Yup, Zach from Bones (and to a lesser extent Bones herself) are also AS.
I don't know whether your therapist did it on purpose or not, but do bear in mind that Aspergers was only recognised as a condition in 1994 (which is why so many people our age missed being diagnosed - I was 20 and I only got a diagnosis by luck) and unless he was a specialist in AS, he would be even less likely to recognize the female manifestation of the condition. It's diagnosed in three times as many males as females; there is probably a higher incidence in males, but it is likely also due to underdiagnosis.
Also, if he had managed to diagnose you, putting you in the special class would have been the worst thing he could have done (and I hope he would have known that). AS is a spectrum; yes, some people on there need to be in a special needs class, but plenty of us only need to have some leeway given in our behaviour. It's a developmental condition. It doesn't mean that there's anything you can't do, just that you take extra-long to figure out how to do it - how to interpret cues and so forth. Living in as close to "normal" an environment as possible, with a few trusted people to give you advice when you go wrong, is the best way for aspies to be, IMO. You're also likely to have some other related conditions, such as dyslexia or hyperlexia, echolalia, hypersensitivity...the wikipedia article used to be a lot better, but someone cut out a whole pile of stuff. Still, it's not a bad starting point. ♥
Freshman year would have been 1993 and early 1994, and Ron Lambert was a psychologist and therapist rather than a clinical psychiatrist. In light of that and the fact that everyone was assuming that the personality changes were part of traumatic grief, he probably didn't know.
Still, I seem to have done okay. I can't stand glare and bright lights, and flashing lights make me feel strange, but it's not debilitating. Uh. Well, if I take precautions against getting sun I don't get debilitating migraines. Which is close enough.
When I initially read about Sam's brother being an Aspie, and him having a lot of the same traits, I briefly entertained thoughts that maybe I had something similar, but eventually dismissed it because of how I'm a successful adult. Then TV had to go and give me successful adults with Asperger's to show me how flawed my idea of the cognitive difference was.
Stupid TV! >:( I will blame it for all of my problems.
To be honest I always felt you at least had tendencies, and to me the main difference between "tendencies" and "on the spectrum" is how much of an impact it has on your life. I didn't want to say anything, though, because as I'm sure you can tell from what you've been feeling since you took the test, it's a big change in your perception of yourself, and I didn't feel it was right for me to push you in that direction.
Things like the toe-walking you mention in your comment to azuzil are typical of Aspies - in fact, everything you mentioned there is pretty much textbook. I know I've never met you face to face, but based on your LJ I'd say you're probably the highest-functioning other Aspie I've ever "met" - which is kind of comforting for me. Like you, I have worked really hard to reach the social level that I'm at.
Shortly before I was diagnosed, about halfway through college, my parents took me aside and told me that they thought I needed to work harder on my social interactions, because it was so vital to success in life and I was so very book smart that surely I could manage if I just tried a little. It was absolutely devastating, because I was already trying so hard, and not only was it not being acknowledged or rewarded, but I was coming up so short that they didn't even think I cared. So I want to say - honestly, and hopefully without sounding condescending or anything - that you're really doing a spectacular job; that you're a successful adult coping with a world that is not designed to cater to how your brain works; and now you have, not an excuse, but a reason for some of the problems you face that other people don't seem to, and a framework to make it easier for you to deal with them. You make me proud. Most of the diagnosed Aspies I know are willing to push their boundaries and try to interact more socially, but for almost all of them, it's small things like meeting one person for lunch once a week. You've dealt with all of this without even knowing it, and you've come farther than most of them ever will.
My reply to this will basically be so long that it's becoming it's own post.
Thank you for believing in me! I believe in you, too! I think we're doing a good job of living our lives in productive and fulfilling ways, and maybe other people can't see how we are rock stars and big damn heroes but the scale we measure our successes on is a lot different.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2010-02-15 07:56 pm (UTC)I don't know whether your therapist did it on purpose or not, but do bear in mind that Aspergers was only recognised as a condition in 1994 (which is why so many people our age missed being diagnosed - I was 20 and I only got a diagnosis by luck) and unless he was a specialist in AS, he would be even less likely to recognize the female manifestation of the condition. It's diagnosed in three times as many males as females; there is probably a higher incidence in males, but it is likely also due to underdiagnosis.
Also, if he had managed to diagnose you, putting you in the special class would have been the worst thing he could have done (and I hope he would have known that). AS is a spectrum; yes, some people on there need to be in a special needs class, but plenty of us only need to have some leeway given in our behaviour. It's a developmental condition. It doesn't mean that there's anything you can't do, just that you take extra-long to figure out how to do it - how to interpret cues and so forth. Living in as close to "normal" an environment as possible, with a few trusted people to give you advice when you go wrong, is the best way for aspies to be, IMO. You're also likely to have some other related conditions, such as dyslexia or hyperlexia, echolalia, hypersensitivity...the wikipedia article used to be a lot better, but someone cut out a whole pile of stuff. Still, it's not a bad starting point. ♥
no subject
Date: 2010-02-16 07:03 am (UTC)Still, I seem to have done okay. I can't stand glare and bright lights, and flashing lights make me feel strange, but it's not debilitating. Uh. Well, if I take precautions against getting sun I don't get debilitating migraines. Which is close enough.
When I initially read about Sam's brother being an Aspie, and him having a lot of the same traits, I briefly entertained thoughts that maybe I had something similar, but eventually dismissed it because of how I'm a successful adult. Then TV had to go and give me successful adults with Asperger's to show me how flawed my idea of the cognitive difference was.
Stupid TV! >:( I will blame it for all of my problems.
no subject
Date: 2010-02-16 06:08 pm (UTC)Things like the toe-walking you mention in your comment to
Shortly before I was diagnosed, about halfway through college, my parents took me aside and told me that they thought I needed to work harder on my social interactions, because it was so vital to success in life and I was so very book smart that surely I could manage if I just tried a little. It was absolutely devastating, because I was already trying so hard, and not only was it not being acknowledged or rewarded, but I was coming up so short that they didn't even think I cared. So I want to say - honestly, and hopefully without sounding condescending or anything - that you're really doing a spectacular job; that you're a successful adult coping with a world that is not designed to cater to how your brain works; and now you have, not an excuse, but a reason for some of the problems you face that other people don't seem to, and a framework to make it easier for you to deal with them. You make me proud. Most of the diagnosed Aspies I know are willing to push their boundaries and try to interact more socially, but for almost all of them, it's small things like meeting one person for lunch once a week. You've dealt with all of this without even knowing it, and you've come farther than most of them ever will.
no subject
Date: 2010-02-16 06:28 pm (UTC)Thank you for believing in me! I believe in you, too! I think we're doing a good job of living our lives in productive and fulfilling ways, and maybe other people can't see how we are rock stars and big damn heroes but the scale we measure our successes on is a lot different.