Autism/Asperger's Survey

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Hey, guys! I'm sort of new to the forums. My name is Jess, I'm 17 and I'm doing year 12. For our health course, I need to conduct a survey and my chosen topic was Asperger's. Since I don't really have many people in my life that I can ask the questions, I asked my teacher if it would be okay if I posted them here and she said it sounded like a good idea.

If the moderators feel that this is in any way, shape or form unethical, I will be fine with deletions.

What is your current age?
1-5
6-10
11-5
16-20
21-25
26-30
31-35
36-40
41-45
46-50
51-55
56-60
60+
Prefer not to say

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
1-5
6-10
11-5
16-20
21-25
26-30
31-35
36-40
41-45
46-50
51-55
56-60
60+
Prefer not to say
I haven’t been diagnosed

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Math
Science (Geology, biology, ecology, sociology, ECT)
English
Art
Computers
Other
Not sure
I don’t have a special interest
 
What is your special interest? (State)
____________________________________________________________________________

Have you had any difficulties learning?
Yes
No
Prefer not to say

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
____________________________________________________________________________

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes
No
Prefer not to say

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
____________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics?
Yes
No

What are these tics? (State)
____________________________________________________________________________

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes
No
1 out of the Two
My parents aren't in my life

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes
No
1 out of the Two
My parents aren't in my life

I, myself, was diagnosed when I was six. My special subject falls into the art category, as my special interest is jewellery creation and design and I plan on becoming a jeweller once I leave school. I have had some difficulties with learning. I was in specialized classes for years six and seven (when I was 11-12). However, because I started learning better, I was moved to mainstream schooling. Last year, year 11 (16 years of age), I decided to stop attending a face-to-face school and start learning via distance education. This has proved to be easier on my emotions as I don't need to feel uncomfrotable around other students and I can work at my own pace (even if my own pace means that I have fallen behind.)

I did have difficulties making friends when I was a kid, but once I hit year eight, I met my best friend, who got me into a group in school. This group is now more like my family than just friends. I live with seven other boys, including my fiance, Taylor. I have about four tics that I've noticed, they are wrist twisting (most common) neck twitching, jaw snapping and finger rubbing (least common). My father died just after I was diagnosed, but he did what he could for me during the year that he'd known. My step-father has always been really good with me, pushing me to my full potential. My mother, on the other hand, has always been a little weird about it. I think that it's mostly because she remembers the way my father used to try and help me.

My father used to love gemstones and jewellery and he got my mother into them before he died. Gemstones are one of the things my mother can no longer stand to hear about as it brings up a lot of memories for her over my father. It's sort of depressing because my mother used to love gemstones herself. My step-father has always been supportive too, he used to help me study the stones and he helped me start a collection. So all-in-all, one out of my two parents has been supportive of my special subject.

Enough about me, though. I would love to hear your responses! ^_^ If anyone wants to chat, too, they can send me a message, I don't bite =D

What is your current age?
16-20

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
I haven’t been diagnosed officially, but I think I have it

What is your special interest? (State)
Technology, physics, airplanes, cars, military tactics, weapons, astronomy, electricity, science fiction, etc.
____________________________________________________________________________

Have you had any difficulties learning?
No
____________________________________________________________________________

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
I haven't
____________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics?
No
____________________________________________________________________________

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes

What is your current age?

16-20

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
I do not have a diagnosis on paper, but I was told that it is very likely that I have AS by my psychologist (at the time) when I was 17.

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Math
Science (Geology, biology, ecology, sociology, ECT)

 
What is your special interest? (State)
I am very interested in reptiles (specifically snakes -ball pythons- and geckos). I would like to breed ball pythons and sell them as pets as a hobby/extra source of income. I just really like them. They're neat.

Have you had any difficulties learning?
Yes


How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

Mostly a lot of hard work and forcing myself to not give up or become discouraged. I have a learning disability in math, some executive processing difficulties,and sensory issues (sound and light) that interfere with my ability to stay focused. Because I am "smart", I was never able to get any help with these issues. It was assumed that I was simply not trying and did not care...so I just had to "suck it up" so to speak and deal with it. I have things that I want to do and spending my time stuck in middle or high school (the main periods in which I experienced difficulty) was not in my agenda.

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes


How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

I'm...working on that. Right now...I am just trying to avoid coming off as too weird and just...making conversation. It's really awkward, but seems to be working OK. So far no one is avoiding me or telling me to f--k off, so that seems promising.

Do you have any tics?
Yes


What are these tics? (State)

I have a neck tic that presents with a vocalization and a twitch of one of my hands. I am usually pretty good at not letting myself do it as long as I am not tired or nervous. I have a LOT of nervous/tired tics, though. I blink excessively sometimes...and my eyes do this...thing. Like, move up and to the side. It's annoying.

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
No


Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes

What is your current age?
31-35

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
Aspergers - I haven’t been diagnosed (I am the mother to an officially diagnosed autistic son.)

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Art is the main one, but I have special interests in several areas. (The strangest one that's cropped up only in the last two years as a result of my son being bit is identifying spiders.)

What is your special interest? (State)
Drawing ____________________________________________________________________________

Have you had any difficulties learning?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
Eventually learned to teach myself rather than rely on teachers.____________________________________________________________________________

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
Never overcame them. I rely mostly on the internet for communication.____________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics?
Yes (Stims, not tics)

What are these tics? (State)
Fidgeting with arms and hands, minor toe walking____________________________________________________________________________

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
No, they're in denial.

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes

Hi Jess! Excellent survey!

What is your current age?
21-25

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
21-25

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Science (Geology, biology, ecology, sociology, ECT)
English
Art
Other

 
What is your special interest? Fiction writing, languages, animals, any theoretical science
____________________________________________________________________________

Have you had any difficulties learning?
[Yes]

How did you overcome these difficulties? I didn't really. I started to be unable to sustain attention for long enough to finish tasks in college. This might be due to depression, I'm unsure.
____________________________________________________________________________

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
I forced myself into being a more social "character" and ignoring my instinct to be quiet and not draw attention to myself. This eventually leads to complete burnout, however, where I have to retreat for a very long time by myself (sometimes years) and recuperate. SSRIs also make me more social without leading to this burnout.
____________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics?
No
____________________________________________________________________________

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes

What is your current age? 36-40

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
I haven’t been diagnosed

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Math
Science (Geology, biology, ecology, sociology, ECT)
English
Art
Dance
Writing 

What is your special interest? (State) ____________________________________________________________________________
Of the things above, I enjoy mixing them all up together when I can. Multi-media art.

Have you had any difficulties learning? Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State) ____________________________________________________________________________
I rely on my partner and one or two close friends. They understand that I'm smart but disorganized and don't make me feel bad about it.

Did you have difficulty making friends? Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State) I didn't I have had the same few friends for 10 years or more. The rest wind up being brief aquaintances usually.
____________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics? Yes

What are these tics? (State) I rock and hum to myself when I'm stressed.
____________________________________________________________________________

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder? 1 out of the Two


Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject? Yes, now that I am an adult they do. As a kid, absolutely not. They came around.

What is your current age?
51-55


What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
I haven’t been diagnosed

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Science (Geology, biology, ecology, sociology, ECT)

 
What is your special interest? (State)
Motorbikes

Have you had any difficulties learning?
No

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
_I didn't.___________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics?
No


Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
They don't know.

What is your current age?

31-35

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?

I haven’t been diagnosed officially and am unsure as to whether I have it or not. I am diagnosed with Social Anxiety, Depression, Agoraphobia, Anxiety and a past diagnosis of OCD.

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?

Art
Science

What is your special interest?

I dabble with all arts and crafts but mostly spend my time Cross Stitching or doing Sequin Art.
I also have an interest in health and fitness sometimes or more specifically the links between exercise and nutrition and mental health.

____________________________________________________________________________

Have you had any difficulties learning?

No, not academically. Socially is a different matter lol.

____________________________________________________________________________

Did you have difficulty making friends?

Yes


How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

I am still having difficulty.

____________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics?

No, not that I am aware of.

____________________________________________________________________________

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?

My parents aren't in my life

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?

My parents aren't in my life

What is your current age?
26-30

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
11-15
(with autism)

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Other

What is your special interest? (State)
I have several, but the longest-running/most permanent ones involve the sensory properties of various objects. (So, not a topic at all, but a sensory experience.)

Have you had any difficulties learning?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
I didn't necessarily. And they only became worse over time.

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
I didn't exactly. Other people have always come to me if I made any friends, because I rarely to never have been able to approach someone else. In the worst cases, they had to persist for years without much acknowledgement from me, before I finally understood and was able to respond enough.

Do you have any tics?
Yes


What are these tics? (State)
I assume you mean stimming? Some of the usual ones like rocking and flapping. A lot of unusual and complex finger movements (some people assume I'm speaking sign language, it's that complex). And some that are really hard to describe because they involve my entire body doing some very specific things in very specific orders.


Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes
No

As in, both yes and no at different points in my life. Right now, yes.

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes

What is your current age?
11-15 (I'm 15.)

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
6-10


Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?

Science (Geology, biology, ecology, sociology, ECT)
English
Art
Other

 
What is your special interest? (State)

I have many.

Have you had any difficulties learning?

No.

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

n/a

Did you have difficulty making friends?

Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

Don't know. I haven't really had too many problems, and I haven't really "overcome" anything.

Do you have any tics?

Sometimes.

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?

Don't know what that means.

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?

Yes.

What is your current age?

21-25

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?

11-15

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?

Computers (does using one all the time count?)
Other

 
What is your special interest? (State)

AS/autism and I get different special interests off and on like dead malls or mall history. I was obsessed with pregnancy for a while while I was pregnant. I also go to Babycenter and I love learning about people there and how they think and I keep getting amazed at how they think and judge. But at the same time I just feel bitter and am reminded why I hate people so much and it makes me even more paranoid to talk to people because they seem to get offended over anything.
____________________________________________________________________________

Have you had any difficulties learning?
Yes


How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

I didn't. One of the reasons why I never went to college because school got too hard because the work got harder and I struggled. If it weren't for special ed, I wouldn't have finished high school. I also needed my work modified and I just felt lazy. And college is harder.
____________________________________________________________________________

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes (and I will add no too)

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

I didn't really.
____________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics?

No

What are these tics? (State)
____________________________________________________________________________

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes


Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes (and no since mom used to get mad at me about them and take them away, you do mean obsessions right? And she didn't like hearing about them either)

What is your current age?
26-30


What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
sometime in my early 20s


Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Other

 
What is your special interest? (State)
seeing old pictures of locations, and house blueprints

Have you had any difficulties learning?
sometimes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
dunno

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes


How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
haven't

Do you have any tics?
No

What are these tics? (State)
none


Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes
sometimes

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
rarely. my dad does take me out sometimes and educates me on what certain places used to be and where he used to hang out

What is your current age?

11-15


What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
6-10

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Math

 
What is your special interest? (State)
it is hacking

Have you had any difficulties learning?

No


How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
n/a

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
i don't i tend to give up

Do you have any tics?
Yes


What are these tics? (State)
they are putting my hands in my pockets a lot.

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes


Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes

What is your current age?
16-20

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
16-20

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Science (Geology, biology, ecology, sociology, ECT)
Other

 
What is your special interest? (State)

Mostly animals and their behavior, then neuroscience, then a bit of apologetics.
____________________________________________________________________________

Have you had any difficulties learning?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
I still struggle with them.
____________________________________________________________________________

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
I still struggle, but I've gotten better because of my sense of humor. If a person doesn't "get" my sense of humor then we won't become friends without some coaxing from mutual friends.
____________________________________________________________________________

Do you have any tics?
I'm not sure if you mean stims or tics, so I can't say.

What are these tics? (State)
I twich involuntarily sometimes, which I suppose would count as a tic.

____________________________________________________________________________

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes (for the most part)


Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes (Somewhat interested, always supportive)

What is your current age?
16-20

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?
I haven’t been diagnosed

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?
Science (Geology, biology, ecology, sociology, ECT)
English
Art
Computers
Other
 
What is your special interest? (State)
Multiple. Books/reading, singing, and JRPGs are my current strongest ones. Past interests have included the Underground Railroad, astronomy, genetics, and dogs.

Have you had any difficulties learning?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
I honestly don't remember.

Did you have difficulty making friends?
Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)
I transferred to a liberal high school full of nerds like me.

Do you have any tics?
No

What are these tics? (State)
n/a

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?
Yes

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?
Yes

EDIT: If by tics you meant stimming, then yes. I rub my left collarbone with my right hand, pace, and press down on different parts of my body really hard with my palm. I also use music/singing and rocking/swaying whenever I'm not in a public space.

What is your current age?

16-20

What age did you get diagnosed with Aspergers/Autism?

1-5

Which of these areas does your special interest fall into?

Art
 
What is your special interest? (State)

A specific band (The name of the band is Great Big Sea, if you need to know that)

Have you had any difficulties learning?

A little

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

The most difficult part of learning for me is note-taking. I got a scribe for that. My other learning challenges are the result of anxiety and I took my work to a separate room for that.

Did you have difficulty making friends?

Yes

How did you overcome these difficulties? (State)

I haven't really overcome it, but I have found associating more with older people has helped.

Do you have any tics?

Yes

What are these tics? (State)

Looking down at my shirt and repeating words other my breath. There are other tics that I would prefer not to talk about.

Have your parents ever been supportive of your disorder?

Yes

Have they ever supported/been interested in your special subject?

Yes