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Toucan
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10 Jan 2009, 11:59 pm

Fidget wrote:
Well, you could just be quiet all the time and that would pretty much guarantee people wouldn't hate you. But, you'd probably be miserable your entire life. OR you could take a chance and actually talk to people.


Actually, if you really want to 'fit in', being really quiet might work. Granted, you still won't seem normal, because you won't be saying anything, but you won't get people offside. And you can just observe the social situations you find yourself in, and pick up hints and clues as to how others act, and why they act in this way. Being the quiet observer has helped me a lot in life. Although, as Mr F says, it may make you miserable if staying silent contradicts who you really are. I am a naturally silent person, so I'm perfectly happy not saying anything, but you may be different to me. Anyway, don't immediately discount the idea of being quiet - you can learn a lot and blend in easily.



sheknight
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11 Jan 2009, 12:28 am

I nearly drove myself insane while I was trying to be "normal" when I was a teen, and into young adult hood. I wasn't diagnosed at the time, and agonized over why I couldn't get on well with people. If I had known I had Asperger's back then, I might have sought out people who were more like me. Instead, I was always on the outer rim of the "popular" group, sort of accepted by them, and rejected at the same time. Looking back, there were plenty of people who were like me who I could have had good dealings with. But I was so desperate to be liked and normal that I didn't even consider hanging out with anybody but those jerks I called friends.



Greentea
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11 Jan 2009, 12:55 am

I found that playing along to the pecking order and remaining as silent as is acceptable to be has helped. Not a perfect solution, far from it, but it makes people just ignore me rather than hate me and gang up on me as they used to all my life. It's also important to be careful not to say the king is nude under any circumstances, not even by mistake or a slip of the tongue. And don't shatter the self-delusions of those in power in a specific group. Smile a lot (NTs see this as a sign that you're not about to hurt them) and always go along with the opinion of the majority. If asked for an opinion, pretend to be an incurable optimist, so people won't have anything to hold against you at a later stage. Pretend to take their stupid chatter seriously and act as if the good of the group was very important to you. Reap what you need from people, then go home and enjoy being yourself when no one's looking.

There may be better ways to damage control, but these are the survival tools that I myself have been able to come up with so far, after lots and lots of observation during a few years.


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Blue Jay
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11 Jan 2009, 1:20 am

Padium wrote:
Fidget wrote:
What makes you think everyone hates you so much? You'd have to be pretty horrible for everyone to hate you, so perhaps some of it is in your head?


I am one of those aspies that are very very very awkward socially... I tend to push people away unintentionally. Most people either have no choice to be around me, or are to prejudiced to want to stick around and get to know me.

Oh, and I see you must have played TWEWY. That was an amazing game. The music in it was really good too. Neku just seems so much like me in a lot of ways.

I had that problem as well. The thing that really helped was continuing to make an effort to be social and just learning from my mistakes along the way. I knew it meant more rejection, but I also knew that if I didn't try then I was going to continue to get rejected by people anyway. I started making that effort around your age, and today at 21 I've actually got a good group of friends now and most people don't seem too put-off by me these days, so I've definitely improved.

That's really the only way I can recommend. It's not an easy fix, nor is it a particularly pleasant experience when you're just starting out, but as the saying goes "no pain, no gain".

I wouldn't recommend changing your personality to try to be more normal, or otherwise trying to be a person you're not. All you need to do is learn effective social skills and people will like you for who you are. For example, I knew a guy my freshman year of college who I thought was an immature maniac and never in a million years would I have thought that people would want to be around him. However, it turned out that people LOVED being around this guy because he had such good social skills.



Mysty
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11 Jan 2009, 1:58 am

I gave up on the being normal thing as a lost cause when I was about 12. Basically, it's about finding the places where there are people who like me and I fit in. Oh yeah, and working on my emotional issues was a big help. :)



AlexKohler1
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11 Jan 2009, 2:46 am

Padium wrote:
How do I be just normal enough to not either push people away or make people hate me?


I would say try watching people around you for the common things that people do. Pay attention to everything, how do people sit, do they put their straight out when they lean back or do they keep their knees bent, where do they put their arms, or how much do they move their hands or their head. For bigger, social things, I think you should ask questions to someone who cares about you and won't judge you. If you don't want to be thought of as different, it's very important to learn what other people do; otherwise, all you need to do is not be considered weird, but if people don't consider you weird than there's nothing else that needs to be done if not being thought of as weird is your only goal. It depends on exactly what you want people to think of you and how much you act like them.


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Alexandra Kohler

I have a mother, father with Asperger's Syndrome, two bothers two years older than me, one has severe Autism and the other is NT.

My brother got me started playing Xbox several years ago.

18 years old, 5'4", brown hair.


DwightF
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11 Jan 2009, 3:24 am

Padium wrote:
How do I be just normal enough to not either push people away or make people hate me?

That depends on exactly what you do that pushes them away. If you are having trouble figuring out what that is, ask them. Then listen VERY VERY hard, mull it over, try to figure out what the real essence is of what they answered. Maybe come back here and get some help with that too, because it isn't always straightforward. Sometimes people don't answer straight (out of misplaced kindness) and sometimes they don't even understand themselves.

Then work on smoothing out those rough patches. Try again, repeat.

In all the process is a balancing of keeping the core of what makes you you, because judging from your posts here there is a solid likable core, and the adjustments, skills, and habits required to successfully interface with the world at large. Think of it as working on the presentation, and indeed it is a lot of work.

Also realise that even at best a lot of people just aren't going to care to be around you a whole lot. You might find it surprising that is entirely normal. As well there is a mix of total jerks out there and also people that just have a bad day now and then. You sound like you are in a bad place right confidence-wise so it's going to be tough for you to sort out that background noise. It's harder to do than say but try your best to relax about the matter. I'd guess right now performance anxiety, self-conscious about making a faux pas, and desperation to succeed are probably issues. Best thing to do is get a small success, no matter how tiny, and then realise it for the positive move forward that it is. Don't let yourself focus on size comparison to your final goal (because you probably accurately compare it anyway), instead focus on the direction and be happy with that.

Good luck!


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