I think that I might have Aspergers... A few questions.

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Sira
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31 Jul 2009, 5:49 pm

I'll start off by saying that I am a few weeks from turning 17 came to find of about Aspergers because I am an Asexual and I had heard that it's a very common thing for Asexuals to have, so naturally, being the obsessive researcher that I am started to look it up. I had always thought that I seemed somewhat autistic; I love spend time obsessing over random topics like Aviation, politics, world history, psychology (I'm always trying to figure out what's wrong with me) I love to come up with business oportunities or ideas for inventions and I will obsessively pursue them to the point of learning about whole new topics, ideas and formulas only to forget why I did it in the first place and move on to a whole new idea. I love to share my thougts with other people despite their disinterest, I have a high IQ and a
very large vocabulary and I loath social interaction, I always try to avoid working in groups and can only work alone. Whenever I make the effort (Once a month or less) to make friends or do things with them
I always end up making up excuses to leave and go
home. I find the weirdest things embarassing (for
example going into a store) and I'm not embarassed
by things that would humuliate other people. I have
trouble controlling the volume of my voice, always
speaking in either a very hushed tone or a very loud one and I get uncomfortable from odd things such as
my fingertips being unable to touch way other. I always thought that I had mild OCD with my needs to preform odd rituals such as clenching my jaw whenever we pass one of the little white or yellow lines in middle of the road, on the side of the line. I also have a ton of trouble with facial expressions, I always think that the person with whom I am conversing is disgusted or annoyed with me and I start to get extreme anxious and begin to insist that they tell me what I did wrong.

So anyway I have been wondering if I had AS and I decided to ask my mom what she thought (my parents are both doctors) and she looked at me with ( what I thought to be) a horrified look and said that there was "NO WAY" that I had AS, I asked her if she knew what it was and she had to look it up but stuck to her original statement. However if I remain concerned about it I'm sure she would allow me to get it checked out.
I've always felt like I had some "disorder" that my parents have either been hiding from me or ignorant
of.
Well here are my questions:

First, does it sound like I have AS?
Second, should I bother getting it looked at?
And finally, does anyone know if having AS will interfere with my getting a pilot's license?
I will have my PPL in 2 weeks and plan on getting my commercial ASAP.

Thanks so much and please forgive my gramatical, spelling and spacing errors, as I am typing this from my phone.



Dilbert
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31 Jul 2009, 6:05 pm

Welcome. :)

I think there's a high likelihood that you have AS. Take a test:

http://psychcentral.com/quizzes/autism.htm

Self diagnosis is not really reliable. Someone here called it "self-suspicion" or something like that. Talk to a professional if you want to be sure.

I'm a pilot too (PPL single engine land, no IFR). AS would not affect your ability to safely operate an aircraft. Why would it? If anything, our attention to detail and the ability to soak in a lot of data very quickly make us extra efficient in the cockpit. Scanning two dozen flight instruments with a single glance is a nice ability to have.

However there is that FAA clause about mental disorders, but it is obviously open to interpretation (what is a mental disorder? who is normal? Etc...).

Quote:
Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners
Application Process for Medical Certification
Updated: 2:17 pm ET May 30, 2006

Applicant History - Item 18. Medical History
m. Mental disorders of any sort; depression, anxiety, etc.
An affirmative answer to Item 18.m. requires investigation through supplemental history taking. Dispositions will vary according to the details obtained. An applicant with an established history of a personality disorder that is severe enough to have repeatedly manifested itself by overt acts, a psychosis disorder, or a bipolar disorder must be denied or deferred by the Examiner. (See Item 46; and Item 47).


Someone along the way may interpret that literally and include things like AS. So my advice would be not to get an official diagnosis. If you did, some day you may need to hide it from a flight school or FAA or a civil surgeon. Do you really want to go there?



Sira
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31 Jul 2009, 6:20 pm

Thanks for the reply! It's nice hearing from a pilot.
That was my thinking, that it would be best not to be diagnosed, as I seem to be doing finr, and risk an examiner denying a renual of my medical, I had enough trouble convincing them that my childhood diagnoses of ADHD was a mistake.
Is there any reason that I SHOULD get it looked at?



Maggiedoll
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31 Jul 2009, 6:30 pm

It sounds like you have features of AS.. I don't think anyone here can tell you for sure if you do or not. It depends on how much of a problem it is for you. You haven't mentioned any major problems in your life, but you might just not want to share that on a message board. If there aren't any problems that you think you need help with, and that a diagnosis of AS would help you get help with those problems, then there's probably no reason to "get it looked at." But that doesn't mean you shouldn't maybe stick around here, talk to other people with similar issues and stuff. Just knowing there are other people with similar problems can help sometimes.



SteveeVader
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31 Jul 2009, 6:37 pm

well if you feel there is no point to have it diagnosed don't bother it just mean you'll be registered diabled if in the UK and maybe in america I don't know the info on that I personally just decided to no bother going for diagnosis as I thought it would really do nothing if it is like mega improtrtant and you need disclosure urgently go for it but its just a bothersome experience of talking to psychologists and sitting in a room with parents for the final assessment I know in america you do need a parent with you most likely as you are quite young you also sound pretty sound minded with no sensory issues as you never stated a lot of first posters state it

Well by your description I would say you definately most likely have high functioning autism which I say is mild aspergers I personally would give it a few years because mild aspergers tends to degenerate and I think you should just live on and not get too obsessed and concenrate o piloting I am kinda bias though lol cus I think mild aspies should not really bother and hey I know plenty of intelligent people who tend not to surround themselves with people and prefer to be alone doing their own thing and do as you say the once a month meet up lol the researching could be your OCD with the need for accuracy

and before people flame me lol I believe in reasonable explainaton and looking at the alternative just because someone does not like socialising does not make them aspergic or autistic

I would like to know what yo feel like doing

take care



Sira
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31 Jul 2009, 11:49 pm

Well thanks so much for your replies.
I think that a diagnoses may have been helpful if it had been earlier and may have helped my social developement and perhaps helped me develops the ability to care about broader things and perhaps this knowledge would have made my earlier school years less miserable, but as it stands I am rather satisfied being alone without social ties or friendships to worry about. I just think that it's nice to know that there might be a reason beyond "weirdness" that I would rather spend my time obsessing over random topics and devoting hours and hours to researching them rather than hanging out with "friends" dowtown or participating in frivolous (to me) social games that my parents and peers insist that I partake in.