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ShogunSalute
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11 Oct 2009, 8:28 am

Asperger's is NOT a spectrum disorder, it is ON the spectrum of Autism disorders.



Callista
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12 Oct 2009, 12:02 am

If that were true, all cases of Asperger's would be pretty much the same. But they're not; they're different.

If you look at the distribution of people we have here, you see that Asperger's fades smoothly into neurotypical, classic autism, and PDD-NOS. There aren't any sharp dividing lines and there are a lot of people here who are on the fuzzy border between Asperger's, PDD-NOS, neurotypical, and classic autism. The cases of Asperger's that are closest to neurotypical can be called "mildest", though of course even there you will have quite a lot of diversity because AS can express itself differently in different people, so you can't presume that even "mild AS" will be the same from person to person.

Actually, you can get this just from the definition of "spectrum". Think of the light spectrum, all the way from gamma rays to radio waves. Pick out one part of this spectrum--let's say visible light, really a very small part--and look at it. The visible light still has different wavelengths, which we detect as different colors. And each color goes from longer to shorter wavelengths, too. A continuous spectrum, by definition, means that any sub-section of that spectrum must also be continuous. Autism's that way too, except that you'd have to say there are multiple spectrums, because there are multiple dimensions along which you can measure autism.


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tangerine12
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12 Oct 2009, 2:49 am

This is an interesting topic, GreenGrrl. And it seems to have started off more threads about 'mild' Asperger's (or maybe that's a coincidence) :D
I agree with the others whom have stated that it is possible to have a 'clinically significant impairment' even if you have friends and/or a job.
1. You could find it hard to be emotionally close to people, so your friends are more like 'close acquaintances'. Therefore, you might only have a few friends (but they aren't what people would call 'close friends').
2. You can only get along well with people whom are 'eccentric' or 'strange', and you can't relate to anyone who is what society labels as 'normal'.
3. You might have feelings of isolation/anxiety/depression because of the above (even if you have 'friends').
4. Maybe the feelings of isolation/anxiety/depression have caused you to self-harm or take drugs/alcohol to feel better.



Dancyclancy
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12 Oct 2009, 4:25 am

Tangerine12 Hi! You have brought the discussion back to where it started with Greengrrl's
concerns.


It seemed to get hijacked ! And became a very coherent dialogue.....extremely lucid... souls in unison or should that be accord? An interesting side thread ShogunSalute and Blindspot149. :o

It would be good to hear how Greengrrl has found the discussion. :idea:



tonka
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12 Oct 2009, 4:53 am

I've thought about this a lot too. Initially I couldn't accept my diagnosis of (very mild) Asperger's as I had this image in my head of Rainman... and the boy from 'the curious incident of the dog in the night time'... and 'born on a blue day'.

However, I slowly began to recognise aspects of my personality that could be explained with a diagnosis of Asperger's - sensory sensitivities, difficulty in picking up on social cues, learning to socialise in an intellectual way, finding social occasions tiring, being more interested in things besides relationships etc etc... and the fact that the people who diagnosed me are supposedly world leaders on the matter (Minds and Hearts in Brisbane).

I don't really care if people think that I have it or not. It simply explains a lot of the pain I've been through and if it helps me get on with life then a diagnosis of Asperger's makes sense to me.


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Blindspot149
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12 Oct 2009, 5:10 am

Dancyclancy wrote:

It seemed to get hijacked ! And became a very coherent dialogue.....extremely lucid... souls in unison or should that be accord? An interesting side thread ShogunSalute and Blindspot149. :o




It was strange, I thought we had a moment and then............he ran away blocked this website from ALL of the computers where he 'works'

I think it was someone else, making a very good logical point, that finally had him running for the exit :arrow:

The positive aspect was that a lot of people were posting some very sensible and helpful information that otherwise might have taken longer to appear :?:

I have revised my view of things.

So my position is now AS? Yes I am.

Do I cope quite well despite my AS? Not so sure! I thought I did, through sheer intellectual effort, but I am now more alert to the possibility that I do not, in the same way that I was almost completely unaware of my AS traits (with the exception of my tendency to speech making/talking to much, that even an unrecognised Aspie would notice :wink: )

I dont want to risk another episode like yesterday by trying to label this so that's all folks :!:



GreenGrrl
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12 Oct 2009, 5:14 am

Dancyclancy wrote:
Tangerine12 Hi! You have brought the discussion back to where it started with Greengrrl's
concerns.


It seemed to get hijacked ! And became a very coherent dialogue.....extremely lucid... souls in unison or should that be accord? An interesting side thread ShogunSalute and Blindspot149. :o

It would be good to hear how Greengrrl has found the discussion. :idea:


Everyone has such interesting opinions! :D
But yeah, back to whatever it was I wrote on the first page, turns out the kid in my class doesn't have AS. I asked him why he was telling people he had it, and he told me that he's sick of people asking him why he's so quiet. I felt slightly sorry for him, as I can relate to being asked why I'm 'so quiet'. But it's not good to tell people that you have a neurological condition when you actually DON'T. :x
I heard about a church minister who pretended he had cancer so he could get money. And apparently they even have a spot in the DSM-IV for people like that! 8O


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AnnePande
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12 Oct 2009, 7:37 am

I have mild AS, but I know it's not only introvertedness or shyness. I'm usually not shy.

Besides, there are other AS traits than just being introverted or shy. I mean, I do stim, have difficulty concentrating on many things at the time, I'm inertial, interact socially awkwardly at times, etc.



Nightsun
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12 Oct 2009, 9:57 am

I went to a specialist for my young HFA daughter to get a diagnosis, while talking about her, I told sometimes about myself and the specialist said: "well, I'm pretty sure that you have Asperger but there is no meaning in getting a DX because you have, friends, job, wife, childrens, so.. who care?".

I don't think that being an Aspie means that you can't have success in life, but having success in life could mean that there is no meaning to put a label on yourself.


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racooneyes
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12 Oct 2009, 2:03 pm

GreenGrrl wrote:
And apparently they even have a spot in the DSM-IV for people like that! 8O


I'm stunned. I've known about the disorder below for ages too just didn't connect it :oops: Now I see why people would do it.


Quote:
Münchausen syndrome is a term for psychiatric disorders known as Factitious disorders wherein those affected feign disease, illness, or psychological trauma in order to draw attention or sympathy to themselves. It is also sometimes known as hospital addiction syndrome or hospital hopper syndrome.

Münchausen syndrome is related to Münchausen syndrome by proxy (MSbP/MSP), which refers to the abuse of another being (typically a child) as a result of having a psychological disorder.


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