My 14 year old son was just "diagnosed" I guess is what you'd call it as having asperger's syndrome. Does anyone have any experience with it?
His standardized testing revealed overall high ability with the composite score being in the 98th% of all 9th graders with reading and writing comprehension and math knowledge at the college freshman level. He gets D's in english and can barely pull C's in everything else but math. My wife and I were on him every night to study and do homework. He wasn't left to his own, thats for sure.
In some ways its a relief. We knew he was smart but couldn't apply it and hopefully we can now get some information that we can use to help other than just yelling at him to work harder!
Also, his socialization skills are poor. Thats another "symptom". He gets along great with everybody but his peer group. He gets bullied a lot. It used to kill me when I went to pick him up at school and he was sitting at a cafeteria table all by himself.
I'm not really looking for anything specific; just wanted to express myself to my friends here. Thanks for any info if you've got it though.
I was diagnosed with it years before anyone even heard of it. It apparently runs on my biological father's side of the family and one of my nephews from that side has it also. I just heard that recently. Honestly if anything it can be an advantage. In fact some studies seem to think it evolved from warring chieftan tribes of peoples due to the traumas of daily life and clan clashes which were historically gore beyond anything imagined today and hands on! The brain has to respond to that kind of shock. I mean imagine the times of Doggerland.
Imagine incase you don't know what Doggerland was that it was a ancient land of Nordic peoples and this land existed before a cataclysm that sunk what was already thought by many to be a swamp area or bayou like marsh land. It sunk in a series of catatrophies. Three of them. These catastrophes seem to have produced lines of people, mostly Northern European in decent that exhibit this autism syndrome. The 23 and me web site and membership is not what it used to be. Due to my condition and studies I was already involved in due to Aspergers (concluded now) I was invited to get in on the ground floor so to speak for the Human Genome project. I have access to records and things they cannot give out now by law because some of it was so controversial it was, well shut up. The DNA doesn't lie. It tells a different story of things at times and some don't want to hear it.
Anyway, getting back to aspergers. They have some stuff up still on it but nothing compared to what they could have shown you before deep pockets got into the thing with lobby groups blocking medical records through FDA and other agencies participating in it through regulation. In short it is probably an advantage. Many forum goers, particularly the ones that don't get seen personally probably have it as we do better this way according to the studies. Dealing with people was a challenge for me. I'm somewhat of a 'Sheldon Cooper' at times and things get missed, not because I'm stupid but I just sometimes don't get sarcasm or jokes and other times I do and just don't find them funny so my blatant honesty has been a problem.
Early in life when aunts would ask things like, do you like what Ruth did to my hair? I'd blurt things that would be honest but, well, not socially nice so I'd be promptly corrected by my mother. My aunt says, that to us and I said something to the effect that I think she should be really mad at Ruth mussing up her hair all like that! Of course my aunt was flabbergasted. Such is the syndrome though and the good news is I wasn't bothered ever by emotional baggage that most people carried. In some regards this makes me seem cold if people don't know me. Its why you don't see me out at shows much to be honest and its why I don't take part in much in the way of Ok. knifemakers goings on as its just awkward and uncomfortable as hell for me. I'd sooner slide down a sand bank naked!
Earlier in life it was not as bad. I was a bit social. Had some issue with large crowds and cramping but not bad. Mostly I learned over time to hide the discomfort but I made myself do my job. It was difficult dealing with people particularly in sales but I did it for 22 years and I did it well running a territory much like I run my shop now. Ask anyone how efficient that runs. Go ahead ask.
My territory was a clock. To give you an idea of the clock and Aspergers I'll fill you in on me. Watch me you can see it in action daily. Its what keeps me regular and by that I mean its not choice. Its how it has to be or I make it so.
Example of Aspergers. Steve had a territory. Every two weeks he was rotating. He went from Hugo Ok south to Iola Ks. north. Ponca City Ok, west to Springfield Mo east. And to Broken Bow and Idabell Ok east south. I had approx. 200 accounts in that territory, 50 of which I took exceptional care of. Each one a practicing dentist that bought both supplies, equipment, and service of said equipment from me. I was not just in their office every two weeks. I was in Antlers Ok at my first call one Mon at 8 am. Sharp! I was in Hugo right on time each time mostly like I said. Clock work. Things come up and before the days of cells I was still managing to keep my next appt. up to date if something happend. It got so regular that on the day of my accident when I nearly died in a head on collision that changed my life in 1998 that it was one of my offices that first noticed Steve did not show up! That simply did not occur and so phone calls began. They tracked me down and it was due to being someone suffering from Aspergers. Otherwise no one would have known to look and call where I just was and even travel the road to see if they saw me. They did. In a ditch rammed up against a tree. I retired from dental not long after that. Not right away but things were changing at that time anyway and I was contemplating a change anyway so the time seemed right and after two totaled vehicles (brand new ones!) one of which I only paid one payment on before ruining I figured a million biz miles was enough! Odd were looking bad so I came here! Aren't you all so lucky!? Don't answer I may not like the reply.
Seriously the syndrome has its advantages. It can drive your partner crazy but I married one just as bad so we are quite the pair and we match up pretty good to each other even if we are somewhat Hermits.
