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Hello all!

My name is William and it has recently been brought to my attention that I am most likely autistic. Specifically Aspergers. I am a 32 year old male. It does appear to be high functioning (which, to me, is both a blessing and a curse). I was wondering though: what was it like for you when you first learned you had Aspergers (or autism in general)?

For me, it seems to fit. I've always known that I was different from most people so in some ways it wasn't really a surprise, more of a relief actually. While in other ways (mostly personal), it seemed to explain things but also simply posed more questions. Just making things more confusing.

For those who have theirs under control (if that's even possible, forgive me I'm still new to this), another thing I was wondering is: how did you determine what set you off? I have my suspicions as to what mine are but I don't know if I'm pinpointing them correctly. Based on what I've already researched, I know there isn't a hard, fast way of determining what it is for every person with Aspergers that sets them off (because it can vary wildly from person to person); so I'm not looking for that, per se, as much as I am methods of figuring out for myself that i'm correctly identifying it. I hope this makes sense.

Thank you in advance for any advice and I look forward to interacting with everyone more as time goes on.

William

What do you mean by something that "sets you off"?

Aspergers is not an episodic behavior. Its a condition.

Though some aspies have episodic behavior,like meltdowns, that go with it.

naturalplastic,

Thank you for your response. I guess that's what i'm talking about then. Meltdowns that is. Please forgive me, like I said I'm still new to this and I'm still trying to understand all the terminology. Anyway, i guess the easiest way to describe what I'm looking to understand is like this: myself, the doctor i'm seeing, and my family are all in agreement that I, most likely, am autistic. We believe it to be aspergers. Either way, it seems to be a high-functioning form of autism. Most people wouldn't peg me as being autistic. Although we haven't sought a full diagnosis yet, this feels like it fits to me, as well as the rest. What little I know of it that is. Where i'm having trouble is within myself. I can't seem to discern between what is the Aspergers and what isn't. Depression also runs in my family, so that is something I have to deal with from time to time as well. Now I realize these two things aren't exactly the same thing but when I run into a situation that makes me 'frustrated' (i.e. - my version of 'meltdown'); I have trouble recognizing it as Aspergers. Are their any sorts of methods for figuring this sort of thing out? Or am I way out in left field here?

William

Lots of reading of Wrong Planet helps to figure it out. I've learned far more by comparing notes with other autistics than I did from any of the assessors, doctors, therapists and other assorted "experts". Mostly because none of them were actually autistic and only working from someone's pet theory, or worse - a seminar on autism. Oh, and most of them haven't really changed their views since they were originally trained which means much of their info is grossly outdated.

Insofar as setting off meltdowns, for me it happens most easily when I am in a state of sensory overload, especially auditory. It's worse if I'm tired. And far, far worse if I've had to be social without adequate down time to recharge (I'm also an introvert).

I can identify. I was where you are exactly 7 months ago when it all started to really fall into place. And, yes, when you are high functioning it is hard to be taken seriously.

But, I am going to say this: You are in a very good position if your family AND your doctor are in agreement. That is an excellent place to start.

For me it has finally allowed me to put my life in perspective.

And, Edenthiel is right. You will learn a lot here. If you go through what I went through, you will read something and just think.."Wow...that it! I know exactly what that means."

You will put pieces together.

I'm pretty much the same as Edenthiel as far as the meltdown triggers. The one things I would add is that simple inconsistencies with things can trigger outbursts if I feel being evaded or lied to. And, I am realizing that is me and not the other person.

I wish you luck. What part of 'Bammy you in? My family is from around that area in Alabama and Georgia.

I only found out I had it at age 60. Even before my formal diagnosis, I was convinced I had it as it answered many questions about my life. Even some I didn't realize were questions. I found this site after my diagnosis. This site can give you deep insights about autism. Use it and feel free to ask questions, even stupid sounding ones. Remember there are no stupid questions. When you get a diagnosis, fight for help through your healthcare plan. If they say they have no resources for adults with autism, don't stop. Tell them they are required by law to provide resources. Actually, I live in California, so you may want to check with your state government to see that resources are in fact required. In any case, fight for help. I have gotten the most out of seeing a therapist who specializes in autism.

Thank you everybody for your replies. I could have sworn I replied to this last night but I think I might not have actually posted it. Anyways, Thank you for all the encouragement. It has been a little bit of a rough transition, trying to get my head around all of this new information, but I feel like I'm going to learn a lot here. You will most certainly see me on here more often; so, I look forward to getting to know you all better as well as myself I guess.

And I currently live in Grant. It's about 30 mins outside of Huntsville (Northern AL). I've lived in GA most of my life but I have family all over the south so AL/GA trips are a somewhat usual occurrence for me.

William