AS and Their Partners

I am a 31-year-old mom to five active boys. I have four years of academic courses at a community college in the areas of child and youth work, social work and educational assistant , but when it came to actually using my knowledge in a practical setting (group counseling for teen girls in a lab setting) it turned out that I could not read people well enough to respond appropriate to their emotions. I tended to shut down when things did not go as planned.

I knew nothing of AS at that point but decided that there was something more going on than the ADHD I had been diagnosed with when my professor tried to show me my errors and I was incapable of picking out which body on the video was my own ...until I saw a direct shot of my face.

I found Delphi forums about seven years ago looking for info about ADHD in adults and over time had a couple of people ask me if I was "aspie." I said NO. I did not know what that meant.

A couple of years ago I was in the park with one of my boys who was having a meltdown and a sympathetic mom approached me and said, "I recognize that shriek. Is he on the autism spectrum?" I said NO...but she said, "I don't mean to be rude, but....look into it." I started to research and requested a referral from my doctor to a specialist for my son. I was still in denial about myself at that point but seeing as I seemed to have a "few traits" I searched Delphi for some related forums.

Since then four professionals working with my children have recognized AS in me and I have found that I identify quite well with other aspies. I found AS and their Partner forum and it felt like family ...a very odd feeling. I am not used to fitting in. So, that how I got here.

What do I like doing? I love making stuff ...I make chainmail jewelry, knit, crochet, sew and do any other craft that I get my hands on the materials for and find the time to do. I read a lot, both fiction and non. Currently reading about forensic neuro and psycholpathology...the minds of killers are scary by fascinating. More than anything I would love someday to go back to school and study something that might actually provide me with the ability to work in a field that interests me.