For a long time I really resisted my diagnosis because I thought I was too different from the stereotypical aspie as portrayed in the media.

Over the course of the last couple years I have done a lot of self directed research and reading, including many posts in this forum (and another much larger and more intimidating aspie forum) I have come to the conclusion that while there are many common traits, there is also a great deal of variation within the aspie community.

So while the typical media stereotype may be an asexual/introvert, there are also hypersexual/extrovert aspies, which is something that I originally thought was incompatible with an AS diagnosis.

Did anyone else feel like they did not fit their internalized concept of AS when they got diagnosed?

I'd dispute that there are extrovert aspies. The autistic spectrum is characterized, by definition, by an unusual degree of introspection and self-absorption. Describe what you mean by 'extrovert'? Are you, in fact, just covering or over-compensating?

This post was last modified: 10-16-2012 11:42 AM by Klaus Harmenstadt.

I was in denial for years.... couldn't accept myself till I was out of High school.

I self diagnosed before anything so there was no problem accepting the neurotype...now, the characterization of the typical "aspie" was/is a little harder to understand because there is so much variety....for example, I didn't understand how my empathy score could be so low.... I "pass" well enough. Understanding where it could be a disability is difficult...but I am expanding my understanding of what "disability" actually means in the context of neurodiversity.

I thought the same thing, and because I am actually pretty outgoing myself I thought it invalidated the Dx.
After reading about it more I found that according to the standard classifications there are two groupings of autistic that can have extrovert tendencies.  

The "Active but Odd" and the "Stilted overly formal"

Also remember just because you are extroverted does not mean you are actually "good at" being social.

I do not have any studies to back this up but, I think a a "Class clown" personality might fit into the "Active but Odd" class, they overcompensate for their awkwardness by trying to mask it with humor.

The "Stilted, overly formal" class tends to happen when social interaction is desired, but not understood so they overcompensate by learning or developing complex sets of rules to navigate social interaction.

Check the diagnostic criteria. No requirement for introversion. Introversion, I suspect, can be a learned response to a world that can be very cruel to a young autistic or aspie.

I think you are right.
Being both physically and socially awkward leads to being bullied and picked on,
which then develops into shyness and leads to more negative ("enemies") and fewer positive interactions (friendships),
fewer friendships leads to even fewer opportunities to practice and learn social skills which leads to introversion and sometimes hostility.

That makes sense to me.

My son got his dx first, so the question for me only was: on the spectrum or "just" BAP

"Just" BAP?

I was 12 when diagnosed and I didn't start having doubts until I started to read about it. I am just too different than the other aspies. But I do not doubt I have traits.

As I understood it, BAP means you have "only" one or two out of the "triad of impairments", so you won't get a dx (AS or HFA, whatever).
I don't understand whether you know how it's spelled out, I think Broader Autism Phenotype.

Or BAP can mean you are close to have it but you don't have enough to be on the spectrum.

Never heard that one before, thank you for explaining.

Is it like PDD-NOS?

I delayed getting my youngest son DX because every time I mentioned an odd behavior to my mother, she'd just laugh and say, "don't worry, you did that too..."

I was a serious hand flapper.  I guess it drove my mom crazy.  I also toe-walked, memorized things quickly, taught myself to read at age three, was very rigid about how I did things, played alone and in odd ways, and preferred a pedantic style of speech.  

So when my son got his DX, my subsequent DX was pretty obvious.  Then my other son got his DX.

I heard that in DSM V they are going to remove Apergers as a distinct Dx and officially meld it back into autism.

According to this, the diagnostic criteria are already pretty difficult to differentiate.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11411788