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A-markz
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25 Apr 2010, 11:39 am

Surreal wrote:
A-markz wrote:
Thanks for the replies. I understand, of course, that if the criteria isn't present, than the problem isn't Asperger's. I just didn't know if there was anything that is used (when most of the criteria is met) to rule it out. I read a post a few weeks ago about someone who was certain that she had it. She went to get a diagnosis and the psychologist told her she read people too well. She fit most of the other criteria, but she was able to read people too well to be considered aspie.


I went through the criteria and was like, "Yep, that's ME...that's me...OOOO and THAT'S me, TOO!" Then I got depressed because even if it's not AS, something's wrong.


Thats pretty much how I'm feeling right now. AS would explain a lot, and I had that "Hey thats me!" feeling reading through the criteria. On the other hand, there is a lot that doesn't fit, but like you said diagnosable or not there is still something wrong.



ooOoOoOAnaOoOoOoo
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25 Apr 2010, 11:49 am

That's a good question. It's really difficult admitting to having what other people view as a disorder because of various stigmas and stereotyping. I have longed to be thought of as being like others, valued for my attributes like they are, given the same respect as them. However, this eludes me time and time again and I can never put my finger on why, exactly, my experience with other people aren't like other people's. This used to frustrate me to no end. I think about it less and less the more time I have away from the daunting social scene.



ImMe
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27 Apr 2010, 5:31 pm

NOT THIS **** AGAIN.

Here's the most realistic answer you're going to get - life is subjective; studying people means that you will find out you can't be sure of a ****ed thing in reality. Psychology is complete suggestion and AS can't be proven...yet, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist, but it does mean anything anyone tells you as a diagnostic tool to determine it in someone is not going to be 100% accurate; and the accuracy is always debated by someone who has an opposing valid viewpoint. And I don't care if people think that means I'm not an Aspie or that I am (it doesn't matter anyway, the world is dog eat dog and often any help is ill-executed), my mind is my own and I know what I know, what I know about others, what I think I know, and where and when to look for information that tells me if I am wrong or right about something and correct the mistake if there is one.

I'm serious...

If someone can give me information that can be proven, and not just a suggestion or viewpoint referencing the researcher's intellectual opinion, inclination, or focus, that would be great.



LK
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27 Apr 2010, 5:56 pm

[quote="ImMe"]NOT THIS **** AGAIN.
...quote]
It is perfectly understandable that a person on a site created with autistic people in mind would want to know how to be diagnosed for a disorder falling under the ASDs and/or want to know what does not qualify as such a disorder. Of course psychology is not exact and the oppinions of professionals vary, but it is the best that can be done at this time.
If threads like this pop up with great frequency on a myspace lifestyle forum or some other place of that sort, by all means complain about that ****.

Anyway...
I don't want to repeat what others have said about the requirements. I will say you must be careful when choosing a psychologist. Before I saw the neuropsychologist who diagnosed me, I saw a psychologist who told me I was too smart and adapted to have any type of ASD. Severity of symptoms will not only vary by person, but age and level of stress, of course.


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While Mr. Kim... has fallen prey to the inexplicable need for human contact, let me step in and assure you that my research will go on uninterrupted, and that social relationships will continue to baffle and repulse me.
- Dr. Sheldon Cooper (TBBT)


poopylungstuffing
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27 Apr 2010, 6:55 pm

Callista wrote:
You have to exclude stuff that would cause the same symptoms.

Ex. Kid who had a lot of early neglect. Has problems forming relationships and stims a lot. You'd need to rule out reactive attachment disorder.

Kid with a stutter and social anxiety; ostracised at school. You'd need to rule out social phobia.

Impulsive kid who's always saying the wrong thing in social situations and constantly fidgets... Rule out ADHD.

Three year old who isn't talking... rule out simple speech/language disorders; rule out deafness and auditory processing issues; rule out mental retardation...

Lots of stuff can look like autism, but isn't; and to complicate matters, a lot of the same stuff can coexist with autism too.

You really need to know a lot about psychology and neurology in general to tell the difference... though learning it is possible.


This is confusing, because it seems that many of these could be related to or comorbid with AS



CaptainTrips222
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30 Apr 2010, 2:22 am

poopylungstuffing wrote:
Callista wrote:
You have to exclude stuff that would cause the same symptoms.

Ex. Kid who had a lot of early neglect. Has problems forming relationships and stims a lot. You'd need to rule out reactive attachment disorder.

Kid with a stutter and social anxiety; ostracised at school. You'd need to rule out social phobia.

Impulsive kid who's always saying the wrong thing in social situations and constantly fidgets... Rule out ADHD.

Three year old who isn't talking... rule out simple speech/language disorders; rule out deafness and auditory processing issues; rule out mental retardation...

Lots of stuff can look like autism, but isn't; and to complicate matters, a lot of the same stuff can coexist with autism too.

You really need to know a lot about psychology and neurology in general to tell the difference... though learning it is possible.


This is confusing, because it seems that many of these could be related to or comorbid with AS


I know, right. I'm starting to wonder if I just have social anxiety, because I really don't a lot of the symptoms. But some of them I totally do, so I don't know.



AardvarkGoodSwimmer
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30 Apr 2010, 3:55 pm

And of course psychologists and counselors are just one resource among many. In addition, a psychologist can easily slide into the "be righter" mentality. It almost seems to be an occupational hazard!



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30 Apr 2010, 4:21 pm

j0sh wrote:
If you can walk into a a room full of people you don't know, have no difficulty initiating and maintaining a conversation with any of the other people, maintain good/comfortable eye contact the whole time, and pickup on subtle non-verbal queues like flinting - then you probably don't have AS. :-) . . .


And this is of course the Oskar Schindler level of social skills. I mean, this is easily, easily the top 5% of social skills.

It's a little like watching Roger Federer playing tennis on TV. Doesn't look so hard. How hard can it be? Okay, alright, but if you get out there and try to immediately do it, it's not necessarily going to come all at once. I However, if you take lessons, give a chance for rather mechanical skills to become more fluid, allow imperfection, keep working at it, and in ways that are fun and/or interesting to you, well, one just never knows. And remember, Roger sometimes misses cross-court passing shots (that is, even Roger Federer is not always Roger Federer!). And whether or not you win plaques and big money, you might enjoy some good games.

In addition, on the question of social skills, highly social people hop parties. They have several parties lined up for one night. If one kind of dulls out or bogs down, they have a ready-made, socially acceptable excuse to continue on to the next party. And it's so much easier to go to a party with a friend, rather than by yourself. Going to a party by yourself is highly ambitious.



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05 May 2010, 2:53 pm

Sound wrote:
. . . Since we're on the topic, be careful of using knowledge of flirting as a criteria. For me, it comprises a large bundle of specific behaviors that I was illustrated, one by one, until eveeeeeentually a pattern was evident. 8 years ago, I could not identify what constituted flirting if I saw it. 5 years ago I sometimes knew when I was seeing it, sort of(never if it was directed at me though). 3 years ago, I was copying the behavior in a rigid, un-nuanced fashion. And now, the behaviors and ideas link together in a broader, logical framework. It's not innate, or intuitive, but there is a rhyme and reason behind it, and the correct action for a given moment can be logically divined(if not immediately). . .

You know, I think athletes say something similar. You practice something mechanically and over time it becomes more unconscious, intuitive, flowing. And it's very much the zen approach, in that you're not making something happen, rather you're allowing something to happen.

And I'd also add, let a medium mistake simply remain a medium mistake. (I mean, even Drew Brees makes all kinds of mistakes)



tonmeister
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05 May 2010, 10:15 pm

Well, I posted on another thread that the researchers in the autism study I just participated in think that I have NLD and not Asperger's because I'm a little to comfortable making conversation. I have a lot of the other traits of ASD, and they did remark about my pronounced inability to make conversation. Of course, NLD and ASD are very similar in many ways, and some people think they're even different names for the same phenomenon. But these particular people apparently do distinguish between NLD and ASD, and they used my conversational ability to make that distinction. (Funny - I always thought my conversational skills were terrible.) Some have questioned this methodology, however.



EngishForAliens
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06 May 2010, 6:15 am

A big sign is if there was nothing present before your teenage years. Most emotional disorders start then wheras Autism was always there. If your first year at school was fun it's probably not autism.



poopylungstuffing
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11 May 2010, 2:43 am

EngishForAliens wrote:
A big sign is if there was nothing present before your teenage years. Most emotional disorders start then wheras Autism was always there. If your first year at school was fun it's probably not autism.


One could argue that a kid who experiences trauma and instability at an early age might start showing signs of emotional disorders at an earlier age than their teens...


I did have trauma and instablity..but I also had signs of developmental delay..and traits def. run in the family...but I have pondered over what parts the traumas and the genetics have had on how I evolved