I was reading LiveJournal today, the Asperger’s Syndrome community, and encountered the recurring topic: “I’m an Aspie, but my therapist denies it.” Okay, I’m not a therapist, but I’m about to play one online. (That’s sarcasm.) Self-diagnoses can be valid. They can be necessary when you need to start on…
The Autistic Me
Over the last few months, I’ve been asked several times about friends. More precisely, the question has been if I have any friends. When I read online comments from autistic (“ASD” and “Aspie”) individuals, many are upset that they have no friends and seem to do everything “wrong” in a…
Computers are the source of frustration for all of us at one time or another. Two nights ago, I lost a file with the outline of 50 pages I had read. I was using Windows, which was the problem — Windows can be a real nightmare when software misbehaves. (One…
Though the autistic label is fairly new, I have been labeled many things in the past. As I think about the past and present experiences, I realize that including bits and pieces from my evaluation in the book I’m completing will help others with similar experiences. I know I am…
Even as an adult in my mid-30s, I am struggling as a graduate student. I can do the work, I can read the texts, but I am struggling. What is the issue? Probably the most important of all: In eight months I have yet to form a single personal connection within…
I wasn’t even thinking about writing on or talking about my story until I arrived in Minnesota. Here’s one reason that changed: “You’re not really helping anyone if you become some sort of activist or motivational speaker.” I wasn’t sure how to respond. A professor was suggesting I not tell…
Many of the postings to blogs, bulletin boards, forums, and other forms of online expression I have read seem to reflect serious depression. Leaving aside the question of does online use cause depression or reflect it, I sense the postings do reveal a problem experienced by many HFA/AS (High-Functioning /…
There are people I consider mental health hypochondriacs. They read a list of symptoms or personality traits and self-diagnose themselves with everything from attention deficits to autism disorders. If there’s a way to excuse a lack of success, self-control, organization, healthy relationships, and general contentment, these people will find it…
As I compile my notes for essays and a book, I realize how much easier it is to be considered “different” your entire life versus a late-in-life diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome (AS) or High-Functioning Autism (HFA). The more I read about and communicate with AS students and adults, the more…
Probably the most difficult decision anyone with a developmental disorder can make is who to tell and how. I certainly do not have a good answer for either question, since I resist the labels experts have offered. There are benefits to disclosure, based on the experiences of others. First, you…