So... I don't have Aspergers

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Yupp, I just got the official non-diagnosis.

They explained it to me like this;
If people with no Asperger traits are on this end, and people with all Asperger traits are on that other end, and we draw the diagnostic line here(pointing to roughly 70% across the line), you are somewhere around there(pointing to an area spanning between 45% and 55%). They also told me that in 20 years time, I might be diagnosed, but with their current methods, I did not fit.

So what I got out of it was.. yes I have many Asperger traits, 45-55% of all, according to professionals, but still not enough to get a diagnosis. They draw the line 15-25% too high for me. So here I am, in nomans-land with lots of problems, without a diagnosis. I can't help but feel it would have been easier to finally get a label, but at the same time I know I should be happy I lack those 15-25%.

They will follow up though, luckily, and I will get help within my biggest problem areas. I just needed to get this off my chest.

I don't dare to assume that I truly understand what you have experienced, but the doctor who diagnosed me with PDD NOS told me that if humanity were one long band, then normality ("neurotypicality") is a section located somewhere in the middle of the band. According to him, I have fallen slightly outside normality. Hmm, maybe my situation is identical to yours.

The saddest part is that being "just outside of normality" is much worse than being far outside of it, because we're the people that fall through the cracks. We aren't so disabled that we can get any assistance or services, yet we can suffer from severe depressions and anxiety, social isolation, chronic insomnia, etc.

I did get a diagnosis, but just barely, and only after complaining loudly and persistently. Sometimes I even doubt it myself, but I meet, not a few, but ALL the criteria, so I will assume it is very correct. However, I am intelligent, graduated form college with a 4.0 gpa, I've been a department store manager, and travelled internationally. I've heard over and over by friends and relatives "there's nothing wrong with you. You just need to change your attitude" and when I can't change my attitude, I'm just lazy and enjoy letting poeople feel sorry for me...

Anyway, due to all this, I have become an autism advocate... So to advocate for you, Blownmind, you might just want to see someone else and get another opinion. If that doesn't do it, just remember that you know yourself better than any health professional does and if you feel that you have AS, then no one can take that away from you.

Could be, could be. I wouldn't want that situation on my worst enemies though, so you have my sympathies.


Luckily I get some assistance to cope from day to day, but in regards to arranging things in a potential workplace, not having a diagnosis actually makes getting/keeping a job harder.


Check, check, check and check.


I have been complaining, hopping from person to person to get to the right people to assess me the last 8 months. This is the only time I have gotten a definitive answer though, but the thought of enduring another 8 months to get a second opinion is daunting.


I also meet all the criteria, but it seems with no official written history confirming it in my childhood they have a hard time setting a definitive diagnosis. I have a bachelour degree in computer engineering, but I barely got through because of social anxiety, and even worse, I have never actually applied for a relevant job because of my anxiety of interviews. I have had jobs, but those were mostly refferals from family, no interview. I get that "You're lazy, just change your attitude" a lot too, as if I havn't tried.


I'm a bit like you in that departement, one week I an 100% sure I have AS, then the next week I read a lifestory from someone with AS, and then I think no, thats not me. Then the following week I can read another story and think; "thats me! spot on!". I can go back and forth like that, and its experience like that the last 8 months that is mentally taxing and leads me to most likely refrain from seeking a second opinion.


I do thank you for reading my thoughts and giving support. I will see where the followup will get me, and if I feel it stagnates too much, I WILL have to seek a second opinion shortly after.

Sweet pea hugs

I get that whole you-need-to-change-your-attitude thing too. Its so annoying because my parents think I'm lazy but they don't understand that sometimes I feel so emotionally drained that I can't do my work. I tried to get a diagnosis but I couldn't talk to the psychologist so I gave up on that. Hope it all goes well for you

Many shrinks don't believe Asperger's exist. The one you saw was clearly one and he fed you a line.

Get a second opinion.

I'm sure I would be denied one.

I'm cerain it's there but equally certain I'm too mild.

Last edited by Mdyar on 01 Nov 2012, 6:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.

may i ask..how you went about getting evaluated? Did you bring it up to the doctor? Or did they(doctor or family) mention about you getting evaluated?

Of course you may.

It started with my wife repeatedly asking me to take a personality test, Myer-briggs. I ended up with "INTJ", I checked out an INTJ forum, and then stumble upon Aspergers since it was a surprisingly high occurence of people with Aspergers within the INTJ category. Then I obsessed about Aspergers for a few weeks at first, buying books, reading A LOT about it, borrowing books from the library, writing page upon page with summaries, taking many many online tests that could prove/disprove I had Aspergers, seeing 3-6 movies about it. When both me and my wife was 100% sure I had Aspergers, I asked the doctor for an evaluation. The few weeks turned into a good 6 months of obsessing over Aspergers.

Oh, and my cousin also has Aspergers.

My obsession started a month back when I was asked to take the ASQ test by another guy who was sure he had it himself.
I have been reading A LOT of research papers, taking every possible test over and over again and my results are always in the spectrum.
This obsession started hindering my University stuff that I thought I would go to get tested. The first one saw me for an hour. Ok I rambled a lot. I think she had classic Autism in mind and said I dont have it when she doesnt know ANYTHING about me.
I am seeing someone next week and I plan to go with a written letter with all the symptoms listed.

But I was quite glad to find WP where I could finally identify myself with others.
I am quite tired of being told "everybody does that" when I worry about some of my quirks. Nobody seems to get how much energy I spend on trivial stuff.

But glad that you are getting help and support despite the non-diagnosis.

It's possible you fit into the Broad Aspergian phenotype.

The diagnosis can fluctuate from a shrink to another. Big deal. I wouldn't trust nobody, either myself.