Is it always AS?

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Just because someone reads about AS and thinks they have it, does it always have to be true? I'm talking about myself here, not putting down anyone's self-diagnosis. Could I possibly be wrong in thinking I have AS, especially since 9 doctors seem to think I don't have it (granted there was no one frm my childhood to say what I was really like then.)

Is it OK to not have AS, or to have something else like social anxiety disorder or avoidant personality disorder instead? Just because someone is technically "NT", might they not have social problems too?

I noticed one person posted in here if they are NT or AS, and they asked a doctor if they could be Savant Syndrome or AS, and the doctor siad probably AS, and people said yes he was probably AS. But the thing is, couldn't it be something else?

just be yourself norah, i wouldnt worry about getting diagnosed with this or that. if you have it you have it. worrying wont make you feel better, ittle make you feel worse

ITs all just labels.. you're still alive before and after

True. But I've read about some people in couples where the partner insisted their partner was AS and they get diagnosed, and the partner refused and was said to be in denial. Also some people on the spectrum may think that someone else who says they're not on the spectrum but have social anxiety or whatever, is in denial. I'm really afraid of being in denial about possible AS. I ahven't progressed at all from 5 years ago when I first started reading about AS in that my thinking about it is as back and forth as it ever was.

A label is what you do with it. If it makes you feel any better to have a label, then it's worthwhile to keep considering such things. If not, keep on truckin'.

As or just social anxiety: does it matter? If you know you have social problems and other associated problems, and some of the solutions/ideas suggested for aspies work for you, then go for it!

In addition, were any of these 9 doctors specialists (or have enough knowledge) of Autistic Spectrum Disorders?)to be able to be ACCURATE in their dx of you?

Wether you're aspie or an NT with aspie tendancies, we here understand the problems you have to deal with.

I don't care what you are. If this place helps, stick around.

PM me if you want to talk some more-I'm only online about once a week at the mo, but io will respond when I can.

JulieArticuno

I don't think that Not Being AS must automatically equal Being NT - far from it. I'm trying to get to see a specialist in adult autism for a diagnosis one way or another. He might say no, he doesn't think that AS is the problem, but there's still obviously something that makes much of my thought patterns very different from those of NTs.

I can identify with people on this board. Sometimes I read a post and think, "That's exactly what I do." Sometimes I read one and think, "I don't do that personally, but it doesn't seem strange, either - I can see where you're coming from."

I agree with what people are saying.

I want to get a diagnosis as I feel I need validation, i.e. I am not just a horrible person who gets things wrong on purpose.

There is a reason why some people seem to take an instant dislike to me.

Ultimately if I get a diagnosis then I could get help so that I would be able to fit in more.

This sounds like I am *so* depressed (i have just been signed off from work for stress).

I think the more you read in these forums, the more you'll know. You'll know if you identify with ASpie symptoms, or not. Anyways, there's no pill they'll give you to make you 'normal' (at least not yet!!) So, what's the diff?

I have a child who when first evaluated at age 5 leaned in the direction of ASDs but didn't fully meet the diagnostic criteria. I didn't see it at first when the doctor suggested the possibility but the more that I learned from reading and from other parents it became clear to me as well. I'm pretty sure that he looked like many kids with AS do in his early years.

Right at the time we were starting to go through the evaluations he suddenly took his head out of the books and geeky topics and started noticing regular kid's toys and showing a lot of interest in having friends even though his skills weren't very strong in that area. I didn't realize the importance of that at the time but it was as if some switch in his brain was flipped and determined which side of that diagnostic fence he was going to live in. I haven't a clue how or why it happened--it just did. I mention this because he spent the several years dealing with some very serious issues including debilitiating anxiety, severe sensory overload, behavioral issues including loads of inflexibility, etc. but given a lot of encouragement and support on the school and home fronts he has overcome those to the point where they aren't significant any more. We're in a district that has done a lot of staff training on ASDs and he goes to a school where there's a lot of acceptance for kids who are different and they've given him the room and helped give him skills that have been really helpful to him. (ie Last year he wanted to start talking to a friend on the phone and the speech therapist had the kids practice in their social speech sessions!)

The reason I mention this is that if anyone were to observe my child today there's not a chance in a million that they would see AS in him and there's a pretty good chance that they wouldn't pick him out of a group of kids as different at all. But knowing him as I do and living with him on a day to day basis, I see the traits there. For instance I know that he held it together every day at the beginning of this school year but then retreated to his room for most of his home hours to play Legos and it was difficult to engage him in conversation and pull him away. I know that the reason that he can cope with the sensory input world now is because we put a huge investment into helping him get there and teaching him coping strategies so when he comes home from a high sensory experience he heads for the swing in our basement and swings/spins until he feels good again. The teachers report that he gets along great with kids at school and indeed he does have two very good friends. But I know that when he has those friends over I have to intervene far more often than I do in a similar situation with my other children because he's far more on edge and irritable. And I know that right around December 1, it's very probable that most of his issues will start escalating because the holidays and will start settling down again around mid January.

In the diagnostic sense, this kid wouldn't qualify for a label (although we do retain it at school for the purpose of supports) but neither is he totally free of issues relating back to ASD's either. Had not everything gone exactly right in my son's early days (we picked up on some subtle speech differences, pediatrician took us seriously and referred us to a specialist who recognized what was going on) I think we would have had a really tough time later getting someone to recognize it without a very complete childhood history. I don't know what lies ahead but if I had to predict it I suspect he will always be pretty sensitive to what's going on his enviroment and at times retreat somewhat when things are tough.

Hope this helps.

this is what drives me absolutely crazy when I read about AS! (I don't meant to come down on you, just the whole situation in general.) What is so different about the thought patterns between AS and NT? When I'm with people who are presumably NT, I don't feel like my thought patterns are any different than theirs; the difference I feel is that they are usually either more confident, or good at seeming more confident. I usually understand the reasoning behind social things, even if I'm not good at them. Do all Aspies feel a big divide?

I've been in Aspie forums for over 5 years and I still haven't figured it out.

Not always

Here is someone who may be able to help you. She’s not too far from Seattle.

http://www.olypsych.com/

WOW!! !! ! I have not seen a group of NTs that seemed justly confident AT ALL!! !! ! MANY are divorced! Many have been married more than once! Many try to figure me out, and are SURE they can, but are WRONG! And that is just SOCIAL issues! Throw in technical, chemical, health, and they usually come to ME! If I thought they were REALLY more justly confident, I would almost feel like ending it all. What would be the point. Happily, I can look at every deficit I have and find one at LEAST as bad in most others. Every once in a while I meet someone where that isn't the case, but it truly IS rare.

Look at it like a car shop. ALL cars but one might be family cars with good economy. The store would probably get rid of that loaner that only holds a few people if not for the fact it had all those features, was speedy, and looked nice. HECK, that car will probably be owned by different people, and used in different areas.

That one car is almost like the Aspies. How would they feel if the car looked bad, had no special features, and was slow!? Maybe those areas would be like the other cars, but it wouldn't have the economy or the size going for it.

BTW I can be confident all I want, it usually doesn't change things.

BTW the divide you talk about IS the first symptom usually listed for autism and, thus, for AS! As for the differences in thought patterns, I don't imagine they can be very similar.

Steve

A "false positive" is more likely than a "false negative" by a self-diagnosed person...

A true Aspie will probably be correct about a self-diagnosis, because Aspies tend towards logical and non-emotional analysis of themselves and their circumstnances.

But someone who is not an Aspie, but has social anxiety, ADHD, or some other problem that causes social problems, may not have the detachment necessary to evaluate themselves properly.

A "false negative" (someone who thinks they are not an Aspie, but actually are) tends to exist when that person does not want to have AS, especially when the AS is mild; and "false negatives" are generally not self-diagnosed.

So yeah, you can think you're an Aspie and not be one. It's possible... more possible than the converse situation, of being an Aspie and thinking you aren't.

If you want to forget about labels, go ahead. People are different; Aspies are different. Having a name for things doesn't necessarily help you, though it can.

If you're not sure you're an Aspie, and tend to keep second-guessing yourself, then try this:
1. Forget about the "Am I an Aspie?" question. We'll accept you here, whether you're Aspie or NT with Aspie traits, or completely NT. Just so long as you don't bully anybody, we don't mind.
2. Make a comprehensive list of your own strengths and weaknesses.
3. You were trying to figure out whether you were an Aspie because you found in yourself several weaknesses you wanted to improve on, and several strengths you were proud of, correct? If that's so, then your goal in finding out whether you had AS can be accomplished without knowing whether you do or not: Go directly to those weaknesses and work on them; and go directly to those strengths, and use them.

You don't need to worry about labels if you don't want to worry about labels. Yes, it's an easy shorthand to say "I have AS"; but when it comes to self-improvement, it works just as well to say, "I have these weaknesses and these strengths".