ocd whats your story? how do you cope?

[A-S warrior]

ok, so you,ve heard me bang on about the positives that aspergers bring, but as with most things in life there are cons and unwanted side effects.

 

it would be unrealistic of me to say im cured of it and i dont have any problems.

 

this topic is all about something that effects alot of us and that is obssesive compulsive disorder.

 

i had all sorts of things i used to do on a regular basis, knock on wood, salute magpies, never walk over 3 drains, i even had a picture of my girlfriend with all the things she brought for me surrounding the picture to protect her and every night i kissed the picture 3 times. i called it my alter.

 

 

now im not for a second suggesting you do what i did to get over it. but im telling you how i have beaten it for good.

 

 

about 6 weeks ago i started going to church and talking to a good friend who is helping me through my relationship break up. i know what your thinking he brain washed me right? well no. embracing god has really helped me with most of my problems in life, and its making me a much happier person. doing ocd rituals means im not worshiping god, im worshiping something else, and god is the one protecting me not my own rituals, and my self built alter was attracting the wrong kind of sprits and again ones witch were not god. so that for me was an instant cure for my ocd.

 

now i appreciate that ocd takes many forms, i was a frequent hand washer as well, but when i got a stomach virus in jauary witch lasted a week, that showed me that it doesnt make a difference how many times i wash my hands im still subject to illness, so that liberated me of that ocd and thus learning my lesson.

 

another one was making sure the oven was turned off over and over, the question is if i turned it off and im alone in the house why would it still be on?

 

ocd cant be cured but it can be contained.

 

so over to you, what are your ocd rituals? how do they make you feel safe? and were did they stem from? and can yours be locked up forever?

[robert7111a]

When I was a kid, I used to look over my shoulder every so often or turn around a full 360 degrees every 10 paces or so when walking. People must have thought I was some alien. But the reason for this was fear and nervousness. Fortunately I grew out of this when I was 15 and have never looked back since (pun intended...)

 

I don't know if this counts as OCD but I am obsessed with routines and if I make plans and they are spoilt for whatever reason, I go into a quiet semi-meltdown for a few moments before "recovering" and working round them. I need structure and routine in my life but am better at doing things "on the fly" which most people do naturally. I have certain ways of doing things and don't adapt to change very well.

 

I like photography. When out and waiting for my subject to appear (such as a train or a cloud to move away from the sun), I fidget, constantly check my camera settings, focus etc instead of just sitting back, relaxing and waiting. To me, this is OCD.

 

I worry a lot. Is this OCD?

[A-S warrior]

in regards to your obsession with routines, thats a classic aspergers trate, and one of the advantages i bang on about. the reason is not many pepole can stand up to the same task day in day out without getting bored, we can! plus asprerger sufferers also follow a routine like clockwork and begin to start doing things by instinct (this is how we become the best at something and perhaps i should be more specific with my logic) and one of the hardest things is coping when our rouitnes are disturbed, and as you say you go into a semi meltdown and then recover in a few moments and then work around them, this is also is very good the fact you can work around them to me means the ability to adapt. and you say at the end you dont adapt to change well and have a certain way of doing things, well that brings me to a saying i use quite often, if it aint broke dont try to fix it, espeshilly if what your doing is a good thing, too many pepole always try to change and tinker with things when theres no cause, a non a-s suffer just cant resist screwing up a good plan. with your photograpy this is a perfect example of what ive been talking about the last few days, using aspergers as an ability, (im only asuming you have a-s as your on an a-s forum) you dont have to be a celebrity or a super hero, just being the best in your field even if that is working behind a till, this all comes down to love for routine, (witch in turn helps us journey much deeper into our tasks) yes your fidgeting with the camera constantly changing focus etc instead of sitting back and relaxing could be ocd but to me again that shows another ability, a non a-s sufferer would just sit back and read a paper, but no you wont be satisfied until you get the best posible shot this is not an obssesion to me, to me its a sign of putting in maximum effort to get the best results. and im going to hazard a gues that your photos are better than most right? lastly worring again could be obssession, its usually just a side effect of a-s or as i like to see it, worrying to me is thinking to yourself have i done this properly to the best i can do? and if im worrying about things out of my control theres nothing i can do about it so thats that! worrying is like finding a soulotion to a problem and panicing over it, best thing to do is say whats the worst that could happen? then visualise the worst case senario and immagine how you would cope with that situation. i worry about getting run over by a bus worst case senario is i die, if im dead i have nothing to worry about!

Edited March 16, 2012 by A-S warrior

[Tally]

I am utterly speechless. I don't even know what to say.

[robert7111a]

AS-Warrier, you have summed this up in a nutshell perfectly.

 

Yes I am AS so am pleased that the traits I/you have described are "normal" to AS.

[indiscreet]

AS-Warrier, that's a very positive way of looking at OCD but it isn't always the way it works - at least not for me. I can't leave my home without checking that everything is locked up and safe (fridge closed, switches on the cooker all off, etc.etc. Ditto before I go to bed at night. I've got it down to needing 2-3 hours from getting out of bed to closing the front door in the morning and maybe l/2 to 1 hour in the evening but I HAVE to do it. This is an enormous improvement on how I used to be and I did it without any outside support or help - basically because until I saw a CSI episode in which a character described the condition in detail I didn't know other people had the same problem. The worse thing about it is that I still have to fight the need for repetitive behaviour if there's something worrying me about my own health or the health/safety of someone I care about.

Edited March 16, 2012 by indiscreet

[A-S warrior]

AS-Warrier, that's a very positive way of looking at OCD but it isn't always the way it works - at least not for me. I can't leave my home without checking that everything is locked up and safe (fridge closed, switches on the cooker all off, etc.etc. Ditto before I go to bed at night. I've got it down to needing 2-3 hours from getting out of bed to closing the front door in the morning and maybe l/2 to 1 hour in the evening but I HAVE to do it. This is an enormous improvement on how I used to be and I did it without any outside support or help - basically because until I saw a CSI episode in which a character described the condition in detail I didn't know other people had the same problem. The worse thing about it is that I still have to fight the need for repetitive behaviour if there's something worrying me about my own health or the health/safety of someone I care about.

 

 

 

this is indeed true, as i said in my personal experience when theres somthing i cant settle in my own mind i turn to my faith. now the last thing i would do is try to plug my faith that is just something that works for me to calm my ocd. i know that some of my positive thinking can run away with me and i sometimes need to think with a bit more disapline. from my experience when my ocd was bad for me the best solution (i nearly said cure) was education (at least for the exsessive hand washing) as for the security checks i used to do making sure oven was off, alarm clock was still set at 7am etc etc i got to a point where i said look i only have to check once! and only once! its not going to change! i had to be quite stern with myself almost to the point my own mind was shouting at me, and as tempting as it was to check again i had to say no! if your ocd is a comfort and doesnt cause probelms then thats fine, but if it becomes mental tourture then try some of the tactics ive tryed (dont worry about religon you dont have to go there) failing that try doing reaserch from a number of sources to find out how pepole have coped, it seems your ocd has improved over time as you say, so thats already a step in the right direction good luck :-)

[A-S warrior]

I am utterly speechless. I don't even know what to say.

 

 

you dont like me or my posts, there you go i spoke for you.

[A-S warrior]

AS-Warrier, you have summed this up in a nutshell perfectly.

 

Yes I am AS so am pleased that the traits I/you have described are "normal" to AS.

 

good stuff rob, glad ive helped at least 1 person lol. ive seen a few of your posts and enjoy them, and i wouldnt mind seeing some of your photos :-)

[robert7111a]

Tally, on 16 March 2012 - 02:04 PM, said:

 

I am utterly speechless. I don't even know what to say.

 

 

you dont like me or my posts, there you go i spoke for you.

 

 

A-S Warrier. I read Tally's last post above as a compliment. I got the impression he liked your post - or am I mistaken?

 

I used to have a website with my pictures until Fotopic folded... I won't go into detail as it's completely off topic.

[LancsLad]

Agree with Robert just posted the point and how I see it on your A-S warrior misson post, so will not repeat, think you misunderstood Tally here. Of course Tally can say I am wrong and your interpretation is right.

[A-S warrior]

Tally, on 16 March 2012 - 02:04 PM, said:

 

I am utterly speechless. I don't even know what to say.

 

 

you dont like me or my posts, there you go i spoke for you.

 

 

A-S Warrier. I read Tally's last post above as a compliment. I got the impression he liked your post - or am I mistaken?

 

I used to have a website with my pictures until Fotopic folded... I won't go into detail as it's completely off topic.

 

that could be my aspergers showing through lol! i misunderstand internet posts frequently and get upset.

[robert7111a]

Don't worry, I tend to misinterpret things sometimes. But I think that's human nature anyway

[A-S warrior]

Don't worry, I tend to misinterpret things sometimes. But I think that's human nature anyway

 

 

lol i recieved so many infractions on the last forum i was on its almost unbeliveable. moderators couldnt keep up with my posts, i had them edited almost everytime had at least 2 threads deleted 1 was locked and all becaue i misunderstood pepole lol when i get my teeth into someone i dont let go. im hoping i can stay cool on here because i think i have alot to offer and i also have alot to learn.

[robert7111a]

I'm here to learn and take direction from this forum as well as (hopefully) give useful advice. Often I don't think before speaking which has gotten me into trouble before. Thus I use "self-talk" particularly if I need to rehearse a situation before going in.

 

I have learnt from public forums that views/opinions can be skewed or misunderstood and one just to try and not take things too personally.

[Tally]

Someone who actually has OCD cannot just pull themselves together like that. It's not a helpful stereotype to perpetuate, and if you had real OCD then it wouldn't just go away because you decided to stop being anxious. OCD is defined as an illness, not a bad decision, so it's not as simple as changing your mind and it goes away overnight. This is the best explanation I can give.

[A-S warrior]

Someone who actually has OCD cannot just pull themselves together like that. It's not a helpful stereotype to perpetuate, and if you had real OCD then it wouldn't just go away because you decided to stop being anxious. OCD is defined as an illness, not a bad decision, so it's not as simple as changing your mind and it goes away overnight. This is the best explanation I can give.

 

 

see guys it was right the first time, its almost like i have to qualify in tallys eyes, i cant have ocd or aspergers because my ideas and theroys are false. these are my opinions and views, i wouldnt dare contridict anybodys opinion on here because we all have a-s and there all valid. if you dont like my posts then dont read them, simple solution, pepole are intelligent enough to take pieces of info i give out and try it out if they want to, diddnt say its a one size fits all soultion. different dimentions of aspergers have different awnsers, and i said it to you before if i only help 1 person on here cope better than all my effort was worth it. i wouldnt normally awnser back a moderator but your being unfair and i wont be pushed around by someone who obiously has taken a dislike to my comments.

[A-S warrior]

its always the way on forums out of 10 pepole theres always 5 pepole that agree with me, 4 pepole that respectfully debate my posts (i like those pepole the most) and 1 person that just doenst like me. and that 1 person will hijack all my threads and try to wind me up, and try to make me look stupid. im not going to complain and ask why tally doesnt like me and moan about it. im just going to keep on my task in hand. and help pepole as much as i can. tally if you want to stay negative and live your life weighed down by limitations then my topics arnt for you. with a name like A-S warrior you should know what your getting yourself into.

[trekster]

Hi all

 

im a compulsive spender (keep forgetting i dont need that many batteries and buy the wrong ones) and have hundreds of stitching and stamp magazines in my home.

 

im also a hoarder so those 2 problems go badly together, but this is getting better. The sign of an empty recycling box (another obsession) encourages me to find things throw out. Recently ive found some clothes to sell.

 

Theres a book aimed at young people which ive browsed and seems helpful called 'breaking free of OCD'. Also i see signs of OCD coming on when my anxiety or depression is reoccurring.

[robert7111a]

Hey A-S Warrier, take a break! I used to allow people to wind me up because of my social naivity and vulnerability. It drove me to parasuicide. My wife has taught me to be calm and to be more forgiving of people. I haven't been on this forum long enough to "know" anybody but from what I've learnt from other forums, moderators have every right to ban members if they don't like them. I myself was banned from a forum because things turned sour. Please don't let this happen to you.

[robert7111a]

Hi Trekster

 

I'm definately a hoarder. I buy books, model trains etc and my late mother-in-law scolded me for having too much stuff. I guess my love of possessions took place as a result of having no friends and social life. Perhaps this is a form of OCD (?) - i.e I convince myself that I "need" something in order to buy it instead of just wanting it. My wife teases me as I literally have two of everything (if not more)

[A-S warrior]

Hey A-S Warrier, take a break! I used to allow people to wind me up because of my social naivity and vulnerability. It drove me to parasuicide. My wife has taught me to be calm and to be more forgiving of people. I haven't been on this forum long enough to "know" anybody but from what I've learnt from other forums, moderators have every right to ban members if they don't like them. I myself was banned from a forum because things turned sour. Please don't let this happen to you.

 

 

i,ll try, its just i can get very frusrated when im trying to help pepole to be a bit more positive and i feel like im being called a liar. my faith is begining to teach me to even embrace pepole that dont like me. im slowly getting there. but can be hard sometimes espeshilly when i cant hear pepoles tone of voice. i defo suffer from forum rage, i get so fired up i guess you could call me passionate and full of energy.

Edited March 16, 2012 by A-S warrior

[robert7111a]

Just look at Tally's gorgeous picture and say "Meow"! Then get over it. You know you can do it.

[LancsLad]

If there is an issue here it is relating to levels of a medical condition and how you define them, and also that often definitions have different cultural meanings.

 

I found for example the attitude of the soldiers competing for' team true spirt' at this years ironman really refreshing they described their injuries and conditions in very black and white terms 'I am a double 3/4 leg ampute' for example, what I could see is someone who had had the majority of his lower body blasted off by a land mine and had been tidied up a bit. I thought to myself for them it is seems really clear cut obvious and as such easier to understand and accept and they had seemed to move on very quickly with their lives, a real inspiration for me if only I have a fraction of their strength.

 

In contrast behavioural and mental conditions are not as clear cut. I know I suffer a fair bit with background noise, light levels and smells, though breaking my nose a few times playing rugby has improved this last area. I know this is because of my AS condition but what I really do not know what it is like for NT's in this respect and importantly what this is like for other people with AS. The worst thing would be to have a sliding scale for example I have a level 7 condition is that really better or worse than level 3 it makes no real sense to be honest. At the end of the day something might be quite bad for me or you but if you can deal with it and still leave a regular type life how would you quantify it to others. I think this is the important point if someone says this is a bad or very bad thing in my life we need to take it at face value. A personal example is that I have suffered in the past a double disk prolapse in my back, quite a serious injury, but because I have a high pain threshold an AS thing for some I can more or less get on with a very active life. I have come across people who have had back problems that the medical profession would say were no where near the level of my injury and it has destroyed their life so how do you define the two together. My opinion theirs is the worst injury because it is having more of a negative impact at the moment. in the long term I might need surgery and they might get away with this and the position might be reversed.

 

If you throw into this terms which have diferent cultural meanings such as OCD then we are getting into potentialy very problematic areas. OCD is thrown around conversation like confetti at a wedding these days. I can understand someone with OCD which has a very big impact in their lives been really pissed off about this fact. I am not having a go at anybody here but we need to cut each other a bit of slack otherwise we will get into a points scoring game. What is OCD for someone might not be OCD in anothers eyes. What we need to focus on is how it affects our lives and the level of stress it causes. I have OCD type tendencies but no formal diagnosis so is it OCD? I tend to view it as 'OCD type behaviour'. I do have to check my keys a number of times before i go out for a run or on my bike, once is just not possible but for me this is a really small thing for someone else it could be highly frustrating and lead to a lot of personal anguish I respect that.

 

In getting away from hard cold clinical medical definitions, something which is often I feel a theme in NT parent posts, not all but many, we have to be able to talk in open and emotional terms and that means respecting each other and understanding people have feelings it is the only way a forum like this can work. We will overstep the mark at times, and as such we need to be self reflective and forgiving, but it should never get personal as I suspect we understand that deep down many of us are fragile at times, I know I am and I am not ashamed to say so.

[A-S warrior]

Just look at Tally's gorgeous picture and say "Meow"! Then get over it. You know you can do it.

lol why dont we have a like button on here? that would deserve a thumbs up

[A-S warrior]

If there is an issue here it is relating to levels of a medical condition and how you define them, and also that often definitions have different cultural meanings.

 

I found for example the attitude of the soldiers competing for' team true spirt' at this years ironman really refreshing they described their injuries and conditions in very black and white terms 'I am a double 3/4 leg ampute' for example, what I could see is someone who had had the majority of his lower body blasted off by a land mine and had been tidied up a bit. I thought to myself for them it is seems really clear cut obvious and as such easier to understand and accept and they had seemed to move on very quickly with their lives, a real inspiration for me if only I have a fraction of their strength.

 

In contrast behavioural and mental conditions are not as clear cut. I know I suffer a fair bit with background noise, light levels and smells, though breaking my nose a few times playing rugby has improved this last area. I know this is because of my AS condition but what I really do not know what it is like for NT's in this respect and importantly what this is like for other people with AS. The worst thing would be to have a sliding scale for example I have a level 7 condition is that really better or worse than level 3 it makes no real sense to be honest. At the end of the day something might be quite bad for me or you but if you can deal with it and still leave a regular type life how would you quantify it to others. I think this is the important point if someone says this is a bad or very bad thing in my life we need to take it at face value. A personal example is that I have suffered in the past a double disk prolapse in my back, quite a serious injury, but because I have a high pain threshold an AS thing for some I can more or less get on with a very active life. I have come across people who have had back problems that the medical profession would say were no where near the level of my injury and it has destroyed their life so how do you define the two together. My opinion theirs is the worst injury because it is having more of a negative impact at the moment. in the long term I might need surgery and they might get away with this and the position might be reversed.

 

If you throw into this terms which have diferent cultural meanings such as OCD then we are getting into potentialy very problematic areas. OCD is thrown around conversation like confetti at a wedding these days. I can understand someone with OCD which has a very big impact in their lives been really pissed off about this fact. I am not having a go at anybody here but we need to cut each other a bit of slack otherwise we will get into a points scoring game. What is OCD for someone might not be OCD in anothers eyes. What we need to focus on is how it affects our lives and the level of stress it causes. I have OCD type tendencies but no formal diagnosis so is it OCD? I tend to view it as 'OCD type behaviour'. I do have to check my keys a number of times before i go out for a run or on my bike, once is just not possible but for me this is a really small thing for someone else it could be highly frustrating and lead to a lot of personal anguish I respect that.

 

In getting away from hard cold clinical medical definitions, something which is often I feel a theme in NT parent posts, not all but many, we have to be able to talk in open and emotional terms and that means respecting each other and understanding people have feelings it is the only way a forum like this can work. We will overstep the mark at times, and as such we need to be self reflective and forgiving, but it should never get personal as I suspect we understand that deep down many of us are fragile at times, I know I am and I am not ashamed to say so.

 

again someone direct me to the like buttton lol

[trekster]

Hi Trekster

 

I'm definately a hoarder. I buy books, model trains etc and my late mother-in-law scolded me for having too much stuff. I guess my love of possessions took place as a result of having no friends and social life. Perhaps this is a form of OCD (?) - i.e I convince myself that I "need" something in order to buy it instead of just wanting it. My wife teases me as I literally have two of everything (if not more)

 

According to 'OCD for dummies' hoarding is a form (but thats not a very scientific source). It is defined as being unable to throw things away. A few tv programs have covered it and treated the people on the program where they are becoming 'buried alive' ie their hoards are so severe they are unable to function in their homes.

 

i am treating my OCD and it comes and goes depending on my anxiety level. Some biomeds think OCD can be helped by killing off bad bacteria in the gut. im unsure if mines improved with priobiotic treatment.

[robert7111a]

Well I'm a sad git. I used to love trains a lot and have a hoard of models relating to my "spotting days" era. My wife understands these will go when I die (which hopefully, is years away yet...) I also hoard books relating to my many and diverse interests and work. These are "me". Many of my models/books were very expensiveto buy (especially textbooks) which I keep for reference and therefore I am not going to get rid of them lightly. I am very possessive and don't lend out books because I worry about what state they might come back in. Nearly all my books are in mint condition and I am obsessive in keeping them that way.

[A-S warrior]

Well I'm a sad git. I used to love trains a lot and have a hoard of models relating to my "spotting days" era. My wife understands these will go when I die (which hopefully, is years away yet...) I also hoard books relating to my many and diverse interests and work. These are "me". Many of my models/books were very expensiveto buy (especially textbooks) which I keep for reference and therefore I am not going to get rid of them lightly. I am very possessive and don't lend out books because I worry about what state they might come back in. Nearly all my books are in mint condition and I am obsessive in keeping them that way.

 

nothing sad about that lad! trains are awsome pieces of machinary. not the modern day southern trains though there so depressing, bring back the slam doors i say!

[robert7111a]

Ahh...the slammers...brings back fond memories...)

[LancsLad]

Robert the text book thing is really interesting.

 

Text books are real comfort things for me, anyone who visits my house their initial reaction is that it is dominated by books they are everywhere. I did not know how much I have spent over the years tens of thousand of pounds which would be fine if I had a lot of disposable income but I simply do not nor never really have. In that respect it is a really disproportinate area of my life. I have not travelled much and do not go on holidays as such very often and so my books might be comparable to simply taking a reasonably good holiday each year and no one else sees that as extreme do they, thats how I square my collection in my own mind.

 

The interesting thing is I am not a big fan of libaries, and at university for example it made logical sense for me to possibly spend £1,000 a year on books my personal allowance agreed with my partner which I always overspent than going into the libary and dealing with that environment. I think this is not so much as ownership and the practicalities of it but the emotional support these practicalities offer. The best way of describing this is often if a question comes into my head as I am designing and they do come in like machine gun fire at times I know I do not have to drag through my brain looking for an answer rather it is a few feet away on one of my bookshelves, most time I do not feel compeled to look, but knowing it is there is the comforting thing if this makes sense.

[indiscreet]

Just look at Tally's gorgeous picture and say "Meow"!

 

I've been wondering about that picture. Is it your cat, Tally, or just symbolic of the way you feel at times?

[trekster]

i tend to collect books on disability but nowadays im a bit more selective with what i buy.

[robert7111a]

I suppose I get the "book bug" from my Dad. Reading is his hobby (fiction) and you ask him anything about classic authors and their books (i.e. Hardy, Dickens, Woolf, Dostoevsy etc...etc) he will smile and tell you everything you need to know. My mother is the same (she was an English teacher for 25 years). You wouldn't think with such literate parents, I would have poor reading comprehension for fiction. It just doesn't mean anything to me, yet non fiction does.

[chris54]

I am a hoarder who is marred to a hoarder.

For my wife it is books, it is extremely unusual for a week to go by without her buying at least 2 or 3 books. Ever so often we have to have a clear out just to make room for the new books. Fortunately a lot of these books come from secondhand shops so they don't cost to much.

 

With me I just collect, I build up collections. I go though phases of different things. I have never thought of it as OCD as as much as I get great pleasure from acquiring, I can chose not to. I go to these big warehouse type places that are full of antique / bric a brac. I like to handle and contemplate ownership but am able, most of the time, to walk away. We just don't have any room left in our house for more. One of my fantasies would be to have a antique/bric a brac shop, this would enable me to have ownership of all these things passing through my hands.

 

This compulsion to hoard / own, may go back to my early childhood. There were 5 of us kids and my mother fostered, (back in them days there weren't the controls, there are now, SS were just happy to find somewhere for the children to sleep for the night, and my mum just couldn't say no) it was not at all unusual to find that my brother and me would be sharing our bedroom with 2 strangers. Our possessions and to some extent even our cloths were seen as communal property to be used by whoever needed/wanted to use them. So maybe that's why I surround myself with My things. Come to think of it I find it extremely hard to throw away old worn out cloths, even when the are of no use what so ever.

 

But as I said I can choose so in my opinion its nothing to do with OCD.

[trekster]

My hoarding started when I was about 7 I went to school one day and my broken SS Great Britain cardboard model

had been thrown out when I got home. I started hiding my toys away from my family so they wouldn't thrown them out.

 

Now Ive got loads of magazines that need swapping or selling. They are related to stitching so im trying to find a reasonable way of getting rid of them. i do cross stitching so im trying to negotiate with stitcher's what they feel would be a fair trade for a magazine.

[darkshine]

I have OCD type tendencies but no formal diagnosis so is it OCD? I tend to view it as 'OCD type behaviour'.

That's how I say it too - but when I think about my own behaviours they could just as easily come under the umbrella of AS as they could OCD.

 

My biggest area of an "OCD type tendency" is food - but also locks, things on charge, clocks being synchronised, things being placed right, germs and people, going certain routes to the shop, some routines... blah blah blah.

 

@AS Warrior - you contradict yourself in the first post when you said your ocd was cured and then a couple of lines further down said ocd can't be cured

 

I found when I first joined this forum (almost a year ago) that the biggest thing to make people react is generalising, there's a few things you've said that include everyone with AS and the case is that with the huge variations of AS, not everything applies to everyone. For example post # 3 here - and the opening post on the "your mission" post

 

These things do not apply to me:

• I do not have a photographic memory (sometimes it is close but not a perfect and reliable skill for me)
  

• I do not easily have routines - I do cope better when I do keep to one, but I need help to do that as I get lost in tasks and forget to do things, plus I can't wake up, forget to eat etc
  
• I have not been able to learn and develop every day
  
• I cannot turn hobbies into a lifestyle where I become the best in that field
  
• I'm not a genius
  

I just wanted to point out that there isn't an exact template and not everyone is the same

 

Best

 

Darkshine

[A-S warrior]

@ darkshire,

 

well, well, well, yeah lol. im many things but perfect im am not. basicly my faith in god has helped go along way into helping with it. it will always be there though, its part and parcel of who i am. i still have tendencys like washing out my glass 7 times, doing things in 3,s and never walking over drains. i smashed a mirror once and nearly had a breakdown.

[darkshine]

Ah, well we have something in common then, as I too am far from perfect

 

It's nice that you found faith, I think this does enable some people to access strength inside to overcome things - I personally have little faith in anything (religious or otherwise) and I don't think this is helpful, as it is all too easy to fall back on a negative attitude, and I think it feeds into the negativity too (as I also have very little belief in things either).