It's nice to hear someone in the public eye talking about Aspergers and Autism in a positive light. Not as something which needs to be cured or is wrong.
I wish there was more support for adults diagnosed with Asperger syndrome (AS) in Britain. There might be good support for children diagnosed with it these days which is good. I think it is very sad that a lot of adults diagnosed with Asperger syndrome (AS) are unemployed. I think more women have it than people think but it is a bit different for women maybe? Sadly, in the past quite a few people with Asperger's were misdiagnosed with schizophrenia and other psychiatric conditions.
AndreaElizabeth100 It is more difficult to diagnose in girls because they quite often manage to mask their symptoms better. They will still have obsessive interests, but they aren't usually as unusual as with boys. Their interests are often similar to those of their peers, but on a deeper level. Girls are naturally better at socialising too. I think this may be partly because girls are more in tune with their exact feelings and can deal with them more accordingly, wheras boys are more logical and often overthink their emotions, which further intensifies them. This generally leads to suppression. This is one reason why girls usually mature quicker emotionally.
Unfortunately it is still under diagnosed and late diagnosis in the UK is prevalent. This can have a devastating impact on child and family, the sooner a diagnosis is made the sooner the right support can be accessed. No diagnosis unfortunately equals no support.
Indeed. I only got diagnosed in July, a couple of months before turning thirty. Has changed my perspective somewhat and has helped a lot in understanding why I can struggle with what many others find simple, yet can do certain things most people seem to struggle more with. Was confused as to why this was the case, but now I know and can get the support I need. I could have been diagnosed as a child, but my peadiatrician, whom I was sent to due to having developmental issues, simply shrugged it off as something I would grow out of. I eventually learned to cope to a reasonable degree, but certain situations still bring massive anxiety to me, parties and the like. The fact I struggle differentiating voices in a loud room with a lot of conversation is very frustrating. Too much sensory input for me to handle in the context of a social situation. Let me hear a band or orchestra though, and I can break down most of what is going on fine. I am grateful at least, that I have been able to attenuate many issues I have had and apparently come across well to most people. I am also grateful that I can get support and in having traits which are more on the milder side. Diagnosis really needs to be looked into more, and the speed to get a diagnosis definitely needs improving. I had to wait 40 weeks from referral in Scotland, but many in England and Wales can wait years. This really needs sorted out.
It's also overdiagnosed, and similar to other things. Some mental problems, if not most, are caused by how we were brought up. Ever heard of complex PTSD?
i think the world of Chris ,me as a total reject from most people, Chris is one of a very few who's a likeable company and in a way a counsellor and helper of people like me who has a personality disorder from birth and unfortunately exacerbated through traumatic experiences !
I agree! I've only discovered him recently, but I quite like him, including various things that may seem peculiarities until you think about them a little bit longer or just accept them instead of make a fuss about them. There may often be too much a tendency of people making a fuss about other people's harmless habits and joys.
I would disagree there's a lot of support for adults, because I was diagnosed in my 30s and then that was it, I was left to get on with things myself. I don't even understand what it is. All I was told about was social groups for autism and to watch videos by people I find annoying online.
yep zero support and a lifetime of abuse fro ignorant mental health services, finally diagnosed at 58 and wish i was dead, even had a doctor dr rishco make mocking noises and gestures whilst pushing his face to mine Dr rishco ,newcastle emlyn has signalled my soon to be suicide no more abuse .
Oh well what would I know, I only have a PhD in Autism research and am autistic to boot. I think Chris would benefit a great deal from meeting with the autistic community, perhaps he would like to come to next years Autscape, he would be very welcome. Diagnosis is a journey, you learn over time that you are not necessarily what other people tell you you are, the definition does not belong with the medical profession but with us the people with the label.
That is something I am interested in doing myself. I am 30, and was diagnosed with "Childhood Autism" as opposed to Asperger's due to a developmental delay back in July. My paediactrician missed a lot of the signs. I always had a nature of wanting to do good by others and rarely had tantrums/meltdowns, if ever. I struggled with the first few years of primary school but my concentration improved and I ended up performing well academically and forming decent relationships, but had my fair share of bullying which thankfully stopped in secondary school. Since I was a well behaved student, teachers never raised anything about it. I came to be known as "a bit odd but a good guy", apparently. And I have had to constantly analyse what people's motivations were, and figure out body language and notice how people interact. I would then be constantly adapting my behaviour and getting better relationships and experiences from it. Luckily this seems to have been easier for me than for others, but it still is very much a part of my life. Luckily much of this conscious effort has manifested in a level of subconscious uptake, taking off some of the strain of constant conscious analysis. By the time I was 22, I suspected I may well be on the spectrum. But circumstances drove me to seeking a diagnosis, and the Autism Specialist, half way through session one, said he was almost certain I had autism (apparently rare to say on the first session for adult diagnoses). After session 2 I got a formal diagnosis. Has helped me understand a lot about myself but would love to meet others and find out how they experience the world. I do have an old friend I haven't spoken to in years who has it and is also very high-functioning. Will definitely get back in contact with him, and find a group here in Norway where I have moved to. Apologies for the long comment. I tend to still get issues filtering out what information is genuinely useful to provide in context, and often give too much. At least I have definitely experienced benefits. It helped me gain tremendous focus in music, and I ended up reaching an advanced level in both bass guitar and electric and acoustic guitar and ended up doing very well in college. But I can't face the music industry. The networking and instability is too much for me. Changing careers by going to study Computer Science, an area I have been fascinated in since I was a child, seems a good idea and should prove a good environment for me. Couldn't agree more with what you said. We are people with different concentrations of traits, it is a spectrum, not a continuum after all, and these traits interact with out other personality traits. We are people, just a little different and can have our own struggles and benefits, especially high-functioning people. I hope more people will become more educated and understanding of autism over time. Also, as somewhat of a science geek who reads scientific papers from time to time, would you recommend any regarding autism in terms of new, or relatively new research which are not hidden behind publishing company paywalls? Thank you for your time and patience. Were you diagnosed when you were young, or as an adult, by the way? All the best.
I after watching Chris know i have aspergers, had it all my life, GP not interested 🙃, at 63, only go to shop, no socialising, cant stand noise. Cant wark anymore 😪.
It's not for the GP to judge, get them to refer you to an autism assessment clinic. If they refuse, get a second opinion. There are other routes too, don't let one person's ignorance put you off. GPs are just people, some are good at their job, some aren't. They don't have authority, they've just been through training and have a certificate.
Intense focus is a trait of the advanced masculine mind which has been stigmatized as "Aspergers". The fact is some men (and a very few women with more masculine minds) have minds developed in a manner which lends itself to more focused thinking. It is actually a higher form of intelligence. This has always been the trait of the more intelligent among people, but is now stigmatized because it threatens the increasing push toward socialism, because it is inherently individualistic and leads towards individual progress and innovation which threatens group power.
What tosh - the greatest minds in our history and the most influential today have a wealth of friends and community around them - people with aspergers I find insufferably arrogant. They are blind to so much and accuse people of jealousy all the time when its anything but. I ve seen a friend with high functioning autism happy and then wilt - his memory is terrible but the worst thing about him is his self perception, he doesn't have any. Its as if he doesnt realise that NT's simply dont spend their lives trying to show off as its considered bad manners. All he ever does is show off. Whats the point in cleverness without wisdom?
Firstly, a focused mind is not the only trait associated with Asperger's (plus, what a patronising thing to say about women). Secondly, everyone with Asperger's is different and has different strengths and weaknesses. Thirdly, yes we're individualistic but hat doesn't mean we are all capitalists; usually quite the opposite. Fourthly, since when has there been a push towards socialism? Unfortunately this isn't the case.
I'm a female with aspergers and it is a very masculine way of thinking. I find it much much harder to chat with or bond with other women. There is a difference in the way most (not all, obviously) men and women think, whether by nature or nurture. There is a gap between regular men and men with aspergers, but the gap between a woman with aspergers and regular women is pretty huge. It feels as if I am speaking a completely different language. Whereas, I can normally communicate with men a bit more easily. I have met arrogant people with and without aspergers, so I'm not sure if it is connected. Although if you are good at one skill and spend your entire life being mocked for everything else but that skill, then chances are you will try to promote that specific attribute when you meet people (which I'm sure can be annoying as hell). I think you can also build up an intolerance of other humans if you are bullied for long enough. I used to really hate and fear people, since I was kicked around so much growing up. But with age you tend to calm down a bit and show more tolerance to people, whether or not they understand you. I think that can be the same for anyone who is bullied or abused as a kid/teen. I'm not going to get into politics, as I don't have the energy right now. But I think many of us with aspergers give up trying to build relationships on normal grounds and instead spend our lives trying to be useful and win people over in other ways. We don't know how to do the 'social stuff', so we just aim to offer our skills instead. I still do this out of habit. I don't expect people to like me (and wouldn't know if they did), so I just try to be useful while I'm on this earth. Edit: I would also add that for many people with aspergers, other humans can seem as though they are constantly lying. Things like white lies, semantics, body language, etc all get missed, and we instead take people at their exact word. It is overly logical and not something we realise until much later, if at all. Many of the people I know without aspergers also say things and then forget they have said them, which I used to find infuriating as a chlid as I assumed it was deliberate lying. Until you learn how regular people communicate and think, it can lead to a deep mistrust of humans. That was a major issue that I had to deal with. Although I think it is easier for younger kids today who are diagnosed, as they at least have a support network and people can explain these things early on in life.
We are born with built-in obselescence. Grow to optimum maturity then biodegrade gradually. The rate depends on genetics, nurture, environmental and social factors. We die mostly from cancer, pneumonia, dementia, war etc. Treatment is mostly by cut and paste surgery, or being bombarded by nasty chemical cosh. True Christians know why we die. Death the enemy opposite of life Romans 5:12- 6:23
