My Experience with Autism

[Connie]

This is my 500th post on the website, i thought i would try and help some people out there with this information.  

 

Hello and this is my story (sorry for the FFX reference). So it all started to unfold when I was about 2 years old and my parents realised that I was developing later than normal. Normally a child will speak their first word around the age of 12 months, but I only spoke my first word at the age of 5. Between the ages of 2 and 5 I was taken to speech therapy to develop social skills and communication to catch up to other children.  Around this age my mum and dad separate and this was quite upsetting for me at the time as I’ve always been quite fond of my dad (I am still am)

 

I went to a normal primary school, despite the problems, all I had at school was added help from a TA with English and social skills. I was a troubled child whilst at school, I often got into fights and got bullied a lot for being different. Unlike these days where these sorts of issues are recognised amongst by children, I was treated like a freak of nature or the class clown by some of the classmates. I did however have a part to play in these fights as I was obsessed at the time with the WWE and I’d do all the signature moves from the show when fighting.

 

Around the age of 11 I was diagnosed with autism, Asperger’s syndrome and received a statement that required schools to provided extra help to help the development of my social skills. The main problem in high school for me was the change of schedule, I was used to going to my primary school, that when I had to go up to high school I couldn't handle with the change and on my first day I tried running away from the school. (One of the PE teachers saw this and ran after me). I was very shy, would say the very least as possible and every time I would get bullied I would try and fight back which usually ended in me crying hysterically. It was only when I was in my second year of high school that my mother told me about my condition. 

 

However when I started college things started to take a turn for the better, I had started to get more and more confident with my sociability through the use of the internet and visiting different chatbox areas, talking to many strangers who later became close friends that I would talk to everyday.  These experiences I would be involved in, helped me take the experience and confidence from speaking online to use in the real world. Using the chatboxes I learned how to deal with a variety of different situations with the safety net of being anonymous to these groups of people and having the ability to disconnect myself from the conversation at any time, assisted me in boosting my self-esteem and my communication skills. Now I have a job and most of the people I know in real life do not know or even suspect I have autism or that I’m out of the ordinary.

 

So now at this point I will tell you all about Autism, and more specifically Asperger’s syndrome. So autism is a spectrum, think it as an umbrella with the different types autism strands of the spectrum. Asperger’s Syndrome is one of these strands.  Some types of autism are more severe than others, for example a savant is a much more extreme case of autism than Asperger’s, and most likely a person who is a savant would need lifetime care.

 

A common question is how do you get Autism? Well you are pretty much born with it, whether it is what chromosomes you have or a change of development within the womb I am not sure. Others believe that the MMR injections case autism in children, this causes some parents to skip over the MMR injections when they have new born children to prevent them getting autism. But this is just completely false, as evidence may show this. Although I did have the MMR injection myself and had an allergic reaction to it, which is interesting to say the least

 

The symptoms of Asperger’s Syndrome are:

 

 

Problems with social skills: Often people with Asperger’s Syndrome have difficulty interacting with other, which leads them to feel awkward in Social Situations. They generally do not make friends easily. They have difficulty initiating and maintaining conversation.

 

 

I have problems with social skills to, although I am improving I often feel like I’m going to say something stupid, especially around new people I am very shy.  I have started to make more friends with the confidence I get through talking to people I meet online and using this in real life situations. Autistic people have problems being in a relationship, with both the maintaining of the relationship and the finding of a partner. I too have this problem as some of you know too well, I’m afraid of approaching women as I had little experience in doing so, only the knowledge I have through watching films. One time I bought a girl some flowers and asked her out, we didn’t even know each other well, but that didn’t come up as a problem in my mind. 

 

Communication Difficulties: Along with the social difficulties, people with Asperger’s have difficulty with making eye contact. They may have trouble using facial expression to display emotion, gestures, and understanding body language. A major problem can be understanding sarcasm, metaphors and other such language and take you very literally.

 

 

 

I don’t always make eye contact with people myself, sometimes I may not understand if a person is being sarcastic or I even question myself, do I sound sarcastic right now? Or is this person being sarcastic? I’m not always sure, but it’s not a major problem for me, I understand when I don’t always make eye contact with people myself, sometimes I may not understand if a person is being sarcastic or I even question myself, do I sound sarcastic right now? Or is this person being sarcastic? I’m not always sure, but it’s not a major problem for me, I understand when a person is speaking metaphorically, it’s just sometimes I don’t get the sarcasm straight away.

 

 

Eccentric or repetitive behaviours: Children with this condition may develop odd, repetitive movements, such as hand wringing or finger twisting.

 

 

This isn’t really an aspect of my life really, but all autistic people are different and some show different signs of the syndrome, there isn’t a list of symptoms that all autistic people have to meet to be diagnosed with autism. I am repetitive with movie quotes but I think that is more through obsession which is the next symptom.

 

Limited range of interests: A child with Asperger's syndrome may develop an intense, almost obsessive, interest in a few areas, such as sports schedules, weather, or maps.

 

As said before I often quote movies or TV shows, like doctor who, and game of thrones. And I do keep saying the same thing, which annoys some people, but I do have a lot of obsessions, mostly in the media.  

 

 

 

Unusual preoccupations or rituals: A child with Asperger's syndrome may develop rituals that he or she refuses to alter, such as getting dressed in a specific order

 

Again doesn't really fit me but, I tend to cut my food in 4? I guess that’s a little weird.

 

Skilled or talented: Many children with Asperger's syndrome are exceptionally talented or skilled in a particular area, such as music or math.

 

 

One “benefit” of having autism (which really sounds bad but I’ll go over this point later) is they might have something they are really good at, for example one person with autism could paint the Rome from having one helicopter ride. Another could play any song on the piano if he had listened to it once. It’s quite amazing really what some people can do.

 

Sensitive Sensors: Many autistic people have highly sensitive senses of touch, and have a high perception of sound.

 

I really don’t like other people touching me, most children with autism may react violently to another person touching them but if I’m feeling uncomfortable and you try to touch me, I tend to snatch away. I also don’t like very loud noises and cannot cope if for example I cannot hear myself think. 

 

 

A lack of empathy: People with autism do not have the capacity to share and recognize emotions experienced by another

 

I remember when my Granddad had died and I saw my mother cry from the loss of her father. At the time I did not understand why she was so upset at his death as he was very distant from the family and he pushed his kids away to spend time with his new wife first over his children. This led to one of the biggest mistakes in my life that I still regret to this day, where I shouted at my grieving mother for crying over her father, telling her that she shouldn't be crying over a terrible man and I was glad he was dead.  I tend not to feel bad or upset when a person dies, especially the case when it’s a celebrity. Even to this day I don’t get why I should share another person’s emotion and emphasize with them.

 

 

Now what does it feel like to have Asperger’s syndrome? Well at first it was quite a difficult time, especially with settling in new places and with new people. I was kind of awkward to be around because I’d literally not say a word unless someone would ask me a question. But if you ask me now, it feels good, in fact I don’t feel too different from anyone else, and if you take anything from this we don’t want to be treated any different from the rest of you guys. We just wanted to be treated normally, that’s all we want.

 

 

How can we help someone who meets these symptoms or have been diagnosed with autism? Well its tricky really since everyone with autism is different, we don’t all react to the same way and we react differently and have different problems. A good way to approach it is to understand that we see things from a unique prospective, but we don’t want to be treated differently or extra special, don’t be scared and careful worrying that you’ll say something inappropriate, treat us like you would if you didn't know we had autism, you never know some of your closest friends could have Autism.

If you have any questions about autism or about my experiences with autism, feel free to ask.

 

Edited May 3, 2020 by connman88

[Naoto Shirogane]

Really liked your story. I like these kind of stories because they are heartwarming. Glad to hear about this. 

[JaM]

thanks for sharing man... really learned a lot... 

[PSNP is crap i left]

Amazing story man. Glad you could share it with us and i also respect anyone who's had it rough in life like me. You have all my respect now Conn so keep going strong in life!

[madbuk]

 if you take anything from this we don’t want to be treated any different from the rest of you guys. We just wanted to be treated normally, that’s all we want.

This. So much this.

 

And people don't understand this and conjure up things like EBD schools and feel the need to label us, and then force us into having someone at mainstream places we have to talk to every week....

When I wonder off to go see this lady I couldn't care less about, my friends who're going wherever will begin to suspect I'm not just revising like I plan on saying I'm doing. Dreading that part of College next month.

 

Great post, full of good information

[Stevieboy]

Great post Conn, Thanks for sharing your story.

[xzero4812]

Congrats on your 500th post as well as your courage to speak on your condition. As my son who has autism he is currently obtaining help. If u don't mind me asking how are your eating habits and how do u manage your parroting or mimic lines that you hear on

Edited August 16, 2014 by xzero4812

[Carville87]

Great 500th post. Thanks for sharing

[Hemiak]

Thanks for sharing Con. I'm actually a recreation therapist and about half my caseload is made up of individuals who fall on the spectrum, though I don't actually work with anyone diagnosed with Asbergers at the moment. My sisters son is also on the spectrum somewhere, he just turned 3. It seems like you've really come a long way and I applaud your journey.

[DEMON]

It felt like I was reading about myself there.  I'm diagnosed with autism as well.  I've been extremely socially awkward my entire life.  I freak out when people touch me, get panic attacks when in crowded areas etc.  Primary and High school were the worst.. College was a little bit better as people were more aware of these kind of problems and less likely to bully you over it.  Online forums have helped me a bit, but I'm still quite shy in real life or even in parties (PSN).. I usually can't talk due to shyness.  It's great you've got over it though Makes me hope I can do the same some day.

 

Although for your last piece of writing there, I'll say if you know someone who has autism, you should maybe avoid touching, bringing up anything about keeping eye contact (I never make this, but nearly everyone I know IRL knows I have social problems), yelling, making loud noises, but treat them normally in other ways.

 

 

A common question is how do you get Autism? Well you are pretty much born with it, whether it is what chromosomes you have or a change of development within the womb I am not sure. Others believe that the MMR injections case autism in children, this causes some parents to skip over the MMR injections when they have new born children to prevent them getting autism. But this is just completely false, as evidence may show this. Although I did have the MMR injection myself and had an allergic reaction to it, which is interesting to say the least

 

That is the most stupid thing ever, I don't know why people believe that!

[Sheld-J]

Amazing post! I am actually a support worker for learning disabilities and mental health in the uk! I support both autistic and Aspergers and thaes can come hand in hand as you may have! I have helped one lad with Aspergers a lot, we go to groups, play football(soccer for you yanks lol) and go to the pub etc and I have great satisfaction in helping someone having these conditions! Everybody is on the autistic spectrum! People may have OCD for example and may be shy in groups but just depends where you fall on the spectrum! You wrote a very inspiring post, thank you..

Sheldon

[Connie]

Thanks for your positive responses guys  

 

Congrats on your 500th post as well as your courage to speak on your condition. As my son who has autism he is currently obtaining help. If u don't mind me asking how are your eating habits and how do u manage your parroting or mimic lines that you hear on

I'm quite the picky eater my self, when i was younger i would only eat mashed potatoes and jam sandwiches. My mother was persistent to get me to try new things, to this day i'm picky but i have a balanced diet. I don't really manage mimicking lines, I usually keep doing it until i get bored, i suppose if i hadn't watched TV i wouldn't quote things? But to be honest i don't see that as much as a problem for myself.

[Fierce_DeityX1]

Aspergers is quite the condition (I also have it), and learning the backstory behind you is simply amazing, what a great way to reach post #500. I would love to write more about how much this is heartwarming, but I cant really phrase it correctly...

[xzero4812]

Thanks for your positive responses guys  

 

I'm quite the picky eater my self, when i was younger i would only eat mashed potatoes and jam sandwiches. My mother was persistent to get me to try new things, to this day i'm picky but i have a balanced diet. I don't really manage mimicking lines, I usually keep doing it until i get bored, i suppose if i hadn't watched TV i wouldn't quote things? But to be honest i don't see that as much as a problem for myself.

my stepson is about the same and has an insatiable appetite, his choices of food and diet is very unhealthy and most things he eats gives him stomach problems. As far as mimicking its his biggest challenge as he makes it hard for him to focus

[STRANGEgenius]

This was a great read, thank you. Very heartwarming

 

I really agree with the quote "just treat us normally" couldn't have said it better.

 

I knew a guy with Autisim last year when i was studying, and i would always treat him normally, and i saw it worked much better then when i saw people acting differently around him.

Edited August 17, 2014 by STRANGEgenius

[Waffle-Sensei]

This is an amazing story, thank you for taking the time and sharing it with all of us.

Edited August 17, 2014 by Cheezburgrs

[Superstarmaste1r]

I also go to speech classes for school too since when I was born, I couldn't really talk like the other babies until I turned 2 years old where I finally can talk.

 

Pretty nice story you explained.

[30 Year Old Boomer]

Heart warming story Dood.

[LCDR_McGarrett]

Amazing story. I know someone who has Asperges, and he's exactly like you described it. But someway he's comfortable to be around me (I don't know why)

I'm really social awkward myself and I don't talk so much either. Some years ago, I was diagnosed with some social disorder (don't know what it's called in English) among many other disorders.

Still, I wish you good luck with your life and future.

[NotAFoxAnymore]

I don't usually end up reading these really long posts as my attention span is awful, but this one hooked me and I read it all. Really interesting story. My parents think I might have some mild form of Asperger's but I'm not convinced, out of those listed the one that really fits me is the social difficulties. As a kid I would have the ritual thing, I would always line up all my toy cars in a line of traffic around the room and if anyone so much as touched a car I'd throw a fit. But that doesn't happen anymore, and since not a whole lot is applicable I'm not quite sure if I do have it or not.

[thepeaguy83]

Autistics are mostly prone to being abused, but I know of some exceptions who have abused others sexually. One is convicted paedophile. I reckon he was misdiagnosed though.