Aspies For Freedom

I talked to the psychologist this morning, and am now diagnosed!

He said I would have no problem getting a piece of paper if I were to pursue one, saying I have it. He's also worked with autism-assessment at the local hospital (which is the only place to get one around here), so he knows his stuff...

Very, very relieved and happy!

Congratulations!!! Are you planning on making it official?

I don't know yet... I'm just happy to have someone who knows what he's talking about to confirm it I don't really need a piece of paper.

Gratz!

Congratulations

I'd recommend making it official if you need extra help with uni etc. If not, be happy!

Thank you! I don't really need help - the only thing they can give me is extra time during exams (and I generally only use half of the alloted time due to writing extremely fast - I have to, if not I lose my train of thought) So, at the moment I don't see the need for a piece of paper telling me what I already know and what he confirmed.

The only reason he couldn't give me a 'proper' diagnosis is because he doesn't have the facilities to give me a brain scan, which apparently is a part of the assessment at the hospital here.

Never heard of it.

Me neither, until today, so I take this as an official diagnosis - he said things like "you fulfill all the criteria for Asperger's", "You would have no problem getting a diagnosis at the hospital" and "I've used the same questions they ask there".

I found a pdf-file at the hospital's site, but I think it's only used for diagnosis in children. You can find it at http://sus.no/templates/page____785.aspx

Click Asperger's Syndrome

Where are you?

Stavanger, Norway.

You are lucky.  You will never know what it's like to have the kind of executive dysfunction/attentional problems I have...  for example if there's a boring/difficult book I'm required to read, and it's only 300 pages, either I will have to give up because I can't maintain focus.  If I was to read such a book outside of school, for my own interests, normally I would take at least 3 months to read it.

Oh, I can't? Who's to say I haven't? I have huuuge problems getting through the required reading. Unfortunately for me, my uni doesn't take mental disabilities into account and therefore don't offer any help.

Don't think you know me on the basis of one paragraph.

I am sorry to be presumptuous... generally I think someone who goes to Uni and can write fast enough to not need extra time would also be a good reader... but I suppose I am wrong.  My fault, I'm sorry.

Anyhow, apart from AS, my greater reason for not doing college is lack of intelligence.  I see how most people with AS here have a gifted IQ, and I wish they knew what it was like to have multiple learning disabilities.  There are some with a gifted IQ who have learning disabilities, of course, but I am not such a person.  I'm not gifted, and I also have many learning problems, beyond reading difficulty.

I'm a good reader if it's something that interests me. My subjects interest me when I start, but the interest drops and I much more prefer to do what I'm currently interested in Also, there's a limited range of subjects to choose from, because I'm at such a small university (but it's the only school here you don't have to pay for and I cannot afford to pay for an education), so I have to take such-and-such subject to get a degree - this semester that includes old Norse. It's not that it's not interesting, but I have a hard time applying myself to it because writing and photography are my two biggest interests at the moment (+ reading up on Asperger's/autism).

I'm sorry you're struggling