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Hi.

Let's cut to the chase. I'm 19 and I recently became interested in studying autism after reading about it in relation to a fictional character I like. During these studies I came across a list of symptoms for Asperger's and (stop me if you've heard this before) noticed that I have a large amount of them.

I then took the AS quiz things, more out of boredom than anything else, and was gob-smacked by how many of the questions described me exactly. I scored high in all of them.

So. I am very wary of "self-diagnosis" but if I have AS it would explain some personality traits I've always wondered about. My question is, is it really possible for Asperger's to go unnoticed for a long time? My Mother is a psychatric nurse and she once met an aquaintance from school and could apparently tell at a glance that he had AS.

Basically, is it possible that I could have AS and no one noticed? I've never actually told anyone how much difficulty I have with social interaction and how I often can't understand what strangers are saying to me- up until now I tried not to think of those things myself. But I always assumed something like AS would show very obvious outward manifestations in behaviour that would be diagnosed in early childhood.

Anyway, thanks for the help. I'm probably getting obsessed over this for nothing.

it depends. personally i think i can come across as being relatively "normal", albeit somewhat quirky or eccentric. many of the problems that AS can present are not necessarily outwardly visible, and it affects diferent people in different ways and to differing levels of severity. of the other people i have met with AS, some come across as typically "normal", while with others it is fairly obvious on first meeting.

im 19 i only got diagnosed a few months ago. Before that I had never heard of AS.

If it was an internet test thing then i wouldnt worry about it.

I took some of these tests for, ADHD, PTSD, TDD, depression, anxitey, ect.

I came possetive for all of these in the tests!

Me too. But, there is something definitely not NT about me. Asperger's seems VERY likely. Some of the others probably apply as well.

Sure it could go unnoticed. I have inattentive ADHD and did not learn (self-dx)
that till about last May (age 36 then).

Me too, i am 36.
Always known i was 'weird', but now they have a name for it.

If it was a test on the internet I also wouldn't trust its results all too much. Take the Aspie Quiz for example, it's very fun and interesting (I'm sure it has some scientific foundation, too), but such things as "do you bounce your leg?" or "do you recently heard tunes stick in your head?"? To bounce one's leg or have a catchy tune is so not unusual at all. Many other things (also in the other tests) apply simply to all introverted, shy and socially awkward people, plus maybe to those who are (highly) gifted, they can't ALL have Asperger's.

though i almost flunked out of 1st/2nd grade... i did go on to magnet school and even now... i'm in gradschool... in a neuro department no less...

and it took just that... being smack dab in the middle of a neuro lab with a bunch of autism articles laying about in the lounge... to finally discover why i am how i am...

i had previously known about autism... but only in a sterotypical sense.

i'm sure you'll find tons of people here who OFFICIALLY never knew what they had known subconsciously all their life.

welcome to WP

Thanks for the help, guys. I've decided not to think about this for now, I should be studying for my Leaving Cert (THREE MONTHS ARRRGGHHH) instead of analysing myself to see if I have AS when I most likely don't. I can feel myself getting obsessed over this, and if that starts up it's going to impair my already weak studying abilties.

One more thing: