How can u be sure u have AS without a doctor?

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what the tell tale sign?

I guess diagnosis without a doctor is never going to be a sure thing. All you can really do is look up Aspergers Symptoms on wikipedia or an Aspergers support group website

You can't be sure.

Asperger's (or any other condition) to be 'official' must be diagnosed by a professional. Even then, two different professionals can diagnose you differently.

You cannot be sure.

Even with a doctor.

Read a few books about Asperger's, analyze all attributes that could possibly apply to you, check for consistency, keep checking for consistency, if you still come up with a strong suspicion you have it, you are fairly sure. At some point there is no longer any point in continuing the analysis, and you can conclude that you have it, and move on with your life. If at any point it turns out you're wrong, you change your opinion and move on with your life.

See, simple.

There is no "tell tale sign."

It's too different from one person to another. It is possible to become convinced and rightly so by doing one's own research, but it does take time.

There are no simple answers. There is only coming to understand it, and yourself, and long term consistency in the "answers" being there every time you look. At first, you suspect, then you become more and more convinced. Then, at some point, you SAY you are convinced, but may still have doubts. When the doubts finally fade away entirely, after a time, you just KNOW.

It IS possible to learn enough about it, and yourself, that you actually understand it better than some professionals who diagnose it.

But, it's not a quick journey. It took me over ten years.

You seem to be looking for one single thing that would make it obvious that you have (or don't have) AS. There IS no yes/no indicator, even for a formal diagnosis.

For me, I refuse to say, "I have AS," even though I:
1) believe I currently meet the DSM IV diagnostic criteria, and am certain I did when I was younger.
2) consistently get very aspie-ish scores on all of the tests mentioned in the thread "Set of scientific tests related to Autism Spectrum Disorders" on this site (don't know how to link directly to it, sorry)
3) have several (or many, depending on how you define those terms) of the common but not diagnostic issues/co-existing problems often mentioned as being part of AS.
and
4) have been looking unsuccessfully for an explanation for my weirdness for most of my life, and never found anything that came close to doing so, until I learned about AS.

So, yeah, I'm pretty confident that I have AS - but I cannot be 100% sure. I guess the only way to be *sure* would be to get independent evaluations by several doctors who are well qualified in diagnosing AS. If "9 out of 10 doctors agree" - then you can be pretty darn sure it's the right call.

It would actually be meeting the description given by Hans Asperger while simultaneously failing to meet criteria for anything else.

I don't know where I will be in DSM V criteria, I don't really want to be bothered with more diagnosis, I had enough while growing up

There is no tell tale sign. And some people get diagnosed and still feel unsure. So they get assessed and diagnosed again. ...and still feel unsure. So maybe they go for 3 times...

So, there ultimately are only ways to feel more and more secure, but like with Zeno's Paradox, you'll never get to absolute certainty.

There isn't one. There are several traits that make it more likely. Special interests, stimming, preferring to be alone, trouble making eye contact-- these are signs to look for. If you have all of them, there's a good chance that it's worth further research. Check to see if you're literal-minded, if you have an odd way of showing emotions.

Then stick around here. If you relate more to the Aspies here than to NTs, and you meet all the other criteria, it's safe to assume you have it.

I know it can be really hard to not know for sure, and want a single definitive sign when there isn't one. I've been there, though not with AS. That I'm pretty certain about.

Check, check, check, check ... making this thread all about me = egocentrism, check ...


Corp900, if you think you may have AS and it's affecting your life, it's worth at least trying some doctors. Even if it turns out you don't have AS, they may be able to help you with whatever it is you're struggling with.

If you're really an Aspie you'll be able to become a subject matter expert in no time and figure it out.

There is no definite way to diagnose Aspergers without going through a doctor and filling out lots of assessments. However, there is an Aspie Quiz available online. It is pretty interesting. You don't have to register or sign up, that is optional.

I am not allowed to post the link but I'm sure you can find it on Google by typing in Aspie Quiz.

Last edited by Deem on 16 Oct 2010, 7:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.

You could never be sure. But you could be sure that you are different.

You can't be sure, but the Aspie Quiz is a good reference.