Can Aspies truly enjoy talking to people and being friends?

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I read that dopmaine does not get released in social situations for aspies so does that mean if you have aspergers you don't truly feel pleasure and enjoyment when connecting and building relationships?
BTW I realize that is likely BS but I am the type of person who just has to know for sure.

Where did you read that? I don't think it necessarily means that.

Maybe it just means that the aspie/autie isn't connecting and building relationships in the social situation, or that they are somehow stressed by the situation in ways that a non-autistic person wouldn't be.

In my experience, yes, but not as strongly and in a different way than NTs. I have noticed a lot less motivation to initiate conversation in particular.

Though I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't true of many members on this website, being that the community here seems closer to BAP to me than the autism I have encountered IRL, but that's just my opinion.

Superficial-Talk: NO
Matters That Are Important Towards Aspie-Goals: Yes, sometimes, depending on life-stages.

I read it in a forum post (couldn't really find info anywhere else about it though, with what he said about the dopmaine not getting released in social situations) but I did find that there is this drug called Methylone which apparently some aspies take and it makes it to where there dopamine functions like a NT and they claim it's like it cured there aspergers and they feel normal. Though I think it might wear off or cause side effects not sure though.

And too be clear I'm not promoting or suggesting anyone experiment with stuff like that, I just find it interesting.

There are theories about oxytocin and social connection in ASDs, but oxytocin is a very different thing to dopamine and stimulant medications and I don't really know much about it.

If it's just a random person saying things and you can't find any studies about it, I wouldn't take it seriously, myself (maybe that one person found the solution to all their problems, but that doesn't mean it applies to anyone else). I don't see how taking a stimulant medication would remove all (or any) symptoms of an ASD.... and I don't think that lack of pleasure in social situations is the root cause of the social problems in ASD (even if that's part of the story for some people, I think there'd still be more to it than that).

Well when I googled aspergers and Methylone I saw a couple people saying it made them feel normal. The poster said it is because aspies use there concious while nt's usually use there sub concious and chaning the aspie dopmaine levels to a nt would in theory make that aspie start primarly using the sub concious (less logical thinking and more emotional based decions) so in theory it could reduce alot of the aspie symptoms.

But anway the reason I asked the top question was becasue I suspect I might have aspergers and I know that I often do legitementally enjoy talking to people. Like one time me and my 2 friends (I only really have 3 I see after school in total) went to the movies and played gta and I felt like I really interacted with them well and exchange social reciprocity. On the outside I can seem like a naturally flirttatious and funny guy (but the inside of my mind is a little diffrent) and to a extent that is what i am but i also have alot of aspie like behaviors. And then when I read that aspies didn't truly enjoy friendships/relationships I began to question if I could really be a aspie.

That theory has a bunch of holes in it, starting with the assumption that there's something wrong with the person's dopamine levels to begin with, which as far as I know isn't the case for ASDers unless they have a comorbid disorder like ADHD, and the myth that ASDers are all hyper-logical and lacking in emotion.



People with ASDs can enjoy friendships/relationships. The idea that we can't seems like an offshoot of the myth that we can't feel love or don't care about others (maybe some of us can't/don't, but that doesn't mean it's universal or even common).

yeah I agree, based on what I have seen with certain people with as that wouldnt make sense.

I have two really good friends that I enjoy talking to. I also like to be friends with people that I have things in common with.

I don't understand how you can possibly make such a judgment. The style of communication people have here is likely very different from the way they communicate in person. I have had long, meaningful exchanges with people who are nonverbal IRL. That doesn't somehow make them BAP rather than autistic.

You can't assess or diagnose people online.

Can aspies enjoy being poked with forks? Unless you're a masochist, no.
Why try to build relationships if you can't? Even if you somehow manage to do that, you'll be betrayed sooner or later. People are evil and can't be trusted.

I have some difficulty really knowing who is a friend and who is not. It's hard to trust people.

I have some people who have been demonstratively friendly. I enjoy talking to them. I don't get into a lot of conversations and I don't socialize much. I talk with these people at irregular intervals, we all live in different places. When I do talk with them, I enjoy it very much.

I have truly enjoyed talking to people and being friends in the past back when I was much happier if that answers your question

Just out of curiosity, do you think that you were happier then because you had frequent contact with friends, or was that period of enjoyable friendship merely coincidental with that much happier time in your life?