Mockingbird

I wrote previously about how the non-fiction work "Watching The English" could be useful to English Aspies. I book I read some time ago may also be useful: Mockingbird. No, I didn't buy it mistakenly thinking it was part of the recently popular Hunger Games trilogy. It is the story of a young girl with Asperger Syndrome as she tries to help her father out of depression after the murder of her brother. Cheery stuff... But for people on the spectrum and not on the spectrum, I think it's worth a read.

Written in the first person, it really gets you into her thought processes, so you really understand the character and her decisions. If you're not on the spectrum, I would say it gives good insight into someone with Asperger Syndrome, not all of us, but some of us.

Give it a go. Kathryn Erskine. Mockingbird.

My Personal Infographic

The classification of Asperger Syndrome can be somewhat difficult. Loose terminology leaves a lot of interpretation, meaning misdiagnoses or no diagnoses. There are generalised lists of what is encompassed on the syndrome, and phrases like "substantial social difficulties". Maybe it's just me and all the other Aspies that don't know what that means.

My point is, every person is different, and they will each have a different mixture of each supposed trait. Of course, being a syndrome means that every Aspie has similar core traits, but the extent to which these are apparent varies.

The Venn diagram above shows how I believe myself to be. The central circle is my experience of Asperger's. The other overlapping areas show what proportion of each has in common. An example, perhaps: I feel anxiety is full encompassed by AS, but social interaction in not fully included. Most people might socialise the entire circle - I only like to socialise the smaller segment. Anxiety is covered under emotions, but emotions don't play a very large part in my life (except anxiety).

Got the hang of it? One more example. Aspie aspects can be confused with OCD. Obsession is big among Aspies, and is linked to compulsion, which can also be related to Aspies. I don't claim to speak for all Aspies, this is just me.