Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional Aspbergers = High Functioning Autism?

Wow, this sounds just like DD5. She just finished up testing/eval last week for ADHD, SPD, plus IQ testing. We won't get the results for a couple more weeks.

I feel sick. It sort of sounds like me. I think in my case, a lot of it was lack of proper training and it's improved as I've gotten older. To some degree, empathy can be taught. I always thought of myself as a super empathetic person because I'm so sensitive, but I did have a tendency to interrupt, talk too much about my topics, just basic boorish behavior up until I pretty much had kids. 8[

You may be interested to know that recent research has found that most people with Asperger's feel *too much* in the way of empathy, as opposed to the old way of thinking that people with Asperger's lack empathy altogether..... (article below)

A groundbreaking study suggests people with autism-spectrum disorders such as Asperger's do not lack empathy � rather, they feel others' emotions too intensely to cope.
http://www.thestar.com/article/633688

Misty

Very good description, though this will vary in intensity with different AS children. Some Aspies talk too much and some barely talk at all. The above description fits one of my Aspies to a T. Another of my Aspies will interrupt without concern, but she doesn't go on and on and on about a subject like my other 2 Aspies do. She is very sensitive to sound and just doesn't talk much. She gets headaches easily from too much sound and too much social interaction.

Misty

If this sounds like your daughter, I would be sure to inform the person who is testing your daughter. They may want to look into Asperger's. They may not pick up on it unless you point it out to them, depending on your child AND how familiar the diagnosing professional is with Asperger's. ADHD & SPD usually go along with Asperger's, so it's possible she is also Aspie. I have 3 daughters with Asperger's.. One of them just turned 6. She was diagnosed last year at age 5. She is just like the above description and also has raging ADHD and sensory processing issues (and major anxiety).

Let me know if you'd like more info.

Misty

Asperger's is considered a type of high-functioning autism. With classic high-functioning autism, there is usually a speech delay. With Asperger's, there is generally no speech delay. This is one way that psychologists and other diagnosing professionals distinguish between the two. But Asperger's IS considered a spectrum disorder and it IS considered a type of high-functioning autism.

Hope this answers your question.

Misty

I don't think my son has Asperger's but he has motor dyspraxia and hyptonia, sensory issues, a few phobias, and some anxiety, so our insurance is going to pay for a neuropsychological assessment at a child study center. He has enough issues in common with Aspies that I am on an Asperger's mail list and I found some things I read there helpful. My son, who just turned 11, has not been able to learn to swim because of a fear of being in deep water and group lessons would not work for him. Someone on the Asperger's mailing list told me about someone who could give my son private lessons.

The developmental pediatrician my son saw last year said he did not have Asperger's. He has no problem with making eye contact and one of his favorite things to do is make people laugh, and I think he uses humor to deal with some of his issues. He likes being around people, in fact he does not like being alone. He is more social than I am and he is a very good host when his friends come over. He doesn't talk to them about things he knows his friends don't care anything about and that, unfortunately, is half the things he is interested in. They do have a love of video games in common, and musical theater.

this might be too much spliting hairs, but aspergers is not a type of high functioning autism. It is a type of Pervasive Developmental Disorder. "High funtioning Autism" is a colloquial term (never mentioned in the DSM) to describe kids who are NOT aspergers but who are very high functioning and have a Pervasisve Developmental Disorder. Kids with "high functioning autism" usually have the diagnosis of PDD-NOS and have the language delay, those with aspbergers do not (among other distinctions).

The only reason I think its important to point this out is that there are a lot of really interesting articles out there about the differences between HFA and Aspbergers, and to understand and appreciate them you have to think of HFA as the population who do not fit into Aspergers diagnosis, instead of Aspies being some type of subset of HFA. The first source of my info on this came from Dr. Cecelia McCarton a developmental ped. who diagnosed my son (not Aspergers but HFA (PDD-NOS)). She even pointed out that some kids with HFA are actually less impaired than those with Aspergers, as its often assumed that aspies are the "highest functioning" on the spectrum.

http://www.autism-help.org/autism-high-functioning-hfa.htm
http://www.highfunctioningautism.org/

irene

Jamie, I wanted to hear some more about this
Clip that I carefully dissected from another thread:


I'm not picking on you. �I'm asking because I've wondered the same thing. �Somebody I knew made a tasteless joke one time that if I was any smarter I would have been autistic. � �I had never heard of Aspbergers at that time. �I know I fit well into some situations better than others in life. �I have learned to chose my surroundings and friends wisely. �I do not consider myself ASD but obviously have some of the same traits where there's an overlap. �I'm just curious and appreciative of this chance to ask questions. �Thanks.

Autism and IQ do not correlate. You can have autism and a very low IQ, or a very high IQ. The low IQ and severe language delays would usually produce a diagnosis of "classic" autism; no language delay and it's usually Asperger's.

I like the quote Melmich posted earlier in this thread: severe social difficulties are not a normal part of being gifted, and should be evaluated.

DeeDee