dis·or·der
n.
1. A lack of order or regular arrangement; confusion.
2. A breach of civic order or peace; a public disturbance.
3. An ailment that affects the function of mind or body: eating disorders and substance abuse.
tr.v. dis·or·dered, dis·or·der·ing, dis·or·ders
1. To throw into confusion or disarray.
2. To disturb the normal physical or mental health of; derange.
(source: the free dictionary.com)
Aspergers is not a disorder. It is not an ailment. It is not a malfunction. Aspergers is not equivalent to an eating disorder or to substance abuse, which imply a treatment plan, such as therapy or 12-step, to support and correct the behavior.
Aspergers is not a state of confusion or disarray.
Aspergers is a neurological difference. A difference that is not better or worse, but simply not ordinary and exists outside the familiarity of mainstream’s indoctrinated interpretation of ‘normal.’ Aspergers is a form of high-intelligence which consists of varying degrees of over-analysis, deep complex reasoning, and some ‘unusual’ social behaviors. The social behaviors are not impairments.
A person with Aspergers inspires another to love beyond the limitations of ego, with an unconditional love which is not based on preconceived notions of how one should be according to an onlooker’s self-based interests and desires.
Knowing someone with Aspergers is a blessing, as much as knowing any other individual. We each are divinely made in our uniqueness. We must stop rejecting something or someone for the uncomfortableness it brings the onlooker, and start accepting others for who they are in completion.
Aspergers is a reminder, a wake up call, to all those who say they know how to love. You know love? Then here is a chance to prove it. ~ Sam Craft, Everyday Aspergers
Everyday Asperger's 
You are so right! We aspies exhibit more order than most. More empathy and compassion than most. More knowledge and a deeper understanding than most. We are neurologically advanced and a threat to those who are not like us.
🙂 hugs to you
Life itself is gloriously, magnificently chaotic, so how can we call any one form of it ‘disordered’?:)
truth!
COGNITIVE CLARITY FIRST then reprogramming can be done. I am a neuro-typical husband. My beautiful wife is an apsie with OCD. I have been able to CORRECT the main cause (this is a neurobiological issue). All of our boys have a piece of the aspie as well. The corrective measures are from the use of supplements (not meds). I did all of the research on my own and made observations for over 2 years now. It has been incredible what the benefits are with the supplements. It has basically fixed the audio processing problem that they all have and some of the over-thinking from intrusive thoughts. They now all have cognitive clarity and are able to work out daily conflicts or misunderstandings. CBT and biofeedback are now affective. And, it is a current and forward working progress. The past, in many cases, will work itself out. This has been easier with the younger boys age 17 and 20. All aspie family members are taking 2 Omega-3 and 4 Nuerolinks from Amen Clinics. They take this dosage 3 times a day and sometimes a “booster” (half dose) late afternoon. Please go to Amen Clinics website and click on the store button and read and read and read. Go get their books. Learn the functions of the brain and how aspie brain wiring tends to be different. The main benefits that my family receives is “brain food”; the omega-3 assist in the general overall health of the brain. It’s like oil for a car engine – just gotta have it, it makes the car or brain run smoothly. The Neurolinks have to roles: the first are the calming affects to areas of the brain that are overactive, it takes away the “noise” and calms it down; then, the other ingredients, amino acids, pick up the activity of the areas of the brain that lag. As one of the Amen clinic doctor’s told me “imagine a person with poor vision who then puts on a pair of prescription glasses for the first time”. Please note that the dosage stated was not taken immediately. We worked on that amount over a couple of months. However, effectiveness was immediate! And, noticeably, with each dose, it takes about 3-5 minutes to get the nutrients to the brain. The next 3-6 months bring remarkable improvements! FYI… if you are not sure what the heck this is all about then please call the clinic and pay for one of their consultants and ask questions! This may not be an answer for all of you, however, I know it works first hand!!! My statement to aspies is to simply know this: today’s science is all about the brain and we no longer just focusing on nourishing the body to be the best athlete or in good health. Also, a side note, we recently started taking one NeuroPS from Amen Clinics twice per day, more brain food. In addition, if this does not phase you or seems expensive then experiment on yourself with foods that may do the same. Example, how do you feel after eating a big piece of salmon (omega-3) and maybe avocado (tryptophan)? Also, another side note – D3 is very affective for Alzheimer’s!!! Mom is taking 3 doses per day of 2000 IU from Bluebonnet Nutrition, another great source of quality supplements. Again, a side note, most psych and medical professionals are way behind in this stuff. Please benefit from this! God Bless!
I think you missed the point Mark. Some of us don’t want to be fixed. We like the way we are, accept we are different and wish that others would accept us as we are and not try to fix us. I appreciate that what you do for your wife and kids is out of love, but I know my husband loves me because he accepts me as I am. We understand we don’t do things or think the same as others, but why is that considered bad? Some of the greatest minds in the past shared our traits before it was a diagnosable condition and man wouldn’t have advanced without them. God made us like this for a reason.
Thank you for writing this. If my husband tried to change or ‘fix’ me, I don’t think I could deal. Judgement is just…too much. And even if he said he wasn’t judging me, I’d wonder…because why would you want to fix me. I’m sure Mark has his heart in the right place, but reading it irritated me. I’m not a defective person. I’m a successful aspie with coping strategies.
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I love your writing. Very inspirational and always so accurate in explaining what the Asperger’s (ASD) entails. 🙂 Thank you.
Amen!
❤
ASD *has* to be a disorder, by definition, or it could not be diagnosed. It has to cause significant disruption in one’s daily life, otherwise it is just a collection of traits. I have NHS dx ASD and i also do not want a “cure” and realise i am neurologically different, etc, but if it weren’t causing me significant difficulty in real life, i could not have a diagnosis, it would just be a collection of my personality traits. I appreciate the sentiment of this post however posts like these undermine the ability for people, especially women, to get a diangosis of HFA/HF ASD in the first place, and not just packed off to a shrink with a dx of borderline or bipolar. This is shooting the entire movement in the foot.
well, hopefully my other 600 posts make up for this one 🙂
I think you are right Jen, it is a disorder in that it is limiting in certain ways.
Foremost it means social ability IS severely limited, and social skills are so important to get by, and get “ahead”, in the world.
But also some of the character traits associated with Asperger’s might be considered assets: an ability to think deeply, and more independently of influence by peers, for example, or a higher IQ than average which is also associated with the condition.
So maybe this was what Aspergirl was getting at in this post: we have limitations, but on balance it isn’t all bad! If suddenly there was a cure, we wouldn’t want to give up the Asperger’s character traits that are assets.
And also what many people with Asperger’s want is not to suddenly be the life of the party, but rather for others to understand why they aren’t, and to realise that actually, that’s ok. Aspies want others to realise that they’re still well-meaning people with a lot to offer, but due to certain limitations they offer things in different ways from neuro-typical people.
In this sense, the “disability” of Asperger’s is partly from neuro-typical people’s lack of understanding or willingness to accept difference. Quietness of temperament is just not considered a good characteristic in Western society, deep thought can be undervalued, and other ‘positive’ Aspie traits like honesty can be considered naive.
Some of the most highly prized characteristics in Western society are completely out of reach of Aspies, for example ability to network, to socialise, to entertain one another with gossip and jokes and goofing, to spontaneously vocalise thoughts and feelings eloquently and within unwritten social rules, to ‘say the right things’ despite one’s real feelings, and to influence others by being suave. ‘Personality’ is prized above ‘character’ in our society. Aspies may have plenty of worthwhile qualities in terms of character, as much as anyone, but their personalities (what they show to the world through their person, their mannerisms etc) do not reflect their character as well as neuro-typicals, and they can struggle to appear “normal” according to our society’s rules.
So maybe I would conclude that Asperger’s, as a disorder which was originally defined by Western Society, presents problems for the ‘sufferer’ (wrong word maybe) in the context of Western Society’s norms.
(But following on from that thought) when an Aspie is just accepted by all those around them as they are, when they are allowed to express themselves in the ways that are natural for them, there isn’t much of a problem, and the ‘disorder’ idea becomes redundant.
Though you can’t expect everyone to be understanding despite a diagnosis of Aspergers, sometimes the diagnosis can help the process of others coming to accept the AS person. In fact perhaps this is one of the main benefits of getting a diagnosis: not for the ‘sufferer’ to be treated, but for others to understand and accept.
Agree completely! 🙂
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