Why Do So Many Desire An Aspergers Diagnosis?

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Exactly. Even with all I've been through, I am too high functioning to qualify for anything.

(you know... many of us here are D&D geeks... the word TROLL is not exactly a deterrent. Makes you wanna grab your +3 broad sword and charge...)

I think it's almost considered fashionable. I used to be embarassed about suffering from any such condition or disorder. I was diagnosed with SAD when I was younger and GAD more recently and previously I was very scared/embarrassed about seeing a psychiatrist. Now it doesn't bother me because there seems to be less social stigma. It's becoming almost like a kinda of fad to have a disorder/disability. It seems that it kinda makes you feel unique/special. Being normal is almost seen as boring. Then again, I could be wrong and full of crap?

People desire an AS diagnosis, because it helps them to find closure in their lives.

On more than one job site or while studying at university or while working in the theatre or while simply trying to attend a family function, I have been labeled as "too intense," "too abrupt," "too serious," "too rude," "too weird," "stuck-up," and "aggressive," among other things.

The problem is that I did not ever feel like I was being any of those things - I'm just me (super introverted, never knowing what to say and always saying the wrong thing), trying to get along in the world like everybody else - and I have a few very close friends who do appreciate me for who I am and know I'm a good person, but after a while you just start to wonder what in the world is going on?

I was fired from a job earlier this year - okay, the official doublespeak position is that "my position was terminated through no fault of my own" (thank you Ms. HR Zombie), but it was basically because I couldn't play the office politics game - I've never been able to play the office politics game - it makes no sense to me whatsoever - I come to work to work, not to play silly games.

The very next day, I found myself in an office to finally see, once and for all, if this Asperger's Syndrome could have anything to do with who I am and why I am the way I am. Fortunately, we have a university program in my area that's been around for many years and they provide evaluation services for free, because I'd never be able to afford seeing a general practitioner for something like this. I almost cried with relief when the Clinical Director told me, after my initial 90 minute interview, that there were more than enough "red flags" to continue with my evaluation process (a long wait, but that's okay). I had been thinking about pursuing this for some years, but being treated so badly during the previous day's meeting with the HR person really pushed me into finally initiating the process.

I mean, at one point during this meeting Ms. HR takes her compact mirror from her purse and hands it to me, telling me to "Look at your face. You look completely unapproachable." (I try to look at her as she speaks because I have learned that people want eye contact, but she stops me). "No, look at your face" (I have my listening face on, and it's all scrunched up because I'm trying so hard to listen to the other person that I look almost mad, but I'm not). "You look like you want to tell me to go to hell," she says this to me with both of my supervisors sitting at the table with us. It was humiliating. This woman had never met me before that day and within an hour she told me that she "had me all figured out."

A day in the life, and all that jazz.

And you wonder why someone like me would want to pursue an Asperger's evaluation? Really?

I often have that look too, without even trying. People wonder why I always look like that. Most the time, I'm not even aware of it. I'm in my own little world a lot, not aware of the expression on my face.

...documented for future reference so insurance companies can deny you coverage for your preexisting condition...

I don't have Asperger's I have autism but I do understand why people seek a diagnoses of AS.
They do it for piece of mind. They want to desperately know why they are so odd and knowing that they have AS and are diagnosed makes them feel ok about themselves. They may even suffer from less anxiety and depression once they know.
Now I am critical about mild AS and people that get professionally diagnosed with it. If it is mild there is no need to get diagnosed. I don't mind if they remain self diagnosed.

I need to be on special services because I am not able to work. I want to work. I could tear my hair out about having my resume constantly overlooked and tossed aside because of my poor social skills. I've been unemployed for so long being on disability feels like a death sentence. I also can't live independently.

My friend, Verdandi, whom I think you insulted, is actually very affected by their symptoms and really needs to be diagnosed with AS. I have read their many posts and spent many nights sending and reading PM's to know that they are very affected by their symptoms.
I hope you don't mind me saying that, Verdandi.

I still think AS is overdiagnosed and I'm happy to see the merge in 2013 which will see the autistic spectrum turn into autistic disorder because I feel that will lessen the self diagnoses, because saying you have AS sounds much better than saying you have autism, right?

This is exactly why I 'seeked' a diagnosis.
It wasn't for anyone else but myself.

When you go through your life and (so far), you are generally rejected and ridiculed by people because they find you 'odd' (and all the other versions of the word), and you genuinely don't understand why they think this but start to believe them, (despite the fact you know you are not really like most people), you start to wonder what's blocking your 'growth' and if there's anything you can do about it.

It's not that I needed a label, but I needed something to explain my failures, clarity on my quirks, behaviours etc and to attempt to tackle the difficulties I have so that I can get more out of life.

Since my diagnosis I've felt so much relief and I've been able to shut out a lot of things that happened in my past that were lurking like a psychological bad smell.

I haven't paraded my diagnosis, I've just told those closest to me because they care, my family, and that's it. They've also gained some relief because they were also worrying about me.

I imagine these people are struggling with some aspect of their life and they feel better defining the problem is relevant to solving it.

Concerning self diagnosis, in United States, resources for adults who may have AS are scarce. There are few clinicians who have experience with AS, fewer who have experience with adults with AS, and even fewer who specialize in adults with AS, and an adult AS assessment from a qualified clinician is not cheap. A full assessment in my area costs $4,400 and there is only one place that does it.

These adult assessments are rather new, I might add. Previous adult assessments had a cut off of age of 20 or so.

Those who have questioned their clinicians on here, have usually presented evidence that validates their skepticism and indicates that the clinician they chose was actually not qualified to diagnose AS. For example, most of these clinicians did not perform adult assessments, and many were not even familiar with the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria, going on some perception of what they think someone with AS would be like based on only a superficial understanding of AS.

For example, one person's clinician claimed they could not have AS because they make eye contact. Another insisted the person could not have it because they had friends from time to time. Yet another thought a person could not have AS because they didn't "look" like they had AS, and then another claimed someone couldn't have AS because they were self aware enough to think they might have it.

None of these are a valid way to determine whether or not a person has AS.

Remember, AS did not exist as a diagnosis until the early 1990's. Most adults, and women especially, remain undiagnosed.

I have mild AS and needed the diagnoses to get me through school and get the education I needed. So mild aspies are also impaired by it too but not as much as real aspies. God I hate functioning labels sometimes because I have noticed there is ignorance about mild AS. Lot of people seem to assume they don't have any problems and should have no issues at all in getting a job or issues with school and education or issues with social situations or relationships and it just ticks me off. I also feel that is why I may have gotten crap here, because of my mild AS so they expected more out of me? Is that why some aspies would expect me to have NT gifts? I remember one aspie telling me in 2007 he is more aspie than me so I should have not taken his question literal and I remember how much that upset me then. Now he claims to be less aspie than me.

And I have struggled getting a job too because no one would hire me. Maybe it was because I didn't have the experience or not enough so I blamed it on that. Then I blamed it on the economy but come on, if it was the economy then these hotels wouldn't be hiring and not one called me for an interview. So I always figured they found someone with more experience than me. I used my AS diagnoses to get a job by going to this company that is for people with disabilities. I don't know if my other labels would have worked but this one did. It has also gotten me on social security in the past because my anxiety was worse then and I was inflexible back then too so that would have effected me on the job. My life may have been harder too without the diagnoses but I felt it has made it easier. I have thought about getting rid of the diagnoses but decided I better keep it so I can keep getting help in life or have an explanation for my problems or be protected by the American Disabilities Act.

God stupid functioning labels. Someone can have mild AS and have symptom that are worse than others.

Aside from not being on disability, I went through this for years on end. I know from about 1999 to 2005 I didn't have a single interview turn into a job, and after 2005 I lived (and still live) somewhere I didn't have transportation to get to job interviews from (or transportation to any job I could get) plus even deeper depression until this past year. I did get a few jobs over the years (three from 1991 until 1998) which each lasted for 3-6 months.



I don't mind, but I didn't realize I was coming across as quite that affected. Thank you for speaking up.

I went to the docs to help with my Agoraphobia, they referred me to a cbt therapist, on the 2nd meeting she referred me to the psychiatrist.
On the first meeting with the psychiatrist she mentioned that it appears I have aspergers traits.
Once I looked up aspergers it was easy to understand why the psychiatrist came to this conclusion.

This isn't the first time I've been diagnosed, I recall someone trying to pin the autistic label on me as a child, but back then I simply didn't accept it.

I don't feel no different for having a diagnosis, nor do I care much for it.
It has helped me to understand myself a little better, now that I do understand myself little better I'm going to start fighting off and locking up the bits of aspergers in me that I don't like.

I never really cared about a dx, but found some solace in the fact that I finally fit in somewhere.

My psych asked me this question the other day, and I would like a dx because I would feel better about myself. I would know that I'm not some weird loser all alone in the world, but there is a reason for the way I am, and there are other people in the same boat.

I earn too much to qualify for any assistance, so it would be just for personal use\gain.

I think people are looking for answers, or as someone pointed out above, somewhere where they fit in.

I don't know whether I have Aspergers or not and tend to swing between feeling that the disorder fits to feeling that I am just an over anxious NT as they are called lol. I am presently diagnosed with severe Social Anxiety, Depression, Agoraphobia etc and am on disability for it. My problems, whatever they are, have been with me all my life. Is the drs diagnosis right? Who knows. I do know that Drs are not always correct from experience. Just because they are a dr that does not mean that they are always right. Three examples of drs being wrong include:

For over a year and a half I was getting brain busting headaches. I saw many gps about this and because I had anxiety on my medical records they insisted that the headaches were anxiety/depression related. I told them they did not feel like stress headaches and asked for a referal to an ENT as I thought it was my sinuses. Initially they refused. For over a year I argued with them about this and pushed and pushed and pushed to see an ENT. Eventually one dr got fed up and referred me.

I saw the ENT and on my first appointment he numbed my throat etc and put a probe up my nose. A load of pus shot down. He looked at me and said "oh you've got an infection!" and I looked at him as if to say "No s**t sherlock", although I didn't say so because technically it was not the ENT's fault lol. A scan etc revealed that I had an antibiotic resistant infection and so I was pencilled in for surgery. After the surgery...no more headaches. What would you know!

One morning my 73 year old disabled mother with one lung (from having had tb as a child) and diabetes called the dr out. He told her she had a 'bit of a chest infection' and gave her some antibiotics. That night she died. The dr is called so he can issue a death certificate but we were told he could not issue one as he did not know why she had died and he was not expecting her to. A week or so later a post-mortem revealed that that 'bit of a chest infection' was full blow pneumonia. She probably should have been admitted to the hospital rather than being given a short course of low dose antibiotics, especially given her age and health problems.

And last but not least, back in the days when I was a teen struggling with bullying at school and had attempted suicide because of it, I was told by therapists that I was just 'over sensitive' because I was upset by the bullying. Over sensitive huh? Ok then.

A diagnosis may be important in school but an an adult I don't think so. There are other ways to get through your issues.
It's my opinion and right now I really don't care how one interprets it. My autism is disabling to me so one should be able to understand why I feel the way I do about AS.



The thing is I know I am not able to work. If I did get a job I would be so inexperienced for it not to mention trying to adjust to such dramatic change in my routine. But still I try because it gives me some confidence for maybe a week and a bit.

Maybe I'm not getting through to people here. Oh well, I'm going to stop trying.