What's Aspergers?

Aspergers is an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Its "sufferers" tend to have socialization difficulties, are quiet, have narrow interests and generally are seen by their peers as being "different".

The known ASDs are "classic" autism, pervasive developmental disorder - not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), high-functioning autism and Aspergers. Aspergers is the highest-functioning ASD of the aforementioned.

The higher the functioning, the higher the IQ and probability a person will live an independent life.
Traits

People who have Aspergers usually show symptoms that aren't present in many other disorders. This often makes it easy for doctors to conclude if someone has Aspergers or not.



Some common Aspergers symptoms are:

* Difficulty completing tasks that aren't of interest
* Good to excellent memory
* High-moderate to extreme fear of people, especially strangers
* Lack of facial expression
* Muteness or very little speech
* Narrow range of interests which consume lots of time
* Physical clumsiness
* Poor socialization skills, despite being articulate in a non-verbal manner
* "Stimming" (watch this video for insight on stimming)
* Viewed as eccentric by peers



Common misconceptions

Aspergers, along with most disorders, has its misconceptions.

Some common misconceptions about people with Aspergers "sufferers":

* They don't know how to take care of themselves
* They lack creativity
* They lack empathy
* They're unemployable
* They've unfavorable personalities
* They're unintelligent



Aspergers: is it necessarily a bad thing?

People with Aspergers generally don't view their AS as being a bad thing - they view it as a "difference". However, Aspergers, like most disorders, has its disadvantages.

The biggest disadvantages of having Aspergers are the social deficits that come with it. They can prevent people from attaining jobs, forming friendships and finding love.

The advantages people with AS have are that they're able to focus well on topics of interest, pay close attention to fine detail and can think logically.



Famous people who have Aspergers

Aspergers has it's share of famous confirmed "sufferers".

These people include:

* Alex Plank (founder of Wrong Planet, a prominent Aspergers forum)
* Dan Aykroyd (actor who's famous for his Cone Heads character)
* Gary Numan (new wave musician who reached prominence in the late 70's)
* Heather Kuzmich (model who became famous for starring in a season of America's Next Top Model)

There are also many suspected Aspergers "sufferers":

* Bill Gates (Microsoft founder; one of the top ten wealthiest people in the world)
* Michael Jackson (musician who recorded Thriller, the best selling album of all-time)
* Morrissey (was the lead singer of The Smiths, a famous band from Manchester)
* Steven Spielberg (film director who directed Close Encounters of the Third Kind)



Aspergers acronyms and jargon

People who have Aspergers often use jargon and acronyms which aren't well-known among the general public.

Some common Aspergers-related acronyms are:

* AS = Aspergers Syndrome
* ASD = Autism Spectrum Disorder
* NT = Neuro-Typical
* PDD = Pervasive Developmental Disorder
* PDD-NOS = Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified

A common Aspergers-related jargon term is:

* Aspie = Someone who "suffers" from Aspergers



Aspergers support forums

There are support forums for people who have Aspergers.

Recommendable ones are:

Aspergic

HikiCulture Asperger's & PDDs Board

PsychForums Asperger's Syndrome Forum