Hey y'all...I'm Jerome. I'm 26 and after recently learning that my oldest brother was diagnosed with AS, I suspected that I might have it but much milder than my brother. Although he had issues socially (He's been homeless before despite having family willing to take him in), he has succeeded academically like many other Aspies (Bachelor's degree). Given the similarities between my oldest brother AS "quirks" and my own "quirks", I suspect I have AS to a mild extent but may need to get a professional diagnosis on it. As we grew up, I was always able to relate to him conversationally and mentally at a level that my mother and middle brother couldn't. I don't know if it's because I have some Aspie traits or not but we clicked.
Personally, I endured teasing in elementary school due to my behavioral problems (I used to get P's and U's in conduct in Kindergarten) and my budding intellect (which most didn't understand at such a young age). As a child, I indulged more in reading encyclopedias and dictionaries than playing with others. To an extent, I grew up and coped socially with others so while I take NT actions in any given situation...I never truly "felt" it. For example, growing up as a black kid in a black church, I never got swept up in the whole spiritual brouhaha of church. I usually tend to daydream or stare off into space since I have little interest in religion.
Nowadays, those other Aspie traits of talking to myself, echolalia and repeated routines still occur if I'm by myself at home or when I know others aren't looking. It's probably the only time that I can truly be myself and let loose. Now I don't want to wildly claim that I'm an Aspie since there are enough wannabes and charlatans in the autistic world today. However, between my oldest brother being a diagnosed Aspie and seeing those traits in myself to a milder extent, I feel that it's worth looking into and if I do have AS, embracing it wholeheartedly.
30 Nov 2012, 10:31 pm
