The Robot's Thoughts

Here's the link  (if it wants a username and password, use metafilter46/metafilter) to a NYTimes.com article by David Finch regarding how his marriage was on the rocks until he and his wife confronted the fact that he has Asperger's Syndrome, a autism spectrum disorder where people are "odd" or "neurotic" and high functioning.

It goes on to describe how he was able to "fake" being normal until they started living together and more and more time was spent. His wife, who worked with Autistic children, because to notice that he was "a bit off" socially and had repetitive behaviors. And that trying to talk to him about it drove him away. He shut down when confronted by it. But she worked at it, and so did he, and while not out of the woods yet, their marriage is saved and they're able to communicate. A good, short read.

It always brings to mine a close friend of mine that's always had problems outside of "functional" groups, or places where there's an "easy to feel" hierarchy. He took the Asperger's Quotient test and scored a 28. A 32 or higher is considered "seek out a professional for a real diagnosis". Its important to note that many people with A.S. lead normal, functioning lives. But others have problems building lasting relationships. I often wonder if the same techniques people are developing to teach compassion and empathy to those who only point of reference is themselves could help me navigate obstacles in my own journey inward.

Labels: late night thoughts, personal, ramblings