How do you get diagnosed with Asperberger's syndrome?

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I would like to know how the diagnosis is made. Is it done by a psychiatrist? Psychologist? Team of specialists? Is there a comprehensive evaluation or is it a questionaire (like the Beck inventories) that you fill out yourselF?

As soon as I read about Asperbergers, I recognized myself. I have always felt different and not connected with people. As a child, I did not know instinctively how to play with other children; as an adolescent, I was way behind socially and I am suffering many decades later.

When I read about symptoms such as "does not make eye contact" I was astonished. I had no clue that you were supposed to. I tried making eye contact with someone at work this week to see if it was what I thought they meant. I looked directly at her eyes and it was not just difficult, it was painful. I don't know if I will ever do it again.

Not only do I not pick up on social cues, I also have difficulty distinguishing one person from another. This is not race or gender based. I worked in a law firm for several years. There were about a dozen white male lawyers mostly of Irish or Italian descent. Except for those with very distinguishable features - such as extremely heavy or had a beard, I could not tell who they were if they were not sitting in their office. If I met them on the street, I could figure out who they were. In other social situations (and there are getting to be less and less social situations) I have to be introduced to a new person over and over again.

Strangely, I graduated college and law school and am now working as an attorney. The fact that I definitely have an undiagnosed problem was reinforced last night when I was sitting at my desk at 7:00 p.m. when all the other attorneys had gone to a dinner function for a charity that the firm is involved with. When asked if I could to attend - I said no. (The unexplained reason beingI didn't want to go to dinner with a group of strange people). It hit me later on that the purpose of the function is not just to eat dinner, it's part of the business, I am obligated not only to attend but to
represent the firm, network, etc. etc.

I was so angry with myself. I had been frequently turning down dinners and other "networking" opportunities because I did not see them as business obligations and I still do not know how to "mingle' with strangers. I know that my bosses were annoyed about this but I did not understand why.

Why is it that some people instinctively know how to interact with other people and some, like me feel like they were deposited as a baby on the "wrong planet?" Is there a way to teach adults social skills when they are not, on their own, able to pick up on any social cues?

Any suggestions would be welcome. I have never been a happy person on this planet. Thanks.

whats asperberger's syndrome? is it similar to asperger's syndrome?

First of all you need to get the spelling of the syndrome right!

Oops, I mean Aperger's syndrome. I am not having a good day.

Let me try again - Aspergers. However, spelling is not the issue that is causing me pain.

I think it depends where you live.
But with me, I went to see a psychocologist and talked to him for about 1.5-2 hours. My mum had to fill in a questionnaire about me and the psychologist talked to her. It was just one person I had to see though when I went, I didn't have to speak to a group of people or anything.

boiled testicles for dinner again!

Last edited by squatterandtheant on 17 May 2007, 9:23 pm, edited 3 times in total.

Hell, it's your syndrome - spell it however you want!

Fiona, I have to say, you're one of the few adults I've "seen" who actually would benefit from an official diagnosis - then, when your bosses want to complain about your lack of networking skills, you can wave the diagnosis in their faces and tell them (in polite language, of course) to suck it up, because (assuming you're in the States) you're covered by the ADA.

You can usually get a diagnosis from a qualified psychiatrist, although you'll want to make sure he/she has some experience with autism-spectrum disorders. There may also be consultations with specialists, in certain cases. On the plus side, it doesn't involve drawing blood, or any invasive surgical procedures...

I was diagnosed with AS by a neurologist at the age of nine all because my parents thought that I was having seizures again. But, AS can diagnosed by a psychologist of any kind. However, you DO have to be careful in who you see. Some psychologists will misdiagnose you with disorders such as ADHD, PDD-NOS, or Obsessive/Compulsive Disorder. However, there are also those who know what they're talking about. For example, my mom went to see a psychiatrist and realized that instead of having Bipolar Disorder, she really has ADD. I recommend seeing either a psychiatrist or a social psychologist.

Deacon! what do you mean, we are coverd by the ADA ( assuming you mean Americans with Disabilities Act? You mean we get a wheel chair ramp, or something? I am seriously asking.

Merle

and Fiona? Welcome Home. I am in my 5th decade and just learned I had AS last year. Welcome home, dear. You have finally found the mother ship from whence we all came!
your time has come and times have finally changed.
welcome again ,sister.

Merle

I mean that with an official diagnosis, you can force schools and employers to make reasonable accommodations for your disability. You can make them give you extra time if needed, you can get soundproofing for your office if you have an office, etc. Also, you can avoid being fired for having meltdowns - they're part of the syndrome, after all, so employers tolerating them is as necessary as employers tolerating the presence of a seeing-eye dog for a blind person, or an ASL interpreter for a deaf person.

In the kind of jobs I've been able to get, that's not a major consideration, so I haven't bothered getting a DX myself. It would cost money, to no good purpose...

fiona,
Relax, everybody isn't like that, very very few here. Spell it any ol way your day tells you to. Lol, there will be things spelled right to dictionary level and some won't understand it, but that's just us. If we don't get it, we'll ask. Have a better day

I had Assburners Signboard once. I might have misspelled it though. Annoying isn't it, when people can't speel right.

If I get the spelling right does that mean I'm cured?

the idea of getting dx'ed or not is a whole world of it's own.

families can be very opposed to it because it's a genetic condition and you've dx'ed the whole bloodline really. i don't know that you can wave a dx in employers faces and expect them to accomodate you, they're more likely to get rid of you in some 'legal' way.

anyway, welcome to the wrong planet!

Yes. A diagnosis would be nice. Because I cannot read social cues, I do not respond to them - people sometimes think that I am doing something intentional - like avoiding them, or being snobbish. It also works the other way - I often think that people are angry with me or dislike me, whereas they may have no opinion about me at all. I used to think that I was just paranoid. But the more that I read about symptoms such as hypersensitivity to sounds, noise, etc. the more I think I fit the profile.

I would be interested in knowing if there are any adults who went through "training" to learn social skills that most people know instinctively.