Should I say something?

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I am 15 years old and have recently self-diagnosed myself as having Asperger Syndrome. I am almost positive that it is and was relieved when I came across it because I finally understood why I always felt so completely out of place. The problem is I don't know if I should say something to my mom. It's not like she hasn't noticed I'm different because she has, but she always says I'm just odd/unique/more mature, she never goes any deeper than that. Thinking back to when I was younger my behaviour was very strange when compared to my brother and classmates, but it has always been over looked. I want to tell her, but I've been agonising over her reaction. I can't even remotley imagine how she would react and I've been terrified to mention it. My family doctor has refered me to a psychologist (not becasue she thinks I have asperegers, but becasue she thinks I'm depressed), but it has been almost 5 months with no response from the children's hospital. Should I wait to see the psychologist and hope he/she pick up on it or mention it to my mom. If you believe I should talk to my mom could you please provide me with ways to bring it up because I'm at a loss.

Thank you and I appreciate any and all posts.

With my employer about a year ago, I printed out a list of symptoms I had found and knew he would recognize, then just passed it along to him and told him these things made sense to me and that I would be interested in hearing what he thought ... and the tactic or "strategy" there was to give him the opportunity to draw his own conclusion without any pressure or influence from me.

Maybe something like that would do something similar for your mother.

Ultimately its what you are comfortable with. If the diagnosis just helps you understand how you "work" better then you may not want/need to tell anyone. If you think that perhaps it would help your mom understand you a bit better then by all means go ahead and suggest it (with a good description handy for her so she understands what it is and how it might apply to you).

If you want to go for an official diagnosis then go for it, but its not necessary, particularly if you have been doing fine without it. I never got mine officially diagnosed because it would have kept me from getting into the military like I wanted, despite intel and electronics maintenance being a really good place for an Aspie (basic training sucks but following orders is something I can do!).

I would seriously consider mentioning it to your mom and discussing it before you see a psychologist though because once you get the diagnosis then you can't undo that. If you and your mom decide that getting a DX is best then that's great, but if not then it gives you feedback from someone who cares about you before having a shrink just label you if its not in your best interest.

Best advice: always listen to Darkmysticdream. She is a breath of cool-headed sanity in an otherwise pretty confusing world

My biggest concern for you going forward is not that you get diagnosed with AS (or that you don't) but that you get misdiagnosed with something else by a doctor not tuned in enough to recognize AS. If that happens, you may find yourself being prescribed all sorts of medication that you don't need (and hence should not want). Specifically, my thinking is that you may get meds to treat the "results" of AS -- like depression and anxiety -- but not get the help you need with the "cause." That is, behavioral therapy may be much better suited to your condition, and that option might get completely overlooked.

I wouldn't be "terrified" of letting your mom know how you're feeling. (In saying that, I'm assuming your mom is the kind, loving, accepting kind of mom. I know that not all of them are.) What's the worst reaction you can imagine her having?