At this point, just about anything you do and anything you think has a disorder that describes everything about it. I'm not kidding. It is not an exaggeration.
A little bit geeky? Ah, like those Aspies! But wait, most people are geeky, to some degree. Those with AS just have so much trouble with it that they are at "sixes and sevens" to understand what all you crazy folks are yapping about, with your fancy social chatter!
You got angry over something? Ah, yes! Anger management disorders *nods sagely* very debilitating. But...it's only a "disorder" really if it seems to control every aspect of your life and you can't get normal activities done or hold down a job because of anger showing up at the wrong times.
As for YOU, my young friend...there is something called "oppositional defiant disorder." Yes, this is very serious. You get very upset about people in putative positions of authority imposing their will on you, and it seems almost like your moral duty to oppose the self-righteous jerks. But...wait, is this just normal rebelliousness, which is admirable, or are you getting yourself constantly in trouble for no good reason and undermining other people's attempts to live and work in a way that keeps authority from being necessary?
In the psychological community, something is basically considered an "illness" if it fills out two out of three of the following:
Deviancy: this means that society is unlikely to be equipped to manage it. Someone's feeling a little blue? Blue like everyone does sometimes? Feeling a little down because he's had a bad day? If it's in the normal ranges and due to an identifiable cause, your friend can give you a pat on the back, do something to cheer you up, and make it better. On the other hand, some people have really abnormal levels of unhappiness and emptiness that society is not equipped for dealing with, and that can be a problem. Nevertheless, some deviant behaviors, such as homosexuality, may not be the "norm," but if they're not really bothering anybody and not really a danger to anybody, then there is just no purpose in trying to treat it like some kind of illness.
Danger: if you are a danger to yourself and others in a normal way and in a way that doesn't really bother anybody too much, then you need a dose of good common sense. Let's say you're weaving through traffic and cutting the fool. Maybe only a few people have really reacted to it, but it's still dangerous. Fortunately, it's such a common behavior that the traffic cop just has to pull you over and write you a ticket, explaining that you might have committed several misdemeanors--or possibly even a felony--and tell how he's doing you a favor letting you off, and maybe you learn your lesson. It's a normal, although stupid, behavior, and society can handle it through normal means.
Disturbing: And maybe you are doing something disturbing like deciding one day you're going to get high on marijuana and run through the streets naked. Does it hurt anybody? No. Is it seriously abnormal? Maybe a little, but streakers are hardly unknown in the world. Does it annoy a lot of people? Well, yeah. In most cases, society has ways of dealing with people who do things that are disturbing in the "normal" ways. We have a system of rules for dealing with those things.
When you fill out two of these to a significant degree (or one of them to an unusual or disturbing degree), then you might have a disorder of some kind.
Therefore, if you really tend to protest a lot against authority and are getting yourself into a lot of trouble or even endangering yourself, potentially, then you need to consider seeing a clinical psychologist. On the other hand, being a little bit anti-authoritarian only shows you have the beginnings of a moral backbone. It certainly doesn't show you have any kind of an illness.
On still the other hand (I have many), you have to take into account all of your issues, and if you think you can trace things that ultimately add up to filling out all of those criteria and think you can trace them to a common cause, that is really what a complex disorder like Aspergers is all about. A lot of times, if you take any little facet of it by itself, it seems harmless, but when you put them all together, you have someone who stays unemployed and can't really function very well.
You really have to use a lot of your own judgment on these things.
Last edited by Persimmonpudding on 12 Dec 2014, 9:51 pm, edited 3 times in total.
12 Dec 2014, 8:39 pm
