Erich wrote:
Just curious, why do you want something to show others that you have Aspergers? I've read this quite a few times on here and it kinda baffles me a bit. People normally don't go around with pieces of paper saying they have whatever they happen to have.
I'm strongly considering trying for one. I'm not 100% certain - probably 90% - that I have AS. Most of the uncertainty comes from not fully understanding what the requirements in the DSM
actually mean, or from not being able to identify characteristics in myself that differ from the norm. (By that I mean that it's difficult to say if I have more trouble understanding emotions than others, since I can't get inside their head. I'm also frequently unaware of my own stimming movements, etc).
If I go and see a doctor, I get an objective viewpoint on all of that and can be 100% certain that I have AS. I can also then have an easier time talking to others about my eccentricities; I've suggested to a couple of people that I think I have AS, only to have the idea forcefully rejected (despite them admitting that I have trouble with all of the criteria). It will also be easier to talk to my colleagues about stuff - I've spoken in small amounts to them about AS-related "stuff", to try to improve my general smalltalk & social skills, but since I can't really say "I have AS so please explain stuff in full detail" I'm very wary about being too overt.
There's also the whole validation issue - my life has dozens of bizarre social interactions that (if you apply the context of AS) make an awful lot of sense. Being told "You have AS" suddenly changes me from being a "normal" person that's awful at socialising, into someone with AS that's actually coping fairly well. I can't do it myself for the reasons I stated in my first paragraph.
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I'm... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
07 Aug 2007, 9:50 pm
