Poll

Do you got aspergers, ADHD, HFA or other syndrom?

No
16 (38.1%)
Absolutley NOT
3 (7.1%)
Yes
14 (33.3%)
Maybee som signs of it..
9 (21.4%)

Total Members Voted: 41

Voting closed: February 16, 2013, 11:41:19 pm

Author Topic: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?  (Read 21320 times)

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Offline EEVblog

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #25 on: February 10, 2013, 02:54:34 am »
Dave, you are absoluttley right, but its fun to se how many there are here on the forum anyway.

Umm, that sentence is kinda contradictory!  :palm:

Kinda like saying you know horoscopes are bunk, but it's fun to know what's in store for you this week  :-DD

Dave.
 

Offline steve30

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #26 on: February 10, 2013, 03:06:35 am »
I got diagnosed by one psychiatrist back in 2005 when I was 14. He seemed confident that I had Asperger's Syndrome.

Though, apparently I did see some psychologists or similar when I was very young because various people suspected I was autistic, but they ruled it out.
 

Offline TerminalJack505

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #27 on: February 10, 2013, 03:57:23 am »
I don't have Asperger's but if I did I would keep it to myself.  Especially when interviewing for a job. 

These days one of the biggest traits that employers look for is interpersonal skill.  Like it or not, many employers will not take a risk on someone that they believe will not "work well with others"--no matter how skilled that person is in the field they are being interviewed for.  (Obviously a potential employer will never admit that Asperger's is a factor when hiring since that would be discrimination.)

I worked with a couple of people that I suspect had Asperger's and their anti-social attitudes affected the overall "team dynamic" negatively.
 

Offline jaqie

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This thread was doomed from the start.
« Reply #28 on: February 10, 2013, 04:14:27 am »
Correlation with possible symptoms you might find on Wikipedia/Internet does not equal causation, not by a long shot.
And unless you have issues that are affecting your life, and you need help for it, labeling yourself into a group of people with a disorder is not a wise thing to do IMO.
On the surface I have several of the Asperger characteristics, as I'm sure many of us could, as many of them are quite broad in scope. But I know they are due to other more obvious causes in my case.

Dave.
This alone has doomed this thread from the start.

I personally have been diagnosed as HFA NOS many times from childhood all the way through to about 5 years ago, and am 35 at this time, so I would call my own a confirmed diagnosis.  People seem to not only not understand the diagnostic criterium for disorders, but also seem to self diagnose much of the time, or believe one quack who told them they had it when many others in the know would never diagnose that set of symptoms they have as such.

For those that do not know, there is something called the clinical threshold.  This is for all disorders, not just this one.  To meet the clinical threshold and be called a disorder or problem, the disorder symptoms must negatively impact the person's life in a quantifiable manner.

Then there are co-morbidities, which is medical speak for other stuff that is there at the same time.  Many things can cause the same symptom set that is used to diagnose HFA and asperger's, and it takes a real expert and in the case of HFA and asperger's it also takes a lot of knowledge from the patient's childhood to diagnose either.

In short, I am saying that Dave is correct here, and explaining more about how and why.
 

Offline steve30

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #29 on: February 10, 2013, 04:33:42 am »
I got diagnosed by one psychiatrist back in 2005 when I was 14. He seemed confident that I had Asperger's Syndrome.

Though, apparently I did see some psychologists or similar when I was very young because various people suspected I was autistic, but they ruled it out.

It could be that you outgrow the diagnose. many do that in the high functioning part of the spectre.
I hope that life works for you today. Aspies has better times now, since we  do excell in electronics, science and IT! paybacktime..  >:D

Well, I'm 22 now and I haven't outgrown it yet 8)
 

Offline smashedProton

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #30 on: February 10, 2013, 04:33:58 am »
I agree that people should hide disabilities/disorders/ etc..  Within reason of course.  You could sacrifice your career by being put on the "low track" straight out of high school.  From my personal observations (i dont claim to be an expert), people are increasingly using disorders as an excuse for misconduct.
I have been diagnosed over the years with ADD (because I could not pay attention to my burnt out teacher in grade school) , aspergers, underdeveloped prefrontal cortex  (just like every other teenager), and executive skills dis function.  Doctors have also put my on numerous psychoactive drugs like antidepressants and riddalin.  They are mind altering shit.  If there are any parents with autistic children that read this, please think about putting your child on these drugs.  They can potentially screw up the way your child's brain develops.  I could talk about the killers on psychoactive drugs...  And ptsd vets who develop impulsive reactions and hallucinations.  What killed Chris Kyle the other day.  I read his book too... good man  >:(
I have spent 4 years isolated from the other kids in my school, and doing 'social skills training', riding the short bus to school.  That is not a good way to grow up...  Who in their right mind would think that isolating children from social situations will make them more social?  The committee for public education no doubt.

Well, my point is that I have had to do a ton of catching up to do because of the years that i lost 'doing drugs and learning social skills' .  But now I am obsessed with electronics! :-+
It makes you feel really special knowing things in high school by simply tinkering, that sadly too few people now days that have developed the capacity to understand. 
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Offline jaqie

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #31 on: February 10, 2013, 04:39:36 am »
Well, I'm 22 now and I haven't outgrown it yet 8)
HFA is not something that can be outgrown.  Anyone that claims they "outgrew it" does not and never did have it.
 

Offline IanB

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #32 on: February 10, 2013, 04:46:34 am »
@smashedProton: Sadly it is easy to suppose that the education system is geared more towards training children to conform and to be obedient and less about educating children to think and to question what they are told. From the perspective of the political elite, educated people are dangerous people. If there were too many educated people in society, wealthy and privileged politicians would not get elected because voters would see through the bullshit. Educated people must be controlled and managed at all costs.
 

Offline smashedProton

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #33 on: February 10, 2013, 05:00:00 am »
Crikeyl, there needs to be more engineers in government!  Dave Jones 2017!  He wasn't born in the United States.  But then again, neither was Obama!   :-DD
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Offline c4757p

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #34 on: February 10, 2013, 05:11:03 am »
jaqie, you're right, it can't literally be "outgrown". However, people do change and develop as they age, and people who once found it difficult to live with can learn to deal with it. That is "outgrowing" it in a way.

When I was a young kid, I was pretty much miserable to be around for anybody who didn't know me well. Many kids with Asperger's are. It didn't help that despite being closely related to a large number of people with autism spectrum disorders, my parents never considered that I might have it (which the psych found absolutely shocking considering how obvious a case I was), so I was never taught how to deal with it. Most other kids would realize I was "different" and pretty much ignore me, so I never learned. When I went to college, my roommates had the balls to just tell me what I was doing that bothered people, and I was able to learn that way. I still very much have it, and I still have to put a lot of effort into managing it, but from the outside many people have no idea. Sometimes people pick up on the fact that I'm a bit "slow", but I am not obnoxious anymore - I outgrew the behavior. The stereotypical behaviors aren't a direct symptom of Asperger's, they are an effect of the environment that some Asperger's kids grow up in.

I don't think the intent was to say that people literally outgrow it, as in they no longer have HFA, but that it can become significantly less debilitating as someone grows up.
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Offline jaqie

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #35 on: February 10, 2013, 05:18:02 am »
You mean learn to compensate.  That is almost the exact opposite of outgrowing something.

I have learned to compensate quite a bit for and adapt to my HFA.  That does not mean it does not exist anymore, nor does it mean it ceases to affect my life or me.  Someone can learn to get around pretty good in a wheelchair, that is compensating for and adapting to not being able to walk anymore, it is not the same as being able to walk all of a sudden.  Clear analogy I am able to draw especially since I have recently become dependent on a wheelchair.
 

Offline smashedProton

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #36 on: February 10, 2013, 05:22:18 am »
I'm in on the same boat that you are.  Its really odd that people wont tell me if I am doing something wrong.  It's not like I'm going to get angry at them or anything. 

But aspergers shouldn't be something that you are proud of.  Tesla lived practically his entire life unhappy, but at the same time he worked for free on technologies that he believed would change the world for the better.  By no means would you be a prodigy solely because you have aspergers.
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Offline c4757p

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #37 on: February 10, 2013, 05:27:07 am »
I have learned to compensate quite a bit for and adapt to my HFA.  That does not mean it does not exist anymore, nor does it mean it ceases to affect my life or me.

Me too, and it affects my life a hell of a lot less now. Sure, it's still there, but my life has improved significantly. All the way from elementary school through high school (sorry, I know this isn't a U.S.-centric forum, and I know they're called something different in different places, but... oh well, deal with it  :-+) I had literally not a single friend because I pretty much treated everyone like crap. Now that I've learned to "compensate" I do have a few very good friends, and even those who aren't friends generally don't find me intolerable. That is a huge improvement. Sure, I still have to deal with it internally, but I'd say there was a big enough change between then and now that I "outgrew" something. My quality of life has improved so much. Maybe "outgrow" isn't the best choice of words, but I'm OK with it. I don't really think "compensate" is all that accurate, either.
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Offline smashedProton

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #38 on: February 10, 2013, 05:33:00 am »
This thread reminds me of the movie "a beautiful mind"  really good
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Offline c4757p

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #39 on: February 10, 2013, 05:40:09 am »
I'm in on the same boat that you are.  Its really odd that people wont tell me if I am doing something wrong.  It's not like I'm going to get angry at them or anything. 

I know! It was so amazing when I got to college and my roommates were bold enough to speak up - nobody ever was before. Forget angry, I was delighted! And they didn't really seem generally pissed at me for being the way I was, they more seemed like they knew I didn't realize it and they wanted to be helpful. (I suppose it probably helped that we tended to playfully tease each other a lot, so they knew that if I took something as an insult they could turn it around into a joke and make a decent recovery)

Quote
But aspergers shouldn't be something that you are proud of.

I don't think it's something to be embarrassed of, either. Sure, it might be beneficial to hide it during job interviews and the like, but otherwise, it's part of who you are - you're stuck with it whether you like it or not - and it's no good to go through life embarrassed of yourself. We don't exactly need to start having autism pride parades, but I wish people would be a bit more open about it sometimes. Remember when I said how much my life improved when I found out I had it and learned to deal with it? Know how I found out? Not from people around me telling me about it - a lot of my family has it, but it's a section of my family my parents never talked to much, so I didn't know. No, the first time I heard about it was during a South Park episode, when I thought it sounded interesting and started doing research of my own. If more people were open about their various psychological and mental "differences", maybe more kids like me (and their parents) would figure it out sooner and solve some problems instead of waiting until they just randomly hear about it at some point in time. (Also maybe people would stop using their diagnoses and self-diagnoses as excuses for misbehavior if it were considered more 'normal')
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Online Mechatrommer

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #40 on: February 10, 2013, 05:56:07 am »
more information on HFA... http://www.hfa.org/ and this one below is from Wiki (backed by references), not me:

Quote from: Wiki
Differences with Asperger syndromeSome differences in features of people with high-functioning autism and with Asperger syndrome are the following:[2][3][4]

People with HFA have a lower verbal intelligence quotient
Better visual-spatial skills (higher Performance IQ) than people with Asperger syndrome
Less deviating locomotion than people with Asperger syndrome
People with HFA more often have problems functioning independently
Curiousity and interest for many different things, in contrast to people with Asperger syndrome
People with Asperger syndrome are better at empathizing with another

hope it helps.
Nature: Evolution and the Illusion of Randomness (Stephen L. Talbott): Its now indisputable that... organisms “expertise” contextualizes its genome, and its nonsense to say that these powers are under the control of the genome being contextualized - Barbara McClintock
 

Offline jaqie

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #41 on: February 10, 2013, 05:58:03 am »
That's just it, high functioning autism is not a disorder, it is a difference from normal development and neurotypical response.  Just like with everything else, humans tend to make anything that is not the norm (or that is not the desired value) into a disorder or disease or problem to be eliminated or ignored or various other detrimental things.

I have HFA.  What's that mean?  I am not victim of anything, I think and act differently than neurotypical people.  That's it! nothing more nothing less, though there are many more details that can be discussed, this is the core of it.  We are marginalized by people because we do not think of things nor act nor react in the expected neurotypical fashion - which to me is actually quite disordered in and of itself, where you are expected to hide things from people, expected to lie, take advantage of situations, et cetra.  In my opinion, neurotypicals are those that are disordered, and I am one of the fortunate few that can see it, but if I allow others to know that I am not neurotypical I am the one that is marginalized.  It is made to be our problem and not theirs because their ways of doing things are the desired ways by most of society.

I have HFA.  I love having it, I am very very glad I have it.  If I did not, chances are I would be a much worse person.  What I do not like is being marginalized for being non neurotypical.  To avoid this, I and others like me have to learn to "fake" or "mimic" the way neurotypicals interact with eachother.  That is a necessary learned skill for us in this life, one that is inherent to them.  At times I drop the facade, and when I do I learn the true nature of people and how truly good or bad they are.  Through having to learn to adapt to and compensate for not being neurotypical I have come away with a great advantage to those who did not have to go through the process of consciously learning so much - I am awake and aware in a way that very few people are, and wouldn't trade that for anything.

I have used that since then to my advantage in all areas of my life, and that learned methodology and conscious analyze and apply has come in greatly handy in many things, including electronics and computers.

Yes, I am very proud to have HFA.
 

Offline c4757p

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #42 on: February 10, 2013, 06:11:33 am »
... neurotypical ... neurotypical ... neurotypical ... neurotypicals ... neurotypical ... neurotypical ... neurotypicals ... neurotypical

God I hate that word. It sounds so weaselly! What's wrong with "normal"? A "norm" is an average, and most people do not have HFA, so people without HFA are normal. "Neurotypical" just reminds me too much of marketing/pointy-haired-boss language: "leverage" rather than "use", etc., to make someone sound more important. You're not insulting yourself by saying you're not normal. Avoiding basic descriptive words like that just adds to the stigma of psychological disorders as something to be embarrassed of, and we don't need more of that.
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Offline jaqie

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #43 on: February 10, 2013, 06:14:49 am »
:palm: My point flew like a 747 right over your head.

neurotypical is *NOT* normal.

HFA is *NOT* a disorder, and it is not even psychological in nature. it is a NEUROLOGICAL difference.

You show your bigotist nature.

Or perhaps you dislike words you do not understand.  neurological seems to be one of them.
« Last Edit: February 10, 2013, 06:17:12 am by jaqie »
 

Offline c4757p

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #44 on: February 10, 2013, 06:28:34 am »
:palm: My point flew like a 747 right over your head.

No, I'm just not commenting on it, I'm commenting on something else.

Quote
neurotypical is *NOT* normal.

What exactly do you think "typical" means? You even used the term "norm" to describe not having HFA!

Quote
HFA is *NOT* a disorder,
Wikipedia defines autism as a disorder and that's good enough for me. Perhaps you don't like the term, so don't use it yourself, but I will.

Quote
and it is not even psychological in nature. it is a NEUROLOGICAL difference.
The two are not mutually exclusive.

Quote
You show your bigotist nature.
"Bigotist"? You mean bigoted? How in hell am I a bigot?

Quote
Or perhaps you dislike words you do not understand.  neurological seems to be one of them.


I made a comment about disliking a certain word and you chose to attack me personally? I was just having a polite discussion. I never said anything bigoted - I'm really not even sure what you think I'm bigoted against. And you're sure not one to talk about "not understanding words" when you say things like "bigotist"...
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Offline vk6zgo

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #45 on: February 10, 2013, 06:33:38 am »
I have a profound suspicion of  popular Psychology.
You see headlines that say "Successful Business people share many mental traits with Psychopaths",& crap like that!
Is Kerry Stokes going to kidnap people & cut them up with a chainsaw?---------I dont think so! ;D

When I was a kid,I had Bronchial Asthma,& the current theory in vogue amongst medicos was that it was  "a Psychological disorder".
---Mummy took your Teddy bear away!! ;D

Of course,popular fiction lapped up this idea,& had a field day with the "weakling" character with Asthma,holding back the bold heroes,before expiring in a suitably messy manner.
Times changed,& it was realised that Asthma had real,physical causes,& emotional distress among patients was the result,not the cause.

Now it has gone full circle,with Asthma regarded as a "Life threatening" ailment with the implied:-"You've got Asthma--Oh God,don't die here!" ;D
The story now is :"You never grow out of Asthma"---Sorry,but I did grow out of it!--Ok,a few wheezes & stuff ,prone to 'flu,but full blown Asthma-No!
It can kill you,no doubt,but so can lots of stuff.

All this leads up to the fact that I was very timid about mentioning Asthma when I first started work,& it definitely influenced my social life.
If everything you read tells you that you are a weakling with a Disease which is "All in the mind",it does have an adverse affect on you.

By the way,you left the "Haven't got a clue" option out of the Poll.



 

Offline Stiege

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #46 on: February 10, 2013, 06:34:27 am »
This is probably why some people would say discussing mental health on an electronics forum has a tendency to go off topic, despite the intention of discussing it with regard to electronics to begin with.
 

Offline jaqie

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #47 on: February 10, 2013, 06:35:42 am »
last response to you, c4757p - you obviously have no idea what several medical terms I use mean.  Your ignorance is showing.

I have not and do not attack people, and you know it.  I am done responding to you - what I have been saying is definitely beyond your will to understand.


------------------------
I totally agree with your intent, Stiege.  I wish this would have been locked long ago.  As I said earlier, this thread was doomed from the start.  Problem is, HFA is not a mental health issue.  As I said, it is neurological, not psychological in nature.
 

Offline c4757p

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #48 on: February 10, 2013, 06:36:15 am »
Besides, my point also went over your head. I think I had a fairly sensible criticism of "neurotypical", such that even if you disagreed with it you could have actually argued against what I said, rather than resorting to calling me a bigot and accusing me of not understanding what "psychological" means. Unlike your very sound argument that I am a bigotist, I explained myself. I'll do it again: I think that using made-up words when normal ones suffice makes us sound like we are embarrassed of our (disorder - condition - syndrome - difference - whatever term you think is acceptable) and adds to the existing stigma against us. What's wrong with that, and more importantly, how the hell is it bigoted??

This is probably why some people would say discussing mental health on an electronics forum has a tendency to go off topic, despite the intention of discussing it with regard to electronics to begin with.

Sorry  :)
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Offline c4757p

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Re: Du you got aspergers, and does it explane your intrest in electronics?
« Reply #49 on: February 10, 2013, 06:38:18 am »
last response to you, c4757p - you obviously have no idea what several medical terms I use mean.  Your ignorance is showing.

How does that dilute the point I made? I wasn't talking about anything medical.

last response to you, c4757p

Oh for god's sake don't be cowardly. I'm not trying to attack you, I'm trying to figure out why you said what you did. If you think I'm wrong, why not explain it?
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