The Journey of I, Dream, the man...

IntenseWorld said:

The empathy thing, well I think I was being serious - but then who knows as I have a bit of alexithymia too!

Pleased I have made you laugh.

Hey IntenseWorld,

well I have to say I'm "content in my confusion" in this moment. As you added the "winky smile" after the "lacking empathy" comment, I was working on the assumption that it was an "inside joke" between Aspies (purely due to the fact t'was you who introduced me to the alternative theory that it's not a "lack" of empathy, but more of an inability to cope with "over-empathy" which we suffer from)! I personally have always perceived myself as deeply empathic, however I do not perceive myself as good at being "sympathetic" (or at least fail to recognise or respond correctly with the "social etiquette" which appears expected under certain given situations).

And I am glad it pleases you to have created laughter within me (be it deliberate or inadvertent) as I perceive it as vitally important! For years I had a poster on my wall which I'd created stating "Laughter is the best medicine". From a very young age, I've not cared whether people were laughing "with me" or "at me", as long as laughter is occurring I know some sort of "good" or "healing" is taking place. Many a time I've found myself laughing with a couple of other people (partly out of politeness as I don't know what we are actually laughing at, and partly because there is a contagion in laughter), only to discover something I've said has brought hysterics to others, whilst my actual intent was to make a serious statement!

I also had to look up "Alexithymia", when I read it I thought it was another "joke" you were making, but thought it wise to google it to check... upon reading the definition in Wikipedia, not only did THAT make me laugh (due to my perceived irony of the word given the current situation) but also that I too may be considered as a "sufferer" of the condition!

Ohhhh, this is why I don't believe in "coincidence" and only "synchronicity", I must remember (or try to keep reminding myself) that "life is good" and that no matter what the circumstances, the old Zen saying has value and meaning... "There is no one whom we meet upon our path which we cannot learn something from" :-)

Thank you again IntenseWorld.

P.S. I'm pondering starting a thread about the "H" in ADHD and would appreciate your thoughts, opinions or perspective (if or when you have the time or inclination) before doing so.

I have a different experience, perception and interpretation than the "conventional" medical usage of "hyperactive". Because of my current obsession with "language" and seeking the "original intent" of any given word's meaning etymologically as opposed to the "common parlance" interpretation which a word may have evolved to have, with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder I've come to the conclusion that the "hyperactivity" part does not necessarily mean the "inability to remain motionless" (which it appears to me is the intended use of the word in the medical sense). As a young teenager I recall my first "diagnosis" was "Hypochondria". Now, I've discovered "Hyper" and "Hypo" are actually opposites medically speaking (very confusing for me!), however the child psychologist I was referred to explained that I was "over aware of" or "over sensitive to" the physical sensations within my body (which everyone experienced but were not "conscious" of) which in my mind would be "Hyper".

Later I learned of what was then described as suffering from a "touch taboo", I am overly sensitive to MOST people's physical touch (with rare exceptions), and even the "invasion of my space". I am also hyper-sensitive to sound, and to a degree "light". On top of that, I was reading a thread which reminded me of the difficulty I have in sleeping due to the "activity" of my mind and being unable to "switch it off" (whereas some people seem to fall asleep as soon as their head touches the pillow).

So, point being, is it "reasonable" to "suggest" or "question" whether those of us on the "Autistic Spectrum" have a "Hyper" or "over sensitivity" which should not necessarily be attributed purely to "physical motion"? I mean "thinking" is an "activity" although it may lack the appearance of "doing", and yet the brain uses most of the calories we ingest. So maybe all of us on the Autistic Spectrum should be investigated (at the very least) as to whether AD(H)D is actually a "symptom" of AS, and it is dopamine and not serotonin which can benefit our being?

I am fairly sure I have said before, I consider myself a "humble fool" who's only "role" is that of "philosopher, truth-seeker and questioner", but through these old eye of mine, there APPEARS some "worth" and "value" in questioning exactly what the "H" is representing in the ADHD "model", as my experience is that my Psychiatrists "off license" prescription has been more beneficial than my GP's best intent prescribing all that he is able (within his knowledge and guidelines).

Anywayz, your thoughts and perspective would be of interest to me IntenseWorld :-)

IntenseWorld said:

The empathy thing, well I think I was being serious - but then who knows as I have a bit of alexithymia too!

Pleased I have made you laugh.

Hey IntenseWorld,

well I have to say I'm "content in my confusion" in this moment. As you added the "winky smile" after the "lacking empathy" comment, I was working on the assumption that it was an "inside joke" between Aspies (purely due to the fact t'was you who introduced me to the alternative theory that it's not a "lack" of empathy, but more of an inability to cope with "over-empathy" which we suffer from)! I personally have always perceived myself as deeply empathic, however I do not perceive myself as good at being "sympathetic" (or at least fail to recognise or respond correctly with the "social etiquette" which appears expected under certain given situations).

And I am glad it pleases you to have created laughter within me (be it deliberate or inadvertent) as I perceive it as vitally important! For years I had a poster on my wall which I'd created stating "Laughter is the best medicine". From a very young age, I've not cared whether people were laughing "with me" or "at me", as long as laughter is occurring I know some sort of "good" or "healing" is taking place. Many a time I've found myself laughing with a couple of other people (partly out of politeness as I don't know what we are actually laughing at, and partly because there is a contagion in laughter), only to discover something I've said has brought hysterics to others, whilst my actual intent was to make a serious statement!

I also had to look up "Alexithymia", when I read it I thought it was another "joke" you were making, but thought it wise to google it to check... upon reading the definition in Wikipedia, not only did THAT make me laugh (due to my perceived irony of the word given the current situation) but also that I too may be considered as a "sufferer" of the condition!

Ohhhh, this is why I don't believe in "coincidence" and only "synchronicity", I must remember (or try to keep reminding myself) that "life is good" and that no matter what the circumstances, the old Zen saying has value and meaning... "There is no one whom we meet upon our path which we cannot learn something from" :-)

Thank you again IntenseWorld.

P.S. I'm pondering starting a thread about the "H" in ADHD and would appreciate your thoughts, opinions or perspective (if or when you have the time or inclination) before doing so.

I have a different experience, perception and interpretation than the "conventional" medical usage of "hyperactive". Because of my current obsession with "language" and seeking the "original intent" of any given word's meaning etymologically as opposed to the "common parlance" interpretation which a word may have evolved to have, with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder I've come to the conclusion that the "hyperactivity" part does not necessarily mean the "inability to remain motionless" (which it appears to me is the intended use of the word in the medical sense). As a young teenager I recall my first "diagnosis" was "Hypochondria". Now, I've discovered "Hyper" and "Hypo" are actually opposites medically speaking (very confusing for me!), however the child psychologist I was referred to explained that I was "over aware of" or "over sensitive to" the physical sensations within my body (which everyone experienced but were not "conscious" of) which in my mind would be "Hyper".

Later I learned of what was then described as suffering from a "touch taboo", I am overly sensitive to MOST people's physical touch (with rare exceptions), and even the "invasion of my space". I am also hyper-sensitive to sound, and to a degree "light". On top of that, I was reading a thread which reminded me of the difficulty I have in sleeping due to the "activity" of my mind and being unable to "switch it off" (whereas some people seem to fall asleep as soon as their head touches the pillow).

So, point being, is it "reasonable" to "suggest" or "question" whether those of us on the "Autistic Spectrum" have a "Hyper" or "over sensitivity" which should not necessarily be attributed purely to "physical motion"? I mean "thinking" is an "activity" although it may lack the appearance of "doing", and yet the brain uses most of the calories we ingest. So maybe all of us on the Autistic Spectrum should be investigated (at the very least) as to whether AD(H)D is actually a "symptom" of AS, and it is dopamine and not serotonin which can benefit our being?

I am fairly sure I have said before, I consider myself a "humble fool" who's only "role" is that of "philosopher, truth-seeker and questioner", but through these old eye of mine, there APPEARS some "worth" and "value" in questioning exactly what the "H" is representing in the ADHD "model", as my experience is that my Psychiatrists "off license" prescription has been more beneficial than my GP's best intent prescribing all that he is able (within his knowledge and guidelines).

Anywayz, your thoughts and perspective would be of interest to me IntenseWorld :-)