Published on 12, July, 2020
I can't stand stereotypes and do not wish to be defined by my condition. I would rather people saw me as an individual with strengths and weaknesses, some of which can be explained by me having Asperger's syndrome, rather than defining me by a label. This is why I can't stand the word 'aspie'. While having Aspergers is an important part of my identity, it is no more important than me being female, no more important than my sexuality or my age. I would hate it if someone did not see past me being a woman or past my age, why is having aspergers any different? The disability movement campaigned for disability to be seen not as an individual affliction or difference, to move beyond individualising disability and to see it as a societal problem: people with disabilities should campaign collectively to change society, making it imperative to see the person before the disability. I am a person with asperger's syndrome, not an aspie. I share traits that other people with AS may have, but I don't share all the traits, just enough to have aspergers. We are all different, to say I am an aspie suggests conformity with other 'aspies' and obliterates the part of me that defies easy categorization.
Top and bottom of this is an aspie is a discriptive tag that attributes a qulity/dissability that you poscess (SP?). Just like having a driving license, having a fitness level etc it just indicates some qualities to the external world should they require such infomation.
I was thinking about this today and i wonder, and it is just a thought:
If you have always had severe problems, breaking free from the stereotype/dissability is liberating. It has got to be. Overcoming it must be so powerful.
If you have had slight niggles, that eventually get worse. Falling into a stereotype may be liberating as it is a way of self exploration and justification for the previously unexplainable. Liberation from self destruction if you will.
I might be wrong, people may see it differently, but thats just an idea I had. One side effects of breaking all stereotypes is that it is harder for people to seek the correct help.