Pathological Demand Avoidance -- could that be me?

I think there are traits of PDA that are present in people with other autistic traits.  Which is probably why there is a move away from specific diagnoses and moving towards an all-encompassing term 'autism'.

Every autistic person is unique.  It is very unlikely that one autistic person has the complete range of traits.  Some traits may be absent, and others may be very noticeable.  This does not mean that a certain person is more 'severely' affected than another, it just means that the autism may or not be more noticeable or less noticeable. 

It can take a long time to recognise one's traits.  I am inclined to do many seemingly 'abnormal' things, and one of the things I cannot abide is something going against my idea of what is right and what is wrong, be that a deliberate lie or someone arguing with me because of the way I  choose to do things.  I am also sure I have some traits of PDA, such as not liking to be told what to do, under any circumstances.  I will certainly not take kindly when I am in the middle of something to be told to do something else, and conflicts of information really get to me,  This obviously has got me into trouble at work in times past.  I am ok when I make the decision, it is when things are taken from my control that affects me.

A diagnosis report could possibly contain some traits of other autistic conditions but not name them, because I don't think either of the manuals used by psychologists have really allowed for multi-autistic diagnoses, but I may be wrong in this.  Mine merely said I was autistic with an Asperger's profile.  The DSM has not used the term 'Aspergers' for several years, and it is being removed from the ICD along with other autistic conditions in the next revision.

The online test is not a diagnostic tool, and there is not a 'pass' or 'failure'.  It simply detects traits of autism and gives a good idea as to whether someone may or may not be autistic.  It is not foolproof but gives an indication as to whether an assessment may be worthwhile. 

And don't forget that depression and anxiety can also be symptoms of other conditions, such as bipolar condition, personality disorder and OCD which are co-morbid conditions with autism.  Have you mentioned your concerns to your doctor or other medical or psychological professional?

Hello Trainspotter

We have a few things in common. I can't accept things that don't fit with my view of what is right either.  I never thought that was abnormal because I was brought up that way -- my father was like that.  But I think he may have been a bit PDA as well. 

I keep hearing about work situations where people keep quiet about other people doing things that are not right, in order to keep their job. So if sticking to our values is autistic, then does that mean we have a social role in stopping fraud, abuse, dishonesty etc?  I wonder.

I haven't looked up autism in DSM or ICD so that is another bit of research I need to do. So I have no idea if there are multi-autistic diagnoses.  But I think all that is going to change eventually. 

I realise we are not supposed to say "Asperger's" any more because he was working for the ***.  But I am not sure whether this is fair.  There is someone online expressing the opinion that he may have continued to work for them because he wanted to find a way of saving the children -- which didn't really work.  But apparently he never did join the Nazi party.  Well, I suppose we'll never know the whole truth.

I like that part about social fraud because for a long time I have thought it was apparently up to me to break convention.

I like that part about social fraud because for a long time I have thought it was apparently up to me to break convention.