Asperger's or trauma?

Hey everybody, I am in the process of finding myself a therapist but trying to read as much as possible about Asperger's since I've been told it could be the answer to what is wrong with me.

I seem to fit the diagnostic criteria, at least for the most part but because I come from a background of childhood abuse and mental illnesses, it's difficult to say whether I have Asperger's or some form of complex trauma mixed with social anxiety.

I once read that the difference between Asperger's and Social Anxiety is that the person with anxiety knows how to make small talk and connect with others but is too scared to, while the person with Asperger's does not know what to do in a social situation. I feel like it's a little bit of both for me, so IDK.

I do have a limited amount of interests that I've become a bit of an 'expert' on because I invest a lot of time on them. I do not like fiction, not even to relax for bed with a book, all I like is non-fiction, usually science related literature. Basically data, studies. I tend to speak literally and have trouble noticing sarcasm even though I do very well at school on an academic level. When I was younger I was extremely naive, like I had no malice at all. I was like an emotional 5 year old in a 19 year old's body, and would really suffer because of it (people tend to prey on you). I know that's all typical of Asperger's.

I don't like looking at people in the eye, it makes me very uncomfortable but I'm unsure whether it reflects Asperger's or just a fear of people for some psychological/trauma reason.

When I was younger I wanted to be popular even though I had this feeling that I was not normal, not like the others. I was into heavy metal and worked out a whole lot, so I started to meet people who mostly liked me because of the way I looked (if I had had to win them over with my personality I'm pretty sure we'd never have dated). People were often surprised to find out I was a great student because given my social performance and mannerisms I didn't seem very bright lol.

My parents are pretty much convinced that what I have is Asperger's and I can definitely see their point. Although I did live through a lot as a young child and I do have OCD, and GAD from an early age and I'm wondering if my presumed Asperger's could instead be a mixture of other conditions and traumatic events.

What do you folks think?

Hello incywincyspider: I see this is your first post... so... welcome to PsychCentral... from the Skeezyks! I hope you find the time you spend here to be of benefit.

I really can't comment with regard to your question. From my perspective all of the various diagnoses people get are just labels... pigeonholes mental health professionals use to sort us out. In my case, just about every mental health professional I've seen has had a little different take on what's going on with me. So from my perspective, I think in order to get a correct diagnosis, you really need to see a mental health professional. Hopefully some other members, here on PC, will come along who will be able to offer some more helpful insight.

I think there's an overlap (to one degree or another) between many mental disorders.

Since you like science and data let's draw a Venn diagram. We'll look at two common mental disorders: anxiety and depression. The circles would overlap, correct? I would guess that at least 25% of people with an anxiety disorder also have clinical depression. You see where I'm going with this, right?

I wish mental disorders were mathematical equations, but they're not. Thus you may have some combination of Asperger's, OCD, and GAD. I don't know how to separate genetic factors from environmental factors, so many people do best by taking medication and receiving therapy.

I wish I had a more definitive answer.

Hey folks, thanks so much for the answers. I got into a little accident the other day and injured my knee so I've been unable to walk. Hopefully I'll be able to start moving more next week.

I did manage to see a psychologist and told them about the possible Asperger's. Hopefully I'll get an answer soon or at least an opinion 'cause it's true that mental health is not an exact science so different people may have different views.

I was going to this psychologist and he didn't seem to believe that OCD or even schizophrenia was a neuropsychiatric disorder, he didn't believe in medication either whereas the psychiatrist I saw said he thought medication would improve my quality of life a lot. Now I can't make up my mind on whether to take it

My question would be - how old are you now and if you're an adult, are you working, what do you do and how do you think you're perceived at work?