Has anyone benefited from taking martial arts?

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I'm considering on taking upon a martial arts class. Not for a "self-defense" mechanism, but more for of a self-control venue as well as to help me with giving me a boost of self confidence. Has anyone else with Asperger's taken a martial arts class? If so, how has it worked for you? I'd like to hear from you.

^^ I am very sorry as I have personally not taken part in martial arts classes, however I have read a happy book named "Freaks, Geeks and Asperger's Syndrome" written by a 13 year old boy with Asperger's Syndrome and I believe he enjoyed martial classes and believed this helped him. He attended the classes with his family, including his older brother with low functioning autism I believe. ^^ I am sorry if not being of much help.

I don't have a dx but from my reading I Believe I am. I trained in mui thai, it helps knowing you can destroy someone! I started bc by brother was a bully and liked to tourture me alot. Knowing your ability helps alot believe me. I think it would help, I was trained by a personal friend and instructer.In Mui Thai you can train at home for the most part. My personal fav style is Krav Maga, I think it's unbeatable.

I took martial arts as an adult and it helped me a lot with control over my body and my physical self confidence.

Yes, I benefited. My balance and coordination improved, and bullies who knew I was taking karate tended to rethink insulting me (a little bit).

A good martial arts school is structured and fair in a way Aspies may like. Everyone starts at the bottom and has to work their way up. Social skills are far less important than learning the patterns, forms, kata, or whatever a particular style calls them, and performance in sparring matches, if the school/style includes that (you can pick a school/style so as to avoid combat). It's also a good way to burn off the excess energy from stress many of us have.

Downsides for me were sensory issues (martial arts are pretty stinky, especially in summer) and having to get to the school. When my father took me as a kid, no problem. Going as an adult has proved difficult, so I haven't been active for many years.

I can include more info about my experiences in karate, kendo, and aikido schools if anyone is interested.

YES!! !

I have been doing various martial arts since I was seven or eight, my father was fed up of me being sent home covered in bruises because the other kids thought I was different. So, he took me down to the local dojo and told me that I would be collected at 9pm. It's one of the few decent decisions he ever made, why?:

1) Better balance.

2) More confidence.

3) No more fights. After six months or so one kid tried something and I broke his arm, then another got a split lip. After that they stopped.

4) I actually found the rituals and routine of martial arts comforting.

Vanilla_Slice

Wow! Thanks for your replies! I just signed up for an introductory martial arts class. I'm doing this also because, I am a single female and along with the Asperger's, people tend to still see me as a kid. Now that I live by myself in an apartment complex, I want to be able to defend for myself. The apartment that I live in (and the area surrounding it) isn't the safest in the world. I want to be able to experience my first home away from home, enjoyable, without any mishaps. Thanks to all of you who've replied.

I did a bit of martial arts when I was 14, kick boxing to be precise. I did my white belt but got bored not long afterwards.
Then my friend kept boasting that I'm a "kick boxer" everytime someone tried to annoy us, how embarassing.

I took karate for a few years when I was in middle school. I liked it, but I didn't like the testing aspect of it. Class was ok to learn in, because there was no socialization required.. but I couldn't handle being tested in front of the class and corrected in front of everyone. Loudly.

For those that don't care about that, I'm sure karate would be great for them! Or even private testing would be a good thing.



edited to correct lame spelling errors

Yup. Karate and kickboxing were great for me. I learned self control, felt less angry because I had less feelings of being powerless, and also had more confidence. I'd highly recommend it.

It was also a good way to make friends. One, minimal talking required so I could just bond over doing things together, and two, we had the same interests and tended to be alike and thus get on well anyway.

I took a combined Karate/Jujitsu class when I was in middle school. I kinda had problems with social aspects of it. Like you had to go individually to take the tests when you thought you were ready, and I never knew and could never get up the nerve.. I took the class for awhile and never moved up, because I didn't really know how to approach the teacher or anything. I learned a surprisingly lot, but never went to any of the more advanced classes or anything 'cause you had to be able to interact with people and all.

My brother gave members of my family informal lessons in kung-fu. I have also attended a few informal lessons by a room mate in Aikido. If you can get informal lessons, that would be best so as to avoid the problems mentioned above. The person giving the lessons makes all the difference. I would guess that the "softer" forms of martial arts would tend to have teachers who would be less likely to cause stress. Thai-chi would probably be the "softest" for example. It is more oriented to self development than for self protection, however.

You could learn what you could from watching educational videos, if need be.

I can recommend studying the martial arts from my limited experience. Practicing (even alone) is often better than stimming for achieving inner peace.

I have done martial arts in the past and found it quite calming especially the routines. We did the sessions in the exact same order each week, I knew what was coming up and it did wonders for my confidence. I can't remember why I gave up now, probably to do with money, but it is something I would consider again in the future.

i took many many years of multiple forms. i found it relaxing, structured, routine driven, and kept me in share without having to deal with the "team" stuff.

odd thing is, all my years of the arts were before i knew i had aspergers. it just felt right, that's all.