Is this some form of Asperger's?

[DruryGirl]

This is a long story, but I'm going to try to cut to the chase. I've been
seeing a counselor who suspects I have a "very, very mild" form of Asperger's. I have read a lot about Asperger's and I disagree with her, thinking that it's just too mild to even register as Asperger's and might
be some other diagnosis, if it is a diagnosis at all.

I'm hoping somebody here who is intimately familiar with Asperger's/autism
might be able to voice their input. Maybe I have Asperger's, maybe I am just a little shy, something like that, I don't know what to think anymore.
All of this got stirred up over a former professor who hassled and picked on me a lot.


My symptoms:


1) I am not so impaired that I can't talk to people, but I do tend to get
very nervous, flustered, and/or self-conscious when talking to people
I am not close to. (For the record, I am a Certified Nursing Assistant
and work directly with people every minute of my job. I have been
doing this four years, so it's not that I **can't** interact or stay
home/avoid because of it, etc.)

2) Sometimes it is hard to make eye contact, but only in certain cases.
If someone talks to me one-on-one I naturally look at them. I think
it is a distraction thing--see examples.

** I am shaking hands with someone. I am so focused
on the movement of our hands that I look at the hands instead of
the person.
**My co-worker is talking to me. I notice she is wearing earrings.
This somehow captures my attention and I keep looking at the
earrings (no, nothing spectacular about these particular earrings).
**I am focused on walking down the hall. Someone greets me in
passing. I look toward their face but I'm not quick enough to
connect with their eyes.

3) I am easily embarrassed, especially with compliments.

4) I daydream constantly, easily blank, and sometimes have a habit
of giving blank stares (I think it's an attention/spacey thing). I'm
not trying to do it.

5) I don't have much self-confidence and am not very assertive (but
this is changing because this year I had a few situations where I
really fought back for myself and I'm proud of that ).


I've read that in some cases people with Asperger's have symptoms like
the following. I want to also offer a list of symptoms I do NOT have:


--The physical tics (hand flapping, etc.)
--Inability to make friends (I have friends, I want more friends, I am
very lonely but this is because I live in an extreme isolated area)
--Not knowing how to start a conversation, make small talk, etc. (I often
don't because I am quiet but if I had to I could)
--Not reading social cues such as signs of boredom or disinterest
--Truthfully, nothing so very extreme that I can't function


So what do you think? Is it truly mild Asperger's? Something else? Not even a diagnosis at all?

Any thoughts I appreciate.

 

[DruryGirl]

A few additional thoughts that I forgot to add:


--I have a narrow field of interests, which I've read people with Asperger's can do.
--I read some people with AS don't like to be touched. I actually very much enjoy
(appropriate) touch. I am cautious about touching other people though, but it's
actually out of consideration b/c I know some people in general don't like to be
touched and I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable.

 

[gracechick]

I would say it would be worth looking into, because you have come close to describing me For years I thought it was only considered Social Anxiety, but in medicine many labels overlap.
Some of those symptoms could be listed as ADD. And stims come in all forms like I swallow or clear my throat when I'm nervous and it takes alot of effort for me to be social. I don't like eye constact it seems to cause anxiety and uncomfortable feelings for some reason.
That's the tough thing about the dx. The scale is huge from low functioning people to someone like me who is able, but it causes anxiety for no apparent reason. And often high functioning people should be able to maintain better positions they desire, but the symptoms hold them back at times.

Do some googling and see what you think.

 

[DruryGirl]

Thanks, gracechick. I also had a hard time with some overlap. ADD definitely came to mind. I have many OCD symptoms, but I suspect that I have full-blown OCD in and of itself. Social anxiety could be somewhere in the mix. Maybe I should get a more formal assessment with a different diagnoser--not to dispose of what my counselor says, just to get a second opinion and see what that person sees.

 

[2scoops]

I suggest you look into the symptoms that a mercury poisoned person can have and compare them to yourself. Something is going on in our environment to have all these diagnosis of asperger's, autism, ADD, OCD, anxiety, allergies, asthma, MS, Alzheimer's. etc.

These days more people are injected with more shot and vaccines than ever, look into the ingredients of what are in vaccines, the most dangerous being mercury. When I was a kid I believe by the time I hit grade school I had to have 5-7 shots, in the 90's kids had to have up to 36 shots, BTW that's exactly when the number of ASD cases rose.

Seek and ye shall find!

God bless

 

[DruryGirl]

Hmmm, 2scoops, I have heard lots about this topic--worth research, thanks.

 

[2scoops]

Yeah, there is a lot of good info out there. If you think of it, try a search on the study done of ASD in the Amish community, as they don't vaccinate. You may also want to look up Andrew Cutler and Boy Haley, Ph.d chemists. Youtube has some videos of Boyd Haley. I also have a thread titled Autism Info, you may want to look there!

God bless

 

[DruryGirl]

Thanks

 

[2scoops]

Your welcome.

What is really sad is that people wonder what is wrong with them, and they wonder what is wrong with them. They blame themselves, get down on themselves, and they are feel they will never get better.

It's hard to watch people who are poisoned. It's not their fault. We are born into a world of sin, and people who are are affected by Satan's lies.

Hang in there sweetie and don't stop seeking the truth. Jesus is faithful and sticks closer to you than anyone. With Jesus, ALL things truly are possible.

If can PM me anytime.

God bless

 

[dudeman]

I believe you can train your brain to be alret and connected..Pray for wisdom in this area.When having a conversation with someone it might be hard to look at them in the eye while your speaking, but train your self to look into their eyes on and off while they are speaking that might be a helpful start..I have had that problem myself..

 

[Sabertooth]

... Maybe I should get a more formal assessment with a different diagnoser--not to dispose of what my counselor says, just to get a second opinion and see what that person sees.

I recently found out that neuropsychologists were more adept at identifying ASDs than regular psychologists. The latter tends to overpathologize our symptoms.

In any event, you ought to contact the Autism Society of America and find their local chapter in your state and find out who they recommend for adult services.

 

[uniquetadpole]

There are so many Diagnosis' out there...AS is but on of them... many overlap and many people have multiple diagnosis'. OCD and ADD are common co-morbidities with AS. My AS is mild...I am considered High functioning...but given different situations and stress levels I fluctuate on the Autism spectrum...which means I go from almost no AS symptoms to very noticible AS symptoms at different times. So there are times when I can make eye-contact without a second thought and other times when I have to be reminded to look my partner in the eye when they are talking with me. And my Stimming goes from barely noticible to extreme rocking. So even in one person at different times it is hard to determine whether someone has AS or not because it is at the end of the spectrum...but the real question is...how will that label help you or hold you back...that should be the determining factor as to whether you need to go get evaluated. So what if your counselor thinks you might have a mild form of it...does she think the label will help you out with insurance companies...with understanding yourself better...or what... if all the label is going to do is have you focus with a negative outlook on what you can't do...the forget about it...focus on what you can do.... there are so many people with AS that have overcome and faced their challenges and contributed to the good of society. Look at Steven Spielberg...I bet you didn't know he has AS. Look at what he can do. That is what to focus on...look at what your abilities are and use those abilities to rework your difficulties and overcome them.

I turned my OCD tendancies into meticulous... and many people appreciate the thorough job and attention to detail that I do when I do something for them. It is all in the attitude that you come to the challenge with.

For me getting the Diagnosis was a relieved explanation and it is a means to ask other people to consider having patience with me. But not everyone gets this relief...so my suggestion might be to think about what getting a diagnosis might really mean for you.