Emotional Blindness

I scored 130, but there were some questions I couldn't answer as the situation has never, or extremely rarely, occured, but suspect it would be higher if I could answer.

Hi Marjorie, thanks for posting the link. I did the test and got 113. I found some of the questions really difficult to answer, but maybe having a problem answering actually signifies the condition? I don't really discuss emotions much, or get asked about them by other people - as a woman, is that unusual? 

I also find that if I get emotionally distressed I have a problem talking about things and can't argue my point. My frustration and distress sometimes causes me to end up in floods of tears, which I absolutely hate as I don't like behaving in an "emotional" way - it makes me feel weak and stupid. 

I was surprised at how high I scored on this test because I  believe I'm an affective or emotional empath  - when others around me experience emotional pain, I tend to pick up on this and start feeling it myself. I've been told I'm caring, and that I'm sensitive to the needs of others, although when I try to help others feel better, maybe it's because I'm trying to make myself feel better too? Does anyone else experience this? 

Alexithymia is something that came up during my autism evaluation earlier this year - I guess I was fortunate to see someone who was aware of it.

I have read elsewhere that people on the autism spectrum are significantly more likely to have Alexithymic traits, and also that those who do are likely to have the traits more severely than the general population - though non-autistic people can be affected just as extremely in some cases.

I know for sure that it has given me problems when dealing with other people.  When folks ask "How did that make you feel?", they expect an answer straight away.  If I say "I don't know", the reaction is just "Well, if you don't know, who the hell does?".  Unfortunately, people so often jump to the conclusion that I either just don't care, or that I'm deliberately concealing my emotions.

It is very common that I genuinely don't know which emotion I'm experiencing at the time.  It's not even just that I can't find the name - I often can't even tell if it's something I've experienced before or not.

Over time, it will sometimes sink in, and a few hours or days later I'll realise what the feeling was, and a more typical reaction will kick in.  Other times, I need to see someone else experiencing the emotion, even just a fictional character, and then it will suddenly become apparent to me.

With the counsellor I'm seeing at the moment, I have been in the odd situation that she can read my emotions faster than I can.  For example; I can be exhibiting all of the physical reactions to anxiety; agitated eye movements, higher heart rate and breathing, tense muscles etc. - and she will see this for what it is, while I am totally oblivious to the fact that I'm anxious until she points it out to me.

At my evaluation, they had an interesting explanation.  It seems like the subconscious feels the initial emotion, then uses physical reactions, hormones etc. to signal this to the conscious - at which time we then become aware of it.  It seems that for some people, like me, our conscious cannot properly read the physical and hormonal signs that the sub-conscious is sending. 

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I looked at the test. It has a lot of questions that would be answered one way by people with ASD. I suspect that there is no statistical validity to the test but that it is just someones attempt to create a test and see what happens. The site isn't an official site of anything like a charity. Tests like the AQ test have been designed by specialists and carefully tested to ensure that they actually can make a differential diagnosis that does not come up with too many false positives and false negatives.

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I think you will find that this is an official test called the Toronto Scale for Alexithymia.

It is copyrighted and not usually available on official websites, although it is mentioned on many.

Alexithymia is barely recognised as a problem in the UK, and not understood.

The way it affects me is that if I get emotionally distressed about something, I find that I am unable to speak about it. The original definition was that someone had no words for emotions, but I find that I have the words when I feel better. It is only when I am in the middle of a crisis that I cannot speak about it. It is as though my brain turns to mush and I become unable to express myself.

One way that it affects me is that people who upset me leave me unable to argue my corner, whereas when I am with people who make me feel relaxed, I can. Unfortunately, doctors are the type of people who intimidate me and I cannot deal with them. My mind goes blank, until I am alone and can think of all the things I should have said. I end up going over everything that occured, endlessly, wishing I had said and done things another way, and feeling even more intimidated next time I go. It is a never ending vicious circle of anxiety and failure to communicate, that leaves me not wanting to consult them in future.

I looked at the test. It has a lot of questions that would be answered one way by people with ASD. I suspect that there is no statistical validity to the test but that it is just someones attempt to create a test and see what happens. The site isn't an official site of anything like a charity. Tests like the AQ test have been designed by specialists and carefully tested to ensure that they actually can make a differential diagnosis that does not come up with too many false positives and false negatives.

I scored 159, which I was rather surprised about as I generally think I'm pretty emotional for an aspie (although my understanding of emotions is limited to sad, happy and anxious - mainly anxious). 

It's definitely an interesting link, and made me consider how I should perceive my behaviour. Thank you!

Hi Marjorie195,

I tried this test after clicking on the link you supplied, and scored 143 points, so my result is very close to yours.

Although I am undiagnosed (awaiting DISCO), many of the questions resonated with me.  I have long recognised that I have a detached way of looking at things - I just can't see the point of emotion being involved in many decisions, and look at things with a purely logical analysis - and that's something I've always recognised in myself.

Obviously, it is only a test, and although I'm trying not to draw any conclusions from it (at least until I get a professional diagnosis), I can see the similarities between both conditions.

I'd never heard of Alexithymia before, so thanks for the link!