Something I wrote for my Comp 101 class.

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This was written from a first person perspective.


I have learned a vital lesson in life during middle school and high school; that is to never use anything as a crutch. I am clinically diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome; it is a mild form of autism. People with Aspergers are high-functioning; they can pretty much do anything a normal person can. An Aspie can take the same normal classes anyone else can take, they can drive, they can hold onto jobs fairly well, even though the hiring process might be difficult for most of us. People with Aspergers prefer rituals and repetition over the spontaneous, have seemingly odd speech and communication patterns, poor eye contact and ver y limited interests…that they will gather much information and talk incessantly on. Some of the conditions can be reversed, for an aspie, better eye contact, communication with other people and broadening of interests are things that are learned, even though it is a headache to learn those things, people with Aspergers should not have excuses to outgrow these problems.

In my adolescence, I was a very lazy boy. I would always find excuses to not do homework, for that I paid dearly with declining grades. I never made much attempts to evaluate my obsessive social behaviors and to correct them around other people, which resulted in friendless years in middle school and a girl hating me (almost to the point of ordering a restraining order on me) in my freshman year.

I am not sure what caused me to change myself in high school, maybe it was because high school grades mattered whereas middle school grades did not matter so much or maybe it was that situation I had with my crush back then. Whatever the reasons are, I did not regret reforming myself. This is my advice for all people with Asperger’s Syndrome; do not use your disability as a crutch to cheat past your school years. Bad habits associated with Aspergers Syndrome can and must be corrected by oneself before high school or during early high school, believe me, I’ve learned the hard way. Revising my own behaviors was an even harder process, but it must be done no matter the cost.

Even though I have learned to get over many of my bad habits and improved on some of my necessary habits, I still have Aspergers. I still have many of the traits a typical aspie would have, it is what defines us; our vivid imaginations, vast knowledge in esoteric topics. People with Asperger’s however must learn to get over some of their traits, must importantly to improve their communication skills with other people. Communication skills are vital in the real working world in that you need to be able to talk to fellow coworkers, supervisors, employers and so fourth to find success at work and get things done. People with Aspergers can not afford to keep their crutches and their excuses to make necessary improvements to themselves.