Hello Everyone

Hello Everyone,  my name is David, am an adult, and am happily married.  A year or so ago, my Mum, when we were talking, said to me that she’s always thought that I was autistic to a degree. It was a bit of a shock, her saying that after all this time. It had never been mentioned before, but since, I’ve thought about it a lot.  After I was born, I didn’t speak ‘til I was five. Apparently, the doctor said it wasn’t that I couldn’t, it was simply that I was being “bloody minded”, and I would do in my own time. She said that at primary school. The teacher called her in once. She said to Mum, “Look at David’s drawings, then look at the others” She then said, David’s the only one to have put lines down the middle of the road, and numbers and TV aerials on the houses he’s drawn”. At around 11 or 12, I was bullied at school. Mum said she only found out when she found massive bruises on my legs. Now, in adult life, I do get very nervous about things, and I’m very picky about things being right. Little mistakes and errors irritate me. I also care very much about my friends, and get very upset when they are unhappy.

I now know I have autism.  As far as I am concerned, nothing has changed. I am the same person I was a month ago. It does mean however,  I can understand more, and appreciate myself. I can now try and understand my idiosyncrasies and my personality more. Do you know what,  I consider this to be an attribute to me, and it doesclearly tie in with my traits and way of thinking,  which for so long, I have thought.... why?

Does anyone here feel the same as I do, and have they shared the same experiences?  

 

Parents
  • What was my initial reaction, and how did I feel?

    I dunno, relieved, I guess.

    But then my route to diagnosis was a little odd - I was already pretty sure that I had Asperger's before I'd even seen the Psychologist that assessed me (having listened to a Radio 4 program in which adults with Asperger's talked about what it's like to have Asperger's).

    I went through moments of doubt (was the diagnosis correct? did they say I had it simply because I'd gone in and said "I think I have Asperger's"? and so on), and anger (why didn't my teachers, etc, spot it when I was school? and so on), and depression (why can't I just be normal?) which I still get from time to time.

    But, overall, like you said, everything starts making sense, and now I'm glad I have Asperger's, and I wouldn't want to be neurotypical - they make little to no sense to me.

Reply
  • What was my initial reaction, and how did I feel?

    I dunno, relieved, I guess.

    But then my route to diagnosis was a little odd - I was already pretty sure that I had Asperger's before I'd even seen the Psychologist that assessed me (having listened to a Radio 4 program in which adults with Asperger's talked about what it's like to have Asperger's).

    I went through moments of doubt (was the diagnosis correct? did they say I had it simply because I'd gone in and said "I think I have Asperger's"? and so on), and anger (why didn't my teachers, etc, spot it when I was school? and so on), and depression (why can't I just be normal?) which I still get from time to time.

    But, overall, like you said, everything starts making sense, and now I'm glad I have Asperger's, and I wouldn't want to be neurotypical - they make little to no sense to me.

Children
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