Is there such thing as 'mild' Aspergers?

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Daniel has been thinking: "mild" AS might be that border where normal and disorder meet, intermingle, and create questions about what's normal and what isn't.

To clear up a misnomer, "spectrum" doesn't denote "dimensional". Spectrum as of its origins equated to several labels that grouped individuals based on severity, which came from Lorna Wing, and is described in-depth by her papers and books (aloof, passive, odd but active, and overly formal and stilted). See: Profound Autism at one end, which moves to Kanner's (HFA and half of LFA), to Asperger's and then on to Schizoid PD/"mild" AS/SPD/NLD.

If I've posted on this thread before I apologise for this repeat, but I was diagnosed mild asperger's when I was 11, and I would definately say it is possible. My blog can describe this well.

Even though I've already posted there is something else.

Even though I'm mild, just how mild tends to fluctuate depending on the environment or my feelings. I have ranged from "almost NT" mild to "pretty bad" mild quite a few times since getting diagnosed, and it's still fluctuating now, I never stay the same.
I have taken both the AQ and aspie quiz twice. First time I got 38 AQ and 144 aspie quiz, second time I got 33 and 149. I wonder what it'll be next time.

Hodor, I'd say yes, there is a great variation when it comes to the degree of troubles with all people within the spectrum.I,myself do tend to have some social problems but, also I as well have trouble sometimes being able to pick up on underlying intention in another's actions and words that, has caused me a great deal of trouble from time to time.Therefore all people vary in his/her extent of the difficulties faced in daily life.. I wished I could elaborate more upon this but, I've never been that good with words to a certain points whereabouts; I'll let the more knowledgeable persons in this forum provide such..


ProfessorX

i have a feeling that i may have a mild case of Asperger's disease. i am 15 but i look like i'm way younger. at school i have trouble making new friends. i have a couple friends that fade in and out but i can never seem to make new ones. when i'm around people that aren't my close friends i get really quiet and have nothing to say and i can't look them straight in the eye. but it is really re-assuring that other people have the same thing. but the problem is.. no one else can tell.. so if i would want to go tell my mom she'd think i was just going through a phase or something. but i really think that i have this disease. i listen to the same song over and over again without even realizing it and i am very intellectual and like movies and books a lot. but no one knows because they don't even notice me. i've never had a highschool flame with a boy, because they don't notice me. i'm cute and have nice clothes and i'm skinny so why don't they? i just can't be outgoing and i don't know what to do. i might have other problem but i'm pretty posotive that i have mild or even low-range Asperger's disease.

I consider myself a 'mildie' because I have enough adaptations so my impairments are minor, and fall into the 'eccentricity' category to most NTs.

But my aspie traits are pretty pervasive, and the adaptations are cognitive, so they are in the 'wrong' part of the brain.

When I first took the AQ, I scored 132/200. Then I took it again based on how I was at say 18-20. I scored 183. The cognitive adaptations take time.

Then I took it again, for how I am now, after I was more in touch with aspie characteristics, and I scored 167. So I had a big denial/ignorance factor when I first took the test.

I was amazingly lucky to have a family and school when I was young who let me be special and valued the good side of my peculiarness. That helped me make the adaptations, and avoided the crushing esteem problems and bullying and rejection that seem to be our biggest problems.

So I don't know how much the brain structure fades to NT, but the problems can certainly fade to 'not statistically significant'.

Seeing as autism is a SPECTRUM, it's certainly possible to have mild AS.

I would characterize mine as mild; most people would just say I was introverted (actually not so much) and poor at mixing at parties (unless they happen to be talking my specialty of late 19th century early 20th French Classical music LOL in which case I am the center of attention!! !)

I have worked all my life although I prefer to be self-employed (as I am now) as I never fit into the socio-political mindset at work and did not gossip nor see the hidden agendas (in the time before I became a music teacher).

So mainly people, if you asked them, would think of me as "eccentric" not disabled by a longshot, although inside I FEEL totally disabled socially.

Still all-in-all, I would not want to be "cured" as I value my talents in music, math, organizing and other areas typical of "Aspiehood".

I was told by my first therapist that I have it mildly. Although there are times when I wonder if it really is as mild as he said... my main issue is maintaining friendships (big surprise) and overall I'm extremely introverted which doesn't really help me at work. But I've done ok as far as keeping my job, etc. I'm still too afraid to ask my new therapist if he thinks it's mild or not. Ignorance is bliss...

I wasn't told how severe my Asperger's is when I was diagnosed, just that I fulfilled all the criteria. Can I ask, has anyone here been told that they have mild or mid-range Asperger's, and what it's like , so I can compare? I don't know what to say if people ask how severe it is.

I have sensory issues, social problems, clumsiness, I do repetitive motions, I have few interests which I engage in repetitively/obsessively and I have meltdowns from situations where I get sensory overload or where I'm forced to try socialize like "normal" people do. I don't scream when I'm reacting badly to something nor do I throw up on the spot or get in any way violent, but I will feel very nauseous, I will get headaches or a funny dizzy feeling in my head and I'll feel highly emotional - I just don't get loud or express it very obviously. People will notice that I look sick when it happens. Is anybody else here like this?

Yes, thats what I supposedly have, but I think it's more than that.

Wow, this is an old one. There is no mild version aspergers. You either have it, or you don't. I don't have half the issues that some on here have, but I still have Aspergers.