Asperger's Syndrome, a unique way of understanding the world
Asperger's syndrome (AS), described by psychiatrist Hans Asperger in 1944, celebrates its international awareness day on February 18, coinciding with his birthday.
In the 1980s, Lorna Wing was the first to use the term Asperger's syndrome to define in her studies those people with preserved intelligence and fluent language, who also presented difficulties in communication and social reciprocity, as well as rigid patterns of behavior, as occurred in people identified with autism.
Since then, the scientific and clinical community has worked to understand the converging causes of both neurodevelopmental disorders, which, being considered as distinct in previous decades, are described as a single continuum of characteristics from 2013 with the publication of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ( DSM-5 ) and from 2018 with the appearance of the new criteria of the International Classification of Diseases ( ICD-11 ) in which Asperger's Syndrome is understood as part of Autism Spectrum Disorder ( ASD).
Regarding Asperger's syndrome, a brief account
The global prevalence of Asperger's syndrome (AS) is unclear, but it is estimated at 2-7 per 1000 people (Mazzone et al., 2012). Furthermore, individuals with AS are identified as having additional psychiatric conditions that affect their socio-emotional development and learning, such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), mood problems (depression and anxiety), etc., and they face a greater risk of interpersonal difficulties and being bullied in school (Hosseini & Molla, 2020). Later, upon entering adulthood, difficulties establishing intimate psycho-emotional relationships and challenges entering the workforce pose significant barriers to their personal development (self-esteem) and professional aspirations (self-determination), respectively.
This prioritization of these aspects is the origin of this year's motto, #MakeSpace . The campaign argues that people with Asperger's syndrome have the right to find a social, academic, and professional environment that allows them to grow with emotional well-being and achieve their full potential as independent individuals.
The neurodiversity that defines a large part of the group with Asperger's syndrome and the social identity (Smith & Jones, 2020) that they feel and that characterizes them has led family members and professionals in the field to maintain and respect this diagnostic category and to seek a specific space that has reached the consideration of a unique and particular way of understanding the social and physical world under the umbrella of the self-proclaimed Aspie culture.
Aspie culture stems from the shared sense of social identity among individuals with this condition. The way they process social and sensory information fosters affinities, interests, and preferences that define them beyond the disorder itself. This has positive connotations because it highlights the artistic, intellectual, and experiential potential of people with Asperger's syndrome.
People with Asperger's syndrome:
- They have an interest in and desire for interpersonal relationships and question their difficulties in social skills and the challenge of forming friendships and intimate emotional relationships.
- They can identify the feeling of loneliness from an early age, making it essential to highlight their strengths to improve their self-esteem and self-determination.
- They may speak with an unnatural intonation, have difficulty interpreting details of nonverbal language, gestures and facial expressions , and do not fully understand humor and metaphors or double meanings.
- They have restricted and sometimes unusual interests .
- They constantly overcome challenges as they face their daily lives with social skills " tuned to a different wavelength ," which puts them at greater risk of social exclusion.
Cristina Rubio
- They may develop significant symptoms of anxiety and depression as a result of their interpersonal difficulties and professional failures.
- They often have an interest in technical data about trains, mechanics, space, history, art, music or meteorology, science, politics… and are excellent at memorizing lists and supplementary information .
- They have average or above-average intelligence , which may allow them to mask their deficits in social interaction and communication skills to some extent. However, it is difficult to maintain these compensatory strategies as the social environment becomes increasingly complex and demanding.
- They exhibit a daily functioning that can be autonomous, but, due to their inflexibility of behavior and their difficulties in coping with changes , they need extensive support and reference persons who accompany and know their characteristics with respect and individualized plans.
- They deserve social recognition, time and space to be who they are and who they want to become .
Asperger's syndrome in the first person:
The perspectives of individuals with Asperger's syndrome, as well as those of their families, help us better understand their daily lives. Each testimony is a small capsule of knowledge. We share some of those collected in clinical practice over the years:
- "I have a different operating system, I'm Windows Asperger's... it identifies me, defines me, and it's a relief to know that there are difficulties that don't depend on me, that aren't chosen, even though they may be the ones that make me suffer and enjoy the most - Young Adult"
- “Autism is a very broad concept, and every person is different. The categories are too specific and overlapping… I prefer to understand it all within the broader term autism, encompassing different ways of experiencing it.” – Meridia
- "I was afraid of the holes in the round plastic tables at the swimming pools, I was terrified to see them, but I didn't know how to express it and I didn't dare tell anyone" – Young adult
- "For some people, the word autism sounds very harsh; for others, if you don't fit their preconceived idea of autism, it means you don't have it..." – Meridia
- “More is expected of you, it’s like you necessarily have to fit in. I don’t like having to do things to seem ‘sociable,’ but since I was little I remember straining my brain to ‘seem normal’… For me, it was crucial that someone taught me to respect myself and not have to please everyone anymore.” – Young woman
- "I like to draw and copy Japanese aesthetics; I enjoy being able to create patterns that only exist in my mind and that no one can touch." – Young woman
- "It's very difficult to understand how your child can learn to read on their own or reproduce diagrams of hundreds of football matches with the players' names throughout history, and yet not know how to express that they don't want to do PE because they can't manage to put their shoes on and take them off. It's amazing what they can and can't do." – Mother
- "I can't really say it, but for me the pandemic has been a relief. I can manage my studies my way, I concentrate better, I can log on or off whenever I want, and I've learned the social codes of online conversations. The digital world is more structured, you're less exposed, although my parents tell me I don't see other dangers." - Teenager with difficulties within the Autism Spectrum
Photograph provided by Meridia
