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Jul. 1st, 2006
Someone else just did it! An artist I know (of) just announced that he thinks he has Asperger syndrome. What lead him to this sage conclusion? Reading the Wikipedia entry on it! I don't think the article encourages you to self diagnose, but it does seem to happen quite frequently. The article also rightly mentions that most cases are diagnosed before age six and the severity of the disease seems to decrease as time goes on, but apparently teens and twenty something’s think its the perfect way to explain their social awkwardness. I just wish that if they suspected they were part of a syndrome they would go ask a doctor about it instead of haughtily announcing it in their LJ. It's like a status symbol to some people. My official reply to this persons statement was:
Hint: If you were not diagnosed with Asperger syndrome sometime before the age of six, you probably don't have it. This is primarily a childhood disease and all but the most serious cases tend to grow out of it or around it. If it wasn't much worse when you were younger, you probably do not have it!
Everyone who reads the diagnosis criteria thinks they have Asperger syndrome because it basically reads like "misunderstood genius!" Don't claim to have something unless a doctor diagnosed you with it, its way uncool.
And that's pretty much how I feel. Although there were less people expressing similar sentiment to mine than popping up to declare themselves part of the Asperger social club because they too had read the wikipedia article.
Hint: If you were not diagnosed with Asperger syndrome sometime before the age of six, you probably don't have it. This is primarily a childhood disease and all but the most serious cases tend to grow out of it or around it. If it wasn't much worse when you were younger, you probably do not have it!
Everyone who reads the diagnosis criteria thinks they have Asperger syndrome because it basically reads like "misunderstood genius!" Don't claim to have something unless a doctor diagnosed you with it, its way uncool.
And that's pretty much how I feel. Although there were less people expressing similar sentiment to mine than popping up to declare themselves part of the Asperger social club because they too had read the wikipedia article.