[PrairieCat]

I WOULD LOVE TO MEET OTHERS WHO ARE AGING WITH ASPERGER'S SYNDROME. I AM 76. EVEN IF YOU ARE 26, I'D LIKE TO COMMUNICATE WITH YOU! I DIDN'T EVEN REALIZE I HAVE ASPERGER'S UNTIL A YEAR AGO. LIVED MY ENTIRE LIFE WITH IT.

I HAVE SIBLINGS WHO I BELIEVE ALSO HAVE ASD AT DIFFERENT LEVELS BUT THEY WILL NOT DISCUSS IT WITH ME. NOT SURE WHY. MY FAMILY WAS NEVER VERY OPEN EMOTIONALLY.

I AM HAVING PROBLEMS WITH PANIC ATTACKS, ANXIETY AND SLEEPLESSNESS. I HAVE GOT MEDS TO HANDLE EACH OF THOSE PROBLEMS AND THINGS ARE A BIT BETTER. I HATE TO TAKE ANY MEDS FOR ANYTHING! BUT I WOULD SURE LOVE TO TALK TO ANYONE ELSE WHO HAS ASPERGER'S, ESPECIALLY THOSE CLOSER TO MY AGE OF 76. I AM HIGH FUNCTIONING. THANK YOU. I SEND BLESSINGS TO YOU ALL!

[miss_rainy]

I believe that I have aspergers but not officially diagnosed. I'm 27 and I'm just wondering do have ticks? Me and my brother are dealing with this. He also have aspergers.

[eskielover]

Looking back at my dad, there are signs that he might have had ASD (Aspergers). He also had a tick associated with his stomach & would do stimming where when sitting he would constantly rub his fingers together. He died back in 1989 before ASD was even dx'ed in the US. He was also constantly clearing his throat & blowing out through his nose.

Amazing how the sounds of those things from my childhood are still so obvious to me even now at my age after all these years. No one knew what caused it. No one bothered to ask either in those days....things just were what they were. It wasn't until I was researching things about my husband possibly having Aspergers that it became obvious that was probably what my dad had.

For me, the 2 largest things I felt from both was a distinct lack of emotional connection which I realized only after I left my husband & moved far away & started to actually emotionally connect with the people around me. I always thought it was me that wasn't connecting before that.

I noticed also the difficulties they had when routines changed. Everything was great when there was a fixed pattern which didn't interact well with me who was a spur of the moment person who liked change.

Husband seemed like he had to be taught everything, he wasn't good at teaching himself how to do things even with his very high IQ.

Communication was always very literal which made for lots of miss communication even when in reality at times we sere trying to say the same thing.

I no longer live in the marriage though not divorced yet, he is in mid 60's now. He was never formally Dx'ed with anything but adult ADD, BUT OUT PDOC indicated that there was more going on with him than JUST adult ADD. Pdoc suggested he go to a neurologist but to my knowledge he never did. Maybe because never Dx'ed, the symptoms seemed to get more pronounced with age....not sure exactly why but life also became more unstable with age also.

[PrairieCat]

Thanks, Eskie Lover. We've talked before but it's been a long time and I don't even think I knew I had Asperger's last time we communicated. Just this year I realized that I have it, high functioning, fortunately. I also believe that my three siblings have it but are at a different place than I am. My one brother is more like me. None of them will talk to me about this. Not one of them. My daughter hates to hear about it and disagrees with me about everything under the sun. My friends keep dying and I have very few anyway. So...there's nobody to talk with and this is making me feel like I am going nuts! I am 76 and I do feel like I could be losing it. I need to have a test for cancer soon. I may have a breathing problem - or it is simply panic attacks. That doesn't help. There 's lots more.

I will just tell you the funniest thing I can think of right now. I am on dating websites and talked to one man last night. I thought he was great, the way he expressed himself. Ready? He had been married SIX times. Said his last wife died but that she's the only one who loved him. Boy, was this guy lacking love in his life. Must have come from his childhood. I feel the same about myself. A best old friend died last weekend and the same thing happened a year ago. I don't know why I'm even looking for a male to be in my life...loneliness, I guess. I don't think I can handle a man again, though. I don't have the energy or strength I used to have! Good girlfriends are fine, though. On here, also. Right now I feel like nobody in the whole world wants to talk to me or hear me. And my relatives are horribly irritating. Who in the world sends a Christmas card to people every single day? I think it is that they just don't understand using a computer, I guess. I am lacking patience also. I have a hard time putting up with less knowledgeable people. I feel that I am really not a very nice person. I am trying to connect with God but that is slow going. Things are piling upon me and it is almost too much.

My daughter has cancer and my grandson has been doing illegal drugs for years. They are my only children and I adore them both. But I feel I'm losing it, like I need someone to take care of me right now! There's nobody there to do that except God. I will keep trying to connect. I don't think there was ever anyone there to take care of me. It was a grand illusion. My entire family plus many relatives are and were autistic.

[PrairieCat]

Originally Posted by miss_rainy

I believe that I have aspergers but not officially diagnosed. I'm 27 and I'm just wondering do have ticks? Me and my brother are dealing with this. He also have aspergers.

Thanks, Miss Rainy. I am not sure I understand your question. However, I think that there is maybe a different term for ticks in Asperger's. I do not have that but you could google it and see what you can find out online. Also, as you read this forum you might see that someone else here has used that term.

[leejosepho]

I have experienced Asperger Burnout...
https://www.google.com/search?q=asperger+burnout
...so maybe Asperger aging me is part of my aging with Asperger?!

I have troubles with stress, anxiety, depression and some physical disability, but I have no complaints now that I understand.

[Nike007]

Hello. I am not a person you'd want to talk to, since I am quite young (17), but can relate. I was just diagnosed under a year ago, and I also have high-functioning ASD, since Asperger's isn't an official diagnosis here in Canada anymore, due to the change in the DSM-V. But I may or may have been diagnosed with Aspergers, depending on if the person who diagnosed me considered my speech delay severe (I didn't speak until 2). But anyways, none of my siblings have signs of ASD, but my step-brother is diagnosed with "high-functioning", though I consider it moderate functioning. He hasn't been diagnosed under the DSM-V, but the DSM-IV-TR. I don't think he understand that about himself. I am lucky to find out young so I can work on it now. But I have nothing really else to say, but can understand how finding out finally solves stuff you do.

[PrairieCat]

Originally Posted by Nike007

Hello. I am not a person you'd want to talk to, since I am quite young (17), but can relate. I was just diagnosed under a year ago, and I also have high-functioning ASD, since Asperger's isn't an official diagnosis here in Canada anymore, due to the change in the DSM-V. But I may or may have been diagnosed with Aspergers, depending on if the person who diagnosed me considered my speech delay severe (I didn't speak until 2). But anyways, none of my siblings have signs of ASD, but my step-brother is diagnosed with "high-functioning", though I consider it moderate functioning. He hasn't been diagnosed under the DSM-V, but the DSM-IV-TR. I don't think he understand that about himself. I am lucky to find out young so I can work on it now. But I have nothing really else to say, but can understand how finding out finally solves stuff you do.

Nike007, thank you for writing. Yes, you are so fortunate to have a diagnosis. There was no way on earth for that to happen for me, so I am now trying to figure out things while it seems that I am aging really fast. I had an Asperger's therapist but I only got to see her three times and then she disappeared. I was born in 1940 and Asperger's was discovered only in 1943 and was not in the public consciousness in the U.S. until around 1994, after the movie, "Rain Man."

I think it is very interesting that your step-brother has been diagnosed also. This is because I have found that those with Asperger's or ASD really do tend to congregate together. Meaning that perhaps one parent has a touch of ASD - or not, but it is possible. I made a list of my friends throughout my life and I swear that almost all of them had some form of ASD! Yes, we tend to congregate! I think that is a good thing, too. But I just wish that I had known about ASD lots sooner.

I am lacking anyone to talk to right now. So, what I'm doing is posting here and also on some singles' websites. That is interesting and also sometimes hilarious.

I wish you the best and I envy your awareness. Hugs to you!

[englndm]

Hello PrairieCat,

I was only diagnosed recently at the age of 58 with Asperger's Syndrome. So I am aging with it. I took my diagnosis as a gift. I know now what's behind how I think, feel, and act. Before the diagnosis, it was like walking in pitch black darkness. The diagnosis was the light bulb. I don't reckon I am an alien from another planet. In visiting forums such as this one, I know I have plenty of company. I believe there's a lot of "aspies" growing old with us who are still in the dark about it.

My family isn't talking to me about my diagnosis either. I did get my Mom, my two brothers, and a sister-in-law to take the AQ test. They all scored below the treshhold from 13 to 19. My score? 40. No wonder I have always felt like the "lone wolf".

I am on an antedepressant for anxiety attacks. My medication was changed to Lexapro just weeks before my diagnosis. It works GREAT!!! I haven't had attacks and I feel good most of the time, even on Monday mornings! I have long suffered from overactive bladder (OAB). I got up during the night so many times that I sometimes wondered if I should just get a sleeping bag and put in the bathroom. HA! After being put on Lexapro, I had immediate improvement. I'm only getting up once, at the most twice, during the night. This has been a big upgrade to my quality of life.

It was largely through working as a substitute teaching assistant that I came to the realization of being autistic. I started subbing a little over 2 years ago. Sometimes I would cross paths with a child who reminded me of myself. When I crossed paths with a particular 12 year old girl whose odd behavior mirrored my own, I started down the path of discovery beginning with research, online testing, followed up with a doctor visit and consulting with teachers who work with children living on the spectrum.

The 12 year old child who made such a difference in my life is on the lower end of the autism spectrum. She can understand words, but she cannot say them. If I told her my story, her part in it, I doubt she'd understand. Even if she did, she would be unable to share a cup of conversation with me about it. I saw her a few weeks ago when I was subbing in her class. Out of the blue, she came up to me and gave me a bear hug. I hugged her back and held on for a few seconds thinking of how much she meant to me. Sometimes words aren't necessary. A hug will just have to do.

englndm