I have a lot of aspie traits, I've taken quizzes online that said I was probably an aspie, and people seem to notice that I am "weird" or "awkward" in certain ways (One person described me as "twitchy"). My question is, should I go get officially diagnosed? My mom is very NT, is obsessed with being "normal" and judging everyone else she doesn't deem as such, and has always had issues with me being "different", so I think she'd be devestated if she found out I was an aspie (or if I had any kind of psychiatric problem). I'm still a minor (15), so if I got diagnosed would she have to know? Should I even bother with the whole diagnosis thing?
Some times when I read post from teenagers on the forum who are so similar in many ways to how I was at the same age I do think my life would have been better if AS had been known about in the early '90's. That said if I had not met my current GP in December 2006 I would not have know about AS and would still have been considered to suffer from stress. I am now persuing an AS diagnosis because I am really just interested to know more about myself. It is unlikely to make any difference either way to how the rest of my life progresses, except I would be considered disabled.
Certainly as an adult your parent or the person who brought you up needs to be involved in diagnosis. I don't know if this is true of minors. I would say that going for a diagnosis is a good idea. However be prepared as I am to be told you are not AS. I think it is best to be open minded.
A few years ago, when I was 29, my mother's best friend (who had known me since I was 10), suggested I might have AS. (My mother once wanted me to get diagnosed, so I know she wouldn't be devastated.) Later that year, I started going to a psychologist because I realized I was scaring my friends with an "angry face". (Stressed out from grad school, etc.) I saw my mom after leaving the first session and she was practically in my face about getting an AS diagnosis. She offered to pay for some sessions if I'd ask about it, so I did. The doctor kind of laughed, made a remark about self-diagnosis, said I have the personality type and that he'd diagnose me if I really wanted him to. I declined. (It was all new to me then, and given a choice, I'm not going to put on a label about something I know little about.)
In recent months, I started thinking about it again, realizing social stuff doesn't just come naturally to me, and reconsidered. I took three of the online tests and they all say yes (or, very likely). I've thought alot about my past, and certain things make me about 99% certain. So I joined this website and asked the very same question you're now asking. Several members replied and warned me of the potential consequences of getting an official diagnosis. All the recent bad publicity and certain actions by the US government has me scared to get a dx. (Talk to DogBrain, who's in a custody situation. And then there's another, I forget who at the moment, whose career was ruined over it.) However, there's one situation that will have me making an appointment and going for it without hesitation. That situation is, if plans take shape for a mass "coming out" of aspies, similar to what the GLBT crowd did years ago. Then, I'd go and try to get an official dx, out of a sense of fairness to those who are already dx'ed, so that I would be taking all the same risks. I was going to say alot on that here, but to not take this thread off-topic, I moved it to its own thread.
I guess it depends on whether you want to/need to know "for sure" and whether having that officialised would be of benefit.
The thing is, while my dad's side of the family has a history of people with Aspie traits (none of them were ever diagnosed), and my dad has a few of the traits himself (high intelligence, apparently he used to fidget a lot too), my mom's side of the family has a strong history of mental illness. Although I've been this way all my life, the reason I'd want to get tested is to make sure I don't have OCD, bipolar or anything else. Although I doubt I have those conditions, except for some mild OCD behavior perhaps.
Although I've been this way all my life, the reason I'd want to get tested is to make sure I don't have OCD, bipolar or anything else. Although I doubt I have those conditions, except for some mild OCD behavior perhaps.
Even if you did, these are often co-morbid with ASDs anyway.
Even though Kanner originally claimed that the relatives of his autistic patients had far less mental illness than those of other patients, Bipolar and OCD seem quite common among relatives of people with ADHD and autism.
I guess it depends on whether you want to/need to know "for sure" and whether having that officialised would be of benefit.
I'd like to know for sure, but I don't know if having that officialized would be of great benefit to me.
People already know I'm kinda "different," to begin with.
So I talked about maybe haveing Asperger's with a counsellor at my school. He said he works with 5 other (officially diagnosed) AS students and I "don't fit the profile" (I've seen him before for some unrelated issues). He's never really seen me interact with anyone besides him (I make an effort to make eye contact and not go off talking obsessively about the muppets or the Dixie Chicks), but he said it could be a possibillity. Now I'm really confused...
Good sign that he is giving it a chance at least
By not fitting the "profile" he probably means you don't fit a distorted stereotype (violent, hyperactive etc.)
And then there's another, I forget who at the moment, whose career was ruined over it.
Odd. Can any point to this thread? I'm curious about this. I was considering getting an official diagnosis to allow me to put in for certain "reasonable accomodations" which would be protected under the "Americans with Disabilities Act."
(specifically, I have a boss here who refuses to make any requests in writing, and wants to do everything face to face ONLY, and is offended if i try to communicate with him via email)
Here's the question: What would you get out of an official diagnosis? I pursued the matter so as to finally get my current domestic partner to realize that I was not intentionally pretending not to understand her every little emotional quirk, that I was not intentionally rubbing her entire family the wrong way. I had suspected for a while, but she wouldn't buy it until it had an official stamp. Weighing the matter out, I determined that I'd rather keep her company than lose it, so I put up with the diagnosis. (Yes, there's an ex-wife in the mix, too--my domestic situation is best described as "complex".)