Since Toggle requested, I'll write a bit about my life as an "Aspie" as those with Aspergers tend to call themselves...sounds a bit better at least!
Asperger's syndrome is a mild version of Autism, or sometimes called at Autistic spectrum disorder because symptoms vary a bit in magnitude from person to person. One of the most siginificant and outwardly apparent symptoms is problems with communication and social skills. For me, I always have had issues reading someone's feelings and body language, it's just something that doesn't come naturally for me. I rarely ever receive the "undertones" in a conversation. For example, someone could outright say that they are satisfied with my service, but in reality, they aren't, and might complain. Unfortunatley, I can't pick it up. Lack of eye contact is a common factor in this I guess and is a common sign of someone who is Aspie. When it comes to myself, I must conciously remind myself to look at the person whom I'm speaking with. Conversations are slow with me, as I must think about what I am about to say, and I have a terrible time making it "flow". Along with other Aspies, I have a rather monotone voice when I speak, and I am generally quiet, and don't speak an enormous amount. Oddly enough, despite my terrible verbal communication skills, my written skills seem to be rather good, as many have complemented me on my writing in the past.
I am a very cold, honest person, and many times this rubs others the wrong way, as I don't want to, and don't like to lie. Although we tell our kids not to lie at a young age, modern society tends to encourage lying, both in the business world, and in general social communication. You've all probably gotten the question from your significant other asking you if you like a particular garment or something...To a neurotypical person, a nice little white lie is ususally the correct response. For me, I must really bite my tongue to hold back the honesty, and then I'll end up feeling alkward because I've led this person into believeing I like something. Likewise, the honesty goes both ways, as I try to treat everyone I meet in my life with the utmost fair and balanced attitude that I can. In my life, typical relationships with others start out good, as others like my calm demeanour and good manners, but eventually sour, as my honest side sort of shows up, and most women aren't confortable with it. The communications aspect has also given me trouble when interviewing for jobs I was truly qualified for, but becasue I didn't posses the presentation skills, they didn't happen. Luckily, my current boss saw through that and gave me what has been a very good, and enjoyable career at his company.
The other big factor I have with communications is with feelings. I typically don't show intense feelings, and in fact am pretty neutral. It's something that has caused me issues when it comes to getting along with many women, as they tend to be rather emotional beings that make decisions based on feeling, not on logic. The feelings that another person may be experiencing typically don't transfer over to me, or at least, I don't show that that I am receiving that person's "vibe". My trouble with relationships may also have to do with the fact that my conversation topics are of no interest to most women, and even many men, as I tend to talk about technical stuff, instead of gossiping, which I find very rude. I am very concrete in my communications and don't like metaphors, or vague, ambiguous words...they don't mean a thing to me, but may to others, for example the word "upset" can mean everything from a nausous stomach, to anger to whatever you want it to!
Another big factor in Asperger's syndrome is an intense, obsessive interest in certain topics similiar to someone who is OCD. This is definitely me, as I have picked up a fare share of technical interests throughout my life that I've gotten pretty intense with. My all-time obsession has been audiovisual equipment, and this has brought me into a ludcrative career servicing and installing professional audiovisual gear. This interest also spreads into Automobiles have been an intense interest too, as I enjoy the engineering and technology that goes into them. Appliances, of course have always been a lifelong obsession, as I was always intrigued by the fascinating machines we use to carry out our lives. I remember looking underneath covers as a kid, and being curious as to what was going on inside. I asked technical questions about things. For example, I remember as a kid, when others around the neighborhood were playing baseball and into He-Man masters of the Universe, I was content to hang out in my Dad's garage taking apart old appliances I had collected out of trash piles around the neighborhood...I never have understood sports... I imagine
In school, I was relentlessly picked on I imagine because of my terrible social skills, and the fact I couldn't "read" the other kids, and figure out their little schemes to trick me and stuff. One of the other factors is that I just don't seem to get this bit where the typical male relentlessly competes with others around in an attempt to "prove himself". This, of course, shows up in sports, but also in everyday life, as men subtley and blalantly try to be better at something than another. While I believe it's good always set goals and try to achieve them, my goals are more logical. For example, let's build a building that's 1500 feet tall, not a building that's bigger than the next city's. I believe a lot of worthwhile energy is lost by the typical male trying to prove himself, versus working together for the better.
One of the last biggies for me that is pretty apparent is sensory perceiptions. My sensory input is very acute. I don't like a lot of direct glaring light, or odd-order harmonics in sound. In fact, I don't like a tremendous amount of noise and commotion and try to avoid those situations. I also cannot stand strong scents. You will find unscented soaps, detergents and cleaners around my house as I think the scents are too intense. The sensory issues however have helped me excell at my job as an audiovisual tech however because it involves being able to hear distortions and abnormalities in sound systems, as well as being able to see variations in pictures and color. I have found I can see and hear many things that others can't. The drawback of course is that I cannot listen to music on anything but the nicest sounding HiFi equipment, especially after working with some nice stuff all day!
Some other Aspies have issues with motor coordination and can be clumbsy. I am somewhat like this, but my fine motor coordination is an exception, as I have excellent handwriting and can draw very well. I also am very good with a soldering iron and tools. I do tend to run into furniture and trip over rugs as I walk through cluttered areas. This is probably also a reason why I hate sports...I simply am terrible at them! Another aspie trait is having to be very routine in life. That's definitely me, as I don't like to deviate from a pattern . This can be simple stuff, like my daily ritual of what I do and when I do it, to bigger things, like getting rather disturbed when major changes happen in my life, especially when I have no control over them. It even disturbs me sometimes to see progress around me like when a building or house that's been around for years gets demolished to make way for something new. Luckily for me, my parents and family have lived in the same area my whole life, and I haven't had to suffer with moving from place to place as a child as my parents chased a job or something.
My diagnosis came a few years ago, and sort of capped off a string of labels that were placed on me as a kid, everything from being ADHD (which seems to be a generic label for any kid that has trouble in school) to OCD, and even learning disabled. None of them fit. I was working at a psychology education center at a local school when one of the professors picked up on my demeanour. After investigating what he had mentioned it all fit, and I was officially diagnosed after past records were examined, along with interviews and other tests.
I hope I wasn't too long-winded here. Just that this discovery has really been a great revalation to me in my life, and I can now work to fix things that I consiously know are deficient. In reality, I sort of like being Aspie, as it has brought me a great analytical mind that enjoys tinkering with all things electrical and mechanical. I like being very fair and open-minded, as well as being very cool-headed. My intense thirst for knowledge and intense obsessions have brought me great enjoyment as well. Asperger's syndrome was just recently "discovered" and that's why it was never picked up on as I was a child. Many people throughout history though are believed to be Aspie as well, like Bill Gates, and Albert Einstein, among many. I believe I share a unique gift with the world's brightest!
Asperger's syndrome is a mild version of Autism, or sometimes called at Autistic spectrum disorder because symptoms vary a bit in magnitude from person to person. One of the most siginificant and outwardly apparent symptoms is problems with communication and social skills. For me, I always have had issues reading someone's feelings and body language, it's just something that doesn't come naturally for me. I rarely ever receive the "undertones" in a conversation. For example, someone could outright say that they are satisfied with my service, but in reality, they aren't, and might complain. Unfortunatley, I can't pick it up. Lack of eye contact is a common factor in this I guess and is a common sign of someone who is Aspie. When it comes to myself, I must conciously remind myself to look at the person whom I'm speaking with. Conversations are slow with me, as I must think about what I am about to say, and I have a terrible time making it "flow". Along with other Aspies, I have a rather monotone voice when I speak, and I am generally quiet, and don't speak an enormous amount. Oddly enough, despite my terrible verbal communication skills, my written skills seem to be rather good, as many have complemented me on my writing in the past.
I am a very cold, honest person, and many times this rubs others the wrong way, as I don't want to, and don't like to lie. Although we tell our kids not to lie at a young age, modern society tends to encourage lying, both in the business world, and in general social communication. You've all probably gotten the question from your significant other asking you if you like a particular garment or something...To a neurotypical person, a nice little white lie is ususally the correct response. For me, I must really bite my tongue to hold back the honesty, and then I'll end up feeling alkward because I've led this person into believeing I like something. Likewise, the honesty goes both ways, as I try to treat everyone I meet in my life with the utmost fair and balanced attitude that I can. In my life, typical relationships with others start out good, as others like my calm demeanour and good manners, but eventually sour, as my honest side sort of shows up, and most women aren't confortable with it. The communications aspect has also given me trouble when interviewing for jobs I was truly qualified for, but becasue I didn't posses the presentation skills, they didn't happen. Luckily, my current boss saw through that and gave me what has been a very good, and enjoyable career at his company.
The other big factor I have with communications is with feelings. I typically don't show intense feelings, and in fact am pretty neutral. It's something that has caused me issues when it comes to getting along with many women, as they tend to be rather emotional beings that make decisions based on feeling, not on logic. The feelings that another person may be experiencing typically don't transfer over to me, or at least, I don't show that that I am receiving that person's "vibe". My trouble with relationships may also have to do with the fact that my conversation topics are of no interest to most women, and even many men, as I tend to talk about technical stuff, instead of gossiping, which I find very rude. I am very concrete in my communications and don't like metaphors, or vague, ambiguous words...they don't mean a thing to me, but may to others, for example the word "upset" can mean everything from a nausous stomach, to anger to whatever you want it to!
Another big factor in Asperger's syndrome is an intense, obsessive interest in certain topics similiar to someone who is OCD. This is definitely me, as I have picked up a fare share of technical interests throughout my life that I've gotten pretty intense with. My all-time obsession has been audiovisual equipment, and this has brought me into a ludcrative career servicing and installing professional audiovisual gear. This interest also spreads into Automobiles have been an intense interest too, as I enjoy the engineering and technology that goes into them. Appliances, of course have always been a lifelong obsession, as I was always intrigued by the fascinating machines we use to carry out our lives. I remember looking underneath covers as a kid, and being curious as to what was going on inside. I asked technical questions about things. For example, I remember as a kid, when others around the neighborhood were playing baseball and into He-Man masters of the Universe, I was content to hang out in my Dad's garage taking apart old appliances I had collected out of trash piles around the neighborhood...I never have understood sports... I imagine
In school, I was relentlessly picked on I imagine because of my terrible social skills, and the fact I couldn't "read" the other kids, and figure out their little schemes to trick me and stuff. One of the other factors is that I just don't seem to get this bit where the typical male relentlessly competes with others around in an attempt to "prove himself". This, of course, shows up in sports, but also in everyday life, as men subtley and blalantly try to be better at something than another. While I believe it's good always set goals and try to achieve them, my goals are more logical. For example, let's build a building that's 1500 feet tall, not a building that's bigger than the next city's. I believe a lot of worthwhile energy is lost by the typical male trying to prove himself, versus working together for the better.
One of the last biggies for me that is pretty apparent is sensory perceiptions. My sensory input is very acute. I don't like a lot of direct glaring light, or odd-order harmonics in sound. In fact, I don't like a tremendous amount of noise and commotion and try to avoid those situations. I also cannot stand strong scents. You will find unscented soaps, detergents and cleaners around my house as I think the scents are too intense. The sensory issues however have helped me excell at my job as an audiovisual tech however because it involves being able to hear distortions and abnormalities in sound systems, as well as being able to see variations in pictures and color. I have found I can see and hear many things that others can't. The drawback of course is that I cannot listen to music on anything but the nicest sounding HiFi equipment, especially after working with some nice stuff all day!
Some other Aspies have issues with motor coordination and can be clumbsy. I am somewhat like this, but my fine motor coordination is an exception, as I have excellent handwriting and can draw very well. I also am very good with a soldering iron and tools. I do tend to run into furniture and trip over rugs as I walk through cluttered areas. This is probably also a reason why I hate sports...I simply am terrible at them! Another aspie trait is having to be very routine in life. That's definitely me, as I don't like to deviate from a pattern . This can be simple stuff, like my daily ritual of what I do and when I do it, to bigger things, like getting rather disturbed when major changes happen in my life, especially when I have no control over them. It even disturbs me sometimes to see progress around me like when a building or house that's been around for years gets demolished to make way for something new. Luckily for me, my parents and family have lived in the same area my whole life, and I haven't had to suffer with moving from place to place as a child as my parents chased a job or something.
My diagnosis came a few years ago, and sort of capped off a string of labels that were placed on me as a kid, everything from being ADHD (which seems to be a generic label for any kid that has trouble in school) to OCD, and even learning disabled. None of them fit. I was working at a psychology education center at a local school when one of the professors picked up on my demeanour. After investigating what he had mentioned it all fit, and I was officially diagnosed after past records were examined, along with interviews and other tests.
I hope I wasn't too long-winded here. Just that this discovery has really been a great revalation to me in my life, and I can now work to fix things that I consiously know are deficient. In reality, I sort of like being Aspie, as it has brought me a great analytical mind that enjoys tinkering with all things electrical and mechanical. I like being very fair and open-minded, as well as being very cool-headed. My intense thirst for knowledge and intense obsessions have brought me great enjoyment as well. Asperger's syndrome was just recently "discovered" and that's why it was never picked up on as I was a child. Many people throughout history though are believed to be Aspie as well, like Bill Gates, and Albert Einstein, among many. I believe I share a unique gift with the world's brightest!
