, crowding, etc. For some reason certain things that bother me in my home country did not bother me in Asia, or didn't bother me as much.



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27 Dec 2013, 3:58 am

threequarters wrote:
I have lived in Asia for a decade. I was far more comfortable there than in the US. It is expected that you will be quirky, and it is obvious to everyone from your appearance (assuming you are not Asian in appearance yourself) that you are an outsider. People take the time to explain what's expected. People cut you more slack (usually). It is also easier to make acquaintances abroad -- anyone who is a fellow foreigner is to some degree a "friend", but not the sort of friend who wants to get so far into your head and be everything to you. It's useful to have people to do things with without having all the emotional baggage. Also, if you are above-average intelligence, the fact that you need to deal with a different language and culture keeps things interesting enough to avoid boredom.

I was never in Japan specifically, however, so I can't speak to possible specific annoyances, like sensory issues, crowding, etc. For some reason certain things that bother me in my home country did not bother me in Asia, or didn't bother me as much.


I lived in Hong Kong for at least 4 months in one time,I loved the place and had no issues and I also spent at least a month in Japan,no problems



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01 Jan 2014, 7:35 pm

eric76 wrote:
I suspect that the cities, especially Tokyo, would be rather overwhelming.

Out in the countryside might be kind of nice, though.


Yeah I'd say a smallish sized city would be better than the country or one of the metropolises. And yeah, apart from the fact that you'd be gaijin I think it would be a culture that people on the spectrum could fit into. South Korea would be similar and maybe a bit more open and inviting to westerners? (That's just what I'm gathering from what I've read and seen about Japan versus lots of actual South Koreans I've met and worked with who were in Australia on 457 working holiday visas). In South Korea they have this phenomenon of young people barricading themselves in their rooms leaving only to go to the toilet and some will even have food passed to them through a slot. Some young people have spent their whole youth this way. I'm wondering if that's a culturally born phenomenon or if these people are aspies who are too over stimulated by the outside world.



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01 Jan 2014, 8:14 pm

the only plus for me would be close to Nintendo headquarters.


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eric76
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01 Jan 2014, 10:40 pm

Dan_Undiagnosed wrote:
eric76 wrote:
I suspect that the cities, especially Tokyo, would be rather overwhelming.

Out in the countryside might be kind of nice, though.


Yeah I'd say a smallish sized city would be better than the country or one of the metropolises. And yeah, apart from the fact that you'd be gaijin I think it would be a culture that people on the spectrum could fit into. South Korea would be similar and maybe a bit more open and inviting to westerners? (That's just what I'm gathering from what I've read and seen about Japan versus lots of actual South Koreans I've met and worked with who were in Australia on 457 working holiday visas). In South Korea they have this phenomenon of young people barricading themselves in their rooms leaving only to go to the toilet and some will even have food passed to them through a slot. Some young people have spent their whole youth this way. I'm wondering if that's a culturally born phenomenon or if these people are aspies who are too over stimulated by the outside world.


Apparently there is a similar problem in Japan where more and more kids become recluses and don't leave the house. It is common enough that they have a specific name for such people.



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01 Jan 2014, 10:49 pm

Would probably be like one of the last places i would go to live.

Being wierd, odd and tall, yeah ill fit right in. No infact you want to find a smaller country im sure there is more out there like Denmark 6 million population or whatever.

Last place i want to live, is a place where there is smog killing people like you smoked 20 each day, people living cramped together like rubiks cube, and there is like no nature almost.



Dan_Undiagnosed
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01 Jan 2014, 11:08 pm

eric76 wrote:
Dan_Undiagnosed wrote:
eric76 wrote:
I suspect that the cities, especially Tokyo, would be rather overwhelming.

Out in the countryside might be kind of nice, though.


Yeah I'd say a smallish sized city would be better than the country or one of the metropolises. And yeah, apart from the fact that you'd be gaijin I think it would be a culture that people on the spectrum could fit into. South Korea would be similar and maybe a bit more open and inviting to westerners? (That's just what I'm gathering from what I've read and seen about Japan versus lots of actual South Koreans I've met and worked with who were in Australia on 457 working holiday visas). In South Korea they have this phenomenon of young people barricading themselves in their rooms leaving only to go to the toilet and some will even have food passed to them through a slot. Some young people have spent their whole youth this way. I'm wondering if that's a culturally born phenomenon or if these people are aspies who are too over stimulated by the outside world.


Apparently there is a similar problem in Japan where more and more kids become recluses and don't leave the house. It is common enough that they have a specific name for such people.


Oh, that sounds like what I was talking about. Maybe it was Japan after all then. Whoops.



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01 Jan 2014, 11:17 pm

I've spent some time in Japan and although I do have an obsession with manga and anime, I would recommend not staying for a prolonged length of time. They will treat you like an outsider no matter how long you stay there, and if you are not Asian, you will get a lot of attention anywhere you go. Prejudice is more prevalent in Japan than in the States. I learned of Koreans who migrated to Japan generations ago and they are still denied jobs and positions at the top ranked universities because of their ancestry (There's something called the family registry where they check what town your family came from when applying for jobs). My professor moved to Japan from Great Britain and he applied to be a Japanese citizen. He'd been living in Japan for 30+ yrs. and he was kept from entering a hot spring in Hokkaido because he would "contaminate" the water.

Asian culture also does not treat mental illnesses/conditions/neurological disorders very well. It's treated something like the "shame that must be hidden and not acknowledged." Also, anime and manga are seen as more of an underground nerd thing or thing for just children even in Japan. You would need to go to a place like Akihabara for the otaku culture.



Last edited by Innocent_Bystander on 01 Jan 2014, 11:30 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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01 Jan 2014, 11:19 pm

I've read that many Aspies visit or relocate to Japan because their extremely polite and accepting society is very tolerant of AS quirks.

Also, since Japan is the world's capital of weird s**t, you'd expect their culture to be pretty tolerant of AS weirdness.. which is very mild compared to some of the weird s**t that comes out of Japan. Seriously.


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01 Jan 2014, 11:28 pm

Also, being treated like an outsider because you're an aspie in the States is very different from being treated like a gaijin in Japan. Here, even though I do come off as awkward and sort of strange, I can blend in and people won't bother me. There, people give you strange looks when riding the train. I'm Asian too but I was told that they just know you're different from the way you walk/the way you carry yourself.

Don't get me wrong though. It was nice to go sightseeing and Japanese people are very polite. I really did enjoy my time, but I would not recommend staying for longer than a year.