Asperger Syndrome Support Group

Hey Chris!
The way I see it, it's that they got to start somewhere. Just like when you go to a regular physical health doctor, they'll do diagnoses and then as further info comes to light, they'll re-evaluate and fine turn. Some people go for a while with a "mystery condition" until one day some important piece of info will give some doctor that "Aha!" moment.

Before AS was a recognized diagnosis....many AS people were getting labeled Schizophrenia. Many health professionals are STILL not so familiar with AS. Almost any doctor or health professional IS more familiar with Schizophrenia than they are AS. I recommend that you do your best to find one that IS equally familiar with AS.

I took my son to the doctor and because he sat looking frightened from being sensory overwhelmed in the cold room, half dressed, and not making eye contact....the doctor assumed that my boy was abused! I told him that he has AS and is very uncomfortable with the visit.....but I was not believed because they did not understand AS!!!! I really hope that I also can find a doctor for my son who is savy regarding AS.

Okay I couldn't read past the part where she denied you're an aspie.

It pisses me off so go smack the bitch then see someone else.

Well -- I think you have to consider the source. That person is a primary care provider who probably has only a cursory understanding of mental health issues. As a matter of fact, I've seen some PCPs who are amazing in respecting the role mental health plays in our well-being -- but I've also seen some who are absolutely closed-minded.

You're your own best advocate. If you feel as though the care you are getting is not hitting the right target and working for you, you should feel very, very comfortable being outspoken about it and/or seeing someone else. Doctors love to think they are the authority in the relationship -- but, remember, YOU are the one requesting the service and ultimately paying for it (or having it paid for).

You could print out some of the things you've posted on the site...... that might give someone a little more to go from to help you diagnose and treat things.

Also -- maybe if you posted the general area where you live, someone on the site can help you find a person who specializes in AS. Or -- ask around.

I have ADD and the diagnosis is absolutely "me." I just found out about 4 years ago. However, at one point, a primary care provider diagnosed me with depression and I was on anti-depressants for about 10 years. That kind of medication helped a little -- but it didn't treat my source issue. And the medication had side effects. I really liked that PCP and thought she was a very caring, professional doctor -- but, in the end, her diagnosis really delayed me getting treatment that really helped me.

You psychiatrist will -- I hope -- have some faint clue how to do a psych assessment. Your doc onbviously has no idea!!!

Problem is, a lot of the surface signs of AS, like inappropriate affect and social isolation, are the same, and without knowing what questions to ask, the doctor might be totally misled. But FYI, according to the DSM you CANNOT have both an autism-spectrum disorder AND Schizophrenia. (Never mind that a psychiatrist at a previous job came to me scratching his head because he's found a kid with all the symptoms of both. Walk away from that, it never happened.)

I'm just grateful your doc put a question mark next to that el wrongo diagnosis instead of labelling you and putting you on Zyprexa.

hi chris and so sorry what you going thru... my son been diag with all differnt things from the age 7 and then when he was hospital in 3 grade. then more came out. it all start out adhd and then when they did the stimulatnt meds then he got hyper and more manic.

also then they said he had pdd is pervasive develop disorder.... then later they put bipolar and aspie, but my son get pschotic features and more scare on things...

i not sure what all sysmpots there is my son has poor socail clues and cant get with the people thig much he finlay comming out and only on the xbox 360 games he mange to talk to people.


i hate seeing dr put hypocrodica this is crazy.... im so sorry here huggs to you... i hope the new dr will help out... keep us posted...

how old are you?? mine son now is 17.. take care ang

Thanks for the kind words and positive information everyone!

@angelina - Thank you for the reply. I'm 26 and just getting to the point that I feel awake and alert. Although I know the transcendence will be different for anyone experiencing a mental disability like Schizophrenia or Asperger Syndrome, and things may never get better for some people. But there is hope in this world and positive things to focus on.

I play a lot of video games too, mostly on my computer. I can let go and sink into another little world for a while, but that's not something that is going to challenge me, and people only really grow when they are challenged.

As a teenager, around 17-18 years of age, I was very absent-minded, uncoordinated, socially awkward and shy. I barely spoke to anyone. I hung out with my cousin a lot, who was really kind of the opposite. He got into doing Air Conditioning work and asked me to come work with him. I did because I wasn't in school and really didn't know what else to do. No one in my family knew anything about Asperger Syndrome at that time. I also really think that I didn't know how to say "No." so I did it basically just because he asked me.

It was a HUGE challenge for me to say the least. I worked on and off in the A/C business for 5 years but never progressed passed the status of "Helper" and don't feel as if I really retained much from what I learned there at the time. But just doing that helped me to open my eyes a little and see another slice of the world outside of my own domain.

And in all honesty, I would never really recommend that anyone as cognitively deficit as I was to work in a field as dangerous as A/C work is.

I was always around sharp materials (sheet metal) and had a fear of being cut or poked in the eye on a regular basis. I had something almost like a phobia of something being dropped on my head from the roof or the attic above (we were always working in construction areas; houses being built, commercial buildings, etc.). I was required to be in attics and on rooftops, and now that I think back on what I did, as clouded as my mind was, it's a little bit scary to say the least!

But out of all of the problems associated with having done that, I'm glad that I did. It helped me to develop coordination and dexterity and get better with my OCD and phobia's. All the while no one, including me, knew that I was mentally challenged like I was and feeling very alone. All they knew was that I was shy and weird.

Even though I was around people every day, my mind worked on a different level. Not just on a different page in the book, but another book altogether.

I'm starting to feel better the passed year or so. I'm about to finish school and have to get a full time job and immediately start taking up my own responsibilities, but I am very afraid that I will regress because of the pressure and it will all come tumbling down. Let's just hope that doesn't happen!

All anyone can do is try, try, and try some more.

Wish you all the best.

>>I can let go and sink into another little world for a while, but that's not something that is going to challenge me, and people only really grow when they are challenged.

I also want to point out that, while it can be good to aim high, you have to know and understand your limits. I could honestly see me allowing myself TOO much responsibility and the pressure driving me into regression.

So, it's good to know your limits, and try to compare your sons limits to that of a neuro-typical, that way you might grasp some understanding of just how unfocused and cognitively impaired he really is. Then you can begin to help him and guide him through his challenges and then praise him (if he permits) when he overcomes them. Even the smallest ones.