Knowing about Asperger's Damaging or Helpful?

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It can happen both ways. Its helpful cause you understand yourself more and it gives you a sign of relief that it explains why people say you're "weird" or why you have certain behaviors, etc... People close to you will learn about you more as well &, like you, they will also understand why you have certain behaviors, interest, etc. However if you tell people who like the idea that "everyone is the same" about your aspergers, then it can be damaging, but you are who you are. Nobody can change that.

It's been quite harmful in some ways, I am self conscious now and a lot more shy that I used to be before I knew. I actually had a more active social life believe it or not before I knew, even though not everyone liked me I didn't care because I was mostly unaware of what I was really like. I was in my own little bubble until I was 11, just doing what I wanted to do. Some time after I knew I didn't want people to know so I eventually became withdrawn and now I'm at my shyest.
But it's been helpful because I've met some great people through knowing, I've made friends with people I would've completely ignored otherwise.
So my social life seems to have worsened and improved both at the same time, but it's more like the quantity of socialising is less but the quality certainly isn't.

It is helpful for me; learning about Asperger's was like getting an operating manual for my brain; it gave answers to questions like "Why does everyone seem so connected to each other and I feel like I'm in a glass bubble?"; "Why do I get so exhausted following a day out?"; "Why do new things and the unexpected freak me out so badly?"; "Why am I so far behind my peers in some ways despite being very intelligent?"; "Why does everyone else seem to have the operating manual for life, and why did I miss out on it? Why am I so confused by things that seem so obvious to others?".

I did go through a stage where I got quite downcast because of the realisation that the things I found difficult would always be difficult; that I wouldn't make them disappear no matter how hard I tried, but that doesn't bother me as much now.

Overall I'd say helpful. It was such a relief to finally know why I was so different compared to everyone else.

OTOH, I think I became a but more withdrawn, because I thought trying to make friends wold be a waste of time as I'm so bad at it anyway. So it's possible I'm missing out on some friendships, but I'm not too worried tbh.

I understand what you are saying about feeling weird about doing certain aspie things, now you know they're "abnormal". I feel the same way about some things too, and I also think I monitor my behaviour more for "aspieness". But, at the same time, I also find it easier to live with certain traits, such as not having many friends. I used to fret and worry about it, but now I know I have aspergers, and have tried making friends and failed, I realise that not having tons of friends is ok, and I appreciate the few thatni do have even more. I also feel more comfortable sitting in my room reading about my special interests and playing video games. I used to worry that this was weird, etc but now I don't care.

Knowing about AS has been very helpful for me. I now know that I'm not damaged goods and that I don't need to be fixed.

Finding out about Asperger's was, at first, a kind of dagger into who I've known as myself for the last 28 years before someone mentioned it. I thought of myself as being simply "me", different from the social norm, conforming to no scene or clique. I have a very succinct understanding of myself, with thought processes that only I could possibly understand. So, I felt like all of that was shattered; to know that who I am has been due to a neurological mis-wiring.

I then, of course, obsessed over what Asperger's is, researching it intensely. I bought Tony Attwood's book The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome, and felt like I was reading my life story. It went from being devastating to fascinating, and I realized that if I had known this many years ago I'd probably be in better financial standing, and have less problems with romantic relationships.

So in the long run, I'd say it's definitely helpful to know.

If I didn't know of AS, I would still be doing my best to try harder because I'd believe that one day I'd get normal if I tried harder to be like others. I can't even image aspies who discovered AS while being in their ripe, mature age, how they dealt throughout their life.

I've found it helpful because I finally have an explanation to a lot of things about myself, and I'm starting to learn how to cope better with life.
I wish I had found out about AS a lot sooner though

It has been very helpful to me. I have been dealing with severe depression for all of my adult life. I suspect that I had undiagnosed depression through much of my childhood. My path through life has been like peeling the layers off an onion. I deal with a layer of issues and resolve them, and each time I resolve one set of issues, I find a new set of issues lying beneath. Now that I have gotten past the surface issues, I find that I can go no further. At the core, there is a part of me that is simply different from most people. I now see that AS is a huge part of that. Understanding this makes all of the other issues a lot clearer.

Helpful.

Explains the life experiences of both myself and several family members remarkably well. Ties us together in a way I didnt previously see. It will hopefully have some value going forward as well.

It was only difficult for a brief time when first reading about it in detail. I was on an airplane reading The Complete Guide to Aspergers and started to cry. I'm not a crier.