Asperger Syndrome or (Asperger’s Disorder) is a neurobiological disorder named for a Viennese physician, Hans Asperger, who in 1944 published a paper which described a pattern of behaviors in several young boys who had normal intelligence and language development, but who also exhibited autistic-like behaviors and marked deficiencies in social and communication skills. In spite of the publication of his paper in the 1940’s, it wasn’t until 1994 that Asperger Syndrome was added to the DSM IV and only in the past few years has AS been recognized by professionals and parents.

Individuals with AS can exhibit a variety of characteristics and the disorder can range from mild to severe. Persons with AS show marked deficiencies in social skills, have difficulties with transitions or changes and prefer sameness. They often have obsessive routines and may be preoccupied with a particular subject of interest. They have a great deal of difficulty reading nonverbal cues (body language) and very often the individual with AS has difficulty determining proper body space. Often overly sensitive to sounds, tastes, smells, and sights, the person with AS may prefer soft clothing, certain foods, and be bothered by sounds or lights no one else seems to hear or see. It’s important to remember that the person with AS perceives the world very differently. Therefore, many behaviors that seem odd or unusual are due to those neurological differences and not the result of intentional rudeness or bad behavior, and most certainly not the result of “improper parenting”.

By definition, those with AS have a normal IQ and many individuals (although not all), exhibit exceptional skill or talent in a specific area. Because of their high degree of functionality and their naivet�, those with AS are often viewed as eccentric or odd and can easily become victims of teasing and bullying. While language development seems, on the surface, normal, individuals with AS often have deficits in pragmatics and prosody. Vocabularies may be extraordinarily rich and some children sound like “little professors.” However, persons with AS can be extremely literal and have difficulty using language in a social context.

Barbara L Kirby, found here

I wish I could remember what my mom said the other day about me and autism in the same sentence — something about early signs, or genetics, or something.

My behavior when in a depression phase tends to highlight my less social side (no terrible surprise to anyone with depression). It’s not so much that I don’t want to or can’t be social; rather, I have a real issue with eye contact (which is a day-to-day thing for me anyway, I’ve come to realize recently), I stop reading body language as well as normal, and I really don’t want to be touched.

None of this is odd, or ever struck me as so, until my mom mentioned something about autism and me the other day. I’ve also been doing too much reading about the condition recently for a screenplay I’m writing; anyone that thinks med students won’t become self-diagnosing while they’re in school (and slightly paranoid, at that) just needs to watch one.

Can’t wait until my brother goes through graduate school for his PsyD.