Aguila
Blue Jay
Joined: Sep 21, 2008
Age: 18
Posts: 99
Location: In a galaxy far far away...
|
 Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:08 pm Post subject: How do you self-diagnose yourself? |
 |
|
| Just wondering what people call self diagnosed and if it is as simple as I think I have it or if it is more complex or if everybody has different standards. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Callista
Phoenix
Joined: Feb 04, 2006
Age: 30
Posts: 9931
Location: Central USA
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:16 pm Post subject: |
|
|
It's more than "I think". Generally involves doing a lot of research, quizzing your parents on what you were like as a kid, maybe asking your friends what you seem like to them. You definitely have to know about psychology to do it; at least the basic theory, plus the ins and outs of diagnosis (especially differential diagnosis). But it can be done; and in many cases, an official diagnosis follows.
Self-diagnosis is something you do so that you learn to understand yourself better. It's not something that can get you any aid at work or school; so generally, people who self-diagnose don't have particularly strong Asperger's unless it's been mistaken for and treated as something else for a while. However, they are rather likely to be correct about their diagnosis, since the slightly obsessive style of most Aspies would lead them to research the problem thoroughly... at the very least, they tend to have some strong Asperger's traits.
The biggest problem with self-diagnosis comes when someone whose AS has been thought to be something else for a long time tries to get a psychologist to understand what he has been trying to figure out. Psychologists often see their patients as representatives of a diagnosis; and with the wrong diagnosis, or a diagnosis that has so far overshadowed Asperger's, they may not at first see what is going on, and may dismiss the possibility of AS out of hand. It is important, therefore, to find an expert in adult autism, or else to find a psychologist who is open-minded enough to at least check into it--to interview your parents, if possible, to do a quick symptom checklist, at the very least. It may turn out that you are not quite diagnosable; but even an NT with strong AS traits, or an Aspie who has "grown out" of a diagnosis, can benefit from the same strategies that many Aspies use.
_________________
Engineering & Psychology student. Gamer. Christian. Asexual. Information Addict. Deal with it!
Reports from a Resident Alien:
http://chaoticidealism.livejournal.com |
|
| Back to top |
|
2ukenkerl
Phoenix
Joined: Jul 20, 2007
Posts: 6931
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:28 pm Post subject: |
|
|
What *I* would say is:
1. Have you led a normal life, with no bullies, always had more than say 3 decent friends, adept with social events, etc...? If so, then you can safely assume you DON'T have AS.
2. Check your life against the DSM. If you can't honestly say you match a number of them, you probably don't have it.
3. Check things you have a question about against people on sites like this. If you can't honestly say they match, and that would cause you to not match the DSM, you probably don't have it.
4. If you STILL have questions, try asking on a site like this.
5. If, after all that, you can't match the criteria, you probably don't have it. If you have MORE questions, try asking a specialist. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Aguila
Blue Jay
Joined: Sep 21, 2008
Age: 18
Posts: 99
Location: In a galaxy far far away...
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:28 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Thanks for your imput!
Another question that comes up as I read your replies is How would you quiz your perants without giving them the idea that you think you might be on the spectrum? |
|
| Back to top |
|
Aurore
Dingo Lycanthrope
Joined: Dec 07, 2007
Age: 22
Posts: 1516
Location: Virginia Tech
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:33 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Just ask, hey, was I weird as a little kid? Or something along those lines.
Self-diagnosis for me involved looking at everybody else in my family and how they compared to me (my mom's PDD-NOS/AS, my dad's traditional AS, and my little brother's the same as my mom). I looked up the traits and looked back on my experiences as clinically as possible. I talked to my Asperger's friends and some NTs who I knew had experience in the area. And after that all it was pretty obvious to me.
Of course it felt better when I got an actual dx.
_________________
“Evil? No. Cursed?! No. COATED IN CHOCOLATE?! Perhaps. At one time. But NO LONGER.” |
|
| Back to top |
|
outlier
Phoenix
Joined: Oct 17, 2008
Posts: 1526
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:36 pm Post subject: |
|
|
You could give your parents a selection of developmental questions to answer. There are several sources, such as the Australian scale.
Unless they are vaguely familiar with AS and such things, they should not suspect their purpose. Just say their purpose is to rule out various conditions. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Callista
Phoenix
Joined: Feb 04, 2006
Age: 30
Posts: 9931
Location: Central USA
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:41 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| 2ukenkerl wrote: |
2. Check your life against the DSM. If you can't honestly say you match a number of them, you probably don't have it.
3. Check things you have a question about against people on sites like this. If you can't honestly say they match, and that would cause you to not match the DSM, you probably don't have it. |
The important thing with the DSM is that to "match" a trait, it has to be clinically significant--that is, it has to be more than a quirk; it has to actually cause trouble for you or for other people, or it has to be significantly out of the norm, or it has to cause some measurable impairment. Simple eccentricity, with no functional impairment, is not a valid diagnosis, however much they might want to make it one.
If you're an adult, though, you can go ahead and rate yourself as a child, since that's the basis diagnoses are made on nowadays. If you were an Aspie as a kid, it's probably safe to say that you still are, whether or not you've lost the official diagnosis through learning the skills you were slow on.
_________________
Engineering & Psychology student. Gamer. Christian. Asexual. Information Addict. Deal with it!
Reports from a Resident Alien:
http://chaoticidealism.livejournal.com |
|
| Back to top |
|
Aguila
Blue Jay
Joined: Sep 21, 2008
Age: 18
Posts: 99
Location: In a galaxy far far away...
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:45 pm Post subject: |
|
|
My perants are a bit hard to explain. I dont want them to know that I am any differnent then anybody else. I dont think they would particularly like the information either. They are 100% ignorant of autism, aspergers and everything related and have absolutly no idea that I have researched the topic for 9 months.
Exactly what is an Australian scale |
|
| Back to top |
|
outlier
Phoenix
Joined: Oct 17, 2008
Posts: 1526
|
|
| Back to top |
|
patternist
yellow-bellied sapsucker
Joined: Jul 29, 2008
Posts: 2389
Location: at my computer
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 9:57 pm Post subject: |
|
|
In my case, asking my parents was a bust, because everything I did was either brilliant and precocious or adorably childish. They still don't think my son is out of the norm, and he's been kicked out of preschool and is on the verge of being accepted by the county's special ed program. But I remember everything from my childhood distinctly and can say that, it fits. And for me that was the deciding factor.
Then I took the online quizzes, and now after posting on this site, it seems I have more in common with all of WP than..anyone else I've ever known. I'm not one to run around giving myself labels. You also have to realize that if...no one has brought it up to you, either you were pretty high functioning to begin with...or you've studied people and self-reflected and carved out your niche through sheer willpower. I think I kind of fit here. When I really interrogated myself about it, vetted my thoughts on the matter, I asked if, and why, social interaction has been a challenge for me...? If you saw me at work, you might think I'm a little quirky, but within the range of normal. But you had no idea how much thought and energy and possibly self-destructive behavior it took to get there. That's me, though. If I see a problem or a personal weakness, I'm working overtime to overcome it. I've never been one to back away from a challenge.
_________________
"your hands around my neck.....could be construed..as being rude..."
J Cope |
|
| Back to top |
|
Aguila
Blue Jay
Joined: Sep 21, 2008
Age: 18
Posts: 99
Location: In a galaxy far far away...
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 10:00 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I have seen the home videos a couple times. One of my favorites is dated a month after I turned one. I am showing my grandma all the states in Mexico telling her facts about each one. There is another in which I identify several shapes as well. I never thought of these as possible clues though.
ˇThanks! |
|
| Back to top |
|
animallover
Phoenix
Joined: Jun 23, 2004
Posts: 762
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 10:05 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| I got formally diagnosed, but I was just amazed at the clear autistic symptoms my parents wrote off - and my mother was studying psychology when I was born (though I am 34 so she would have been studying Kanner autism) - anyway, when I got picked up I stiffened up and tried to get away - I mean, as far as I know that isn't symptomatic of much else! |
|
| Back to top |
|
2ukenkerl
Phoenix
Joined: Jul 20, 2007
Posts: 6931
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 10:07 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Aguila wrote: | Thanks for your imput!
Another question that comes up as I read your replies is How would you quiz your perants without giving them the idea that you think you might be on the spectrum? |
You can always do what I did. Just work it into the conversation in bits and pieces. I already had MOST of the info because I knew when I could read, how I did earlier in school, my IQ, etc.... I was always a wierd kid. I would never DARE to think I was autistic, etc...(AS is a kind of autism) except I find that a lot of autistic/AS people are NOT THAT wierd(compared to me), and it answers an AWFUL lot. Because of that, I asked my mother things like when I started walking(a bit earlier than average), and talking(much earlier than average). I also asked what my behaviour was like when I was a baby.(I cried VERY little, and didn't cry if I fell down. I just got up and continued.) I always thought bullying was normal. The other stuff was stuff I always knew was wierd. I kind of used that to help convince me.
BTW the only autistic thing about that is that it generally wasn't normal. Some autistic people are the opposite. AS people are allowed to even have delays, but they aren't supposed to be clinically significant. The only place they describe that is with speech. THAT has constantly been degraded. NOW, I think that is supposed to be at least words by 3yo. That is interesting, because the milestone is supposed to be sentences by 2. SOME have been diagnosed with an even MORE significant delay. Saying words at three is like an over 2 year delay. One would think that was clinically significant.
The lack of social skills, different thinking style, bullying, skewed senses, lack of coordination, interests, etc... are what REALLY got me thinking about AS. |
|
| Back to top |
|
poopylungstuffing
Lolliwink Slayer
Joined: Mar 09, 2007
Age: 37
Posts: 7618
Location: Snapdragon Ridge
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 10:26 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I tried not to "self diagnose" myself...I "self identified"...
I found out about AS through another forum where someone said that I sounded like I had AS traits...
Until recently, I did not feel that I could say I was an aspie because I was not formally diagnosed. Recently, I was assessed and the person who assessed me said that I should treat that as a diagnosis...and so that is what I am doing...because not knowing was driving me nuts.
I score well into aspie range on any test I take.
I do have signifigant difficulties doing things that seem to come easily to otehr adults my age.
I am an odd and eccentric person...I was an odd and eccentric child...I remember being at least somewhat aware at an early age that I was different from the other kids, if all the bullying wasn't enough proof.
I have many aspie traits.
blah blah blah
_________________
http://www.youtube.com/user/MsPuppetrina
http://www.youtube.com/poopylungstuffing
http://www.superhappyfunland.com
"Ifthefoolwouldpersistinhisfolly,hewouldbecomewise" |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
