Why do you stay on Wrong Planet?

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This is something I am curious about. I think this forum can sometimes bring people down and take many others aback over what has been said. I am wondering why I spite of that do people stay on this forum and post regularly?

I can only answer for myself and that is that a part of me finds the dynamics of the forum interesting, that as well as the fact I can discuss all the things I am interested in here.

I like interacting on forums. And this is about the only active one left that I like.

For me it's all about getting information about ASD becasue I might have it ( wont know until I get assessed ). My names Save_Ferris and I'm a WP-aholic lol What I'm saying is I'm under no illusion that I'm addicted to this forum but I will put up for it for knowledge. If it turns out that I don't have ASD then I will have to go cold turkey as everything else goes out the window when I am on this forum.

...because it's not moderated by a bunch of Fascists (any more) who are constantly deleting anything that is contrary to main-stream narratives (such as that Fake News liberal-agenda main-stream corp known as CNN).
It's actually possible to get into intellectual-discussions here without being witch-hunted by Fascists.
Why, I could even bring up Flat-Earth topics if I wanted, and people will still use their brains instead of emotions.

I'm relatively new to the site myself (only joined last August), but I've stayed here because of the sense of belonging. Every other forum I frequent, there are only very few Aspies, if any at all. It's great being on a forum where we represent, if not the majority, then at least a significantly larger portion of the userbase.

A variety of reasons.

The main one, I think, is the 'relaxed moderation' as someone else mentioned. I know that some people don't find that positive, but I find it helps us to have detailed and in-depth conversations. You can't get seriously into any topic without people getting passionate about their beliefs, which can cause a disagreements, but in my opinion it's the only way to really talk things out. I love forums, but in the past I've been on so many where a topic is closed as soon as the conversation gets interesting, and it's so frustrating.

Similarly, I think most members are more open to disagreements here. There are arguments, but it seems like there is more of an appreciation for them here than on most other forums. If we disagree with someone on one thread, it doesn't tend to taint our entire view of them - posts seem to be taken more on face value and current standard than on things said in the past.

Then, of course, there's the fact that we can openly discuss autism here. This is the only place where I am truly open about my autism. I want to be in real life, but there is no good way to just announce it, so this is my space where I'm free to speak about it.

And finally, the topics of conversation. We have people here that are passionate about some really obscure things, and I think that lends itself to a community where there is always something worth reading, which I like a lot. A very broad range of topics.

Last edited by ArielsSong on 28 Jan 2017, 8:12 am, edited 1 time in total.

As Ban-Dodger and ArielsSong said, moderation is nice and light - unlike on certain Facebook AS groups. Plus, on the whole, you all seem a friendly bunch

Which reminds me of a joke: There are Flat-Earth believers all around the world

Although I did have to leave for a while to get away from the pain of being ridiculed by a previous moderator, I stay on WrongPlanet because this is my tribe. Here is where I found answers about myself that I have never seen anywhere else, and here is where I can be the best (or at times maybe even the worst) of whatever I am without being condemned by others.

I hover around WP because these are the people to whom I can relate better than any others on this planet.
xo

I often ask myself why I stay here, but I suppose I rather stick to what I know, rather than finding a new autism forum and starting all over again, after so many posts I have posted here, despite how buggy the site is.

This site is a good place for me to express my thoughts and feelings publicly but anonymously. If I come across a problem, joke, opinion, idea, emotion, etc, in my daily life, I like to write about it here, in an already existing thread or a thread I created myself. But that doesn't mean I don't express my thoughts and feelings to people offline, although I don't talk about Asperger's to people because most don't even know I have it.

Unfortunately there were also times this site has worsened my social anxiety, like when someone here once said that nobody will ever like us because we're Aspies, or that I stand out vividly in public no matter how normal I think I look. But I suppose I will get that anywhere on the internet, so I shouldn't let myself get too convinced.

Because "normal" people don't understand my questions.

From my late teens I've had a problem with social anxiety and felt like I stood out in public. To combat the anxiety I tried to make my appearance stand out instead - wearing offensive tshirts , having wierd haircuts , facial piercings & tattoos , unfortunately that look is just a normal teenager nowadays

My own experience was I find on other forums in the past I've ended up have arguments over trivial things. I've not had a single argument or heated discussion since I joined. I also came on as I wanted to understand myself better, my diagnosis was a paradigm shift for me. I'm still learning about myself the forum is empowering, also with its members all willing to help if I have a question,no one judges my bad grammar or any of my questions as many have similar experiences. On here I can be myself no one judges me or makes me feel inferior. I find most on here no nonsense types. I prefer that.

For me it's common cause and shared experience. Also it's much easier for me to socialize when I can think through what I want say. In face-to-face situations my anxiety and insecurities often paralyze me.

Many members here are fearless of appearing strange and I like that. WP is also a wonderful place for late diagnosed people like me to share experiences.

Because sometimes it tastes like chicken; other times it tastes like steak.