Asperger Syndrome is a condition that falls within the broader category of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It is widely considered to be on the “high functioning” end of the autism spectrum, but that doesn’t mean that living with it is without challenges. Generally speaking, children and adults who are diagnosed with Asperger’s struggle with social skills and tend to have a limited range of interests and fall into repetitive patterns of behaviour. Those affected may also have trouble understanding nonliteral phrases and nonverbal forms of communication and making eye contact with others. They may also have a tendency to discuss themselves as opposed to others, leading to one-sided conversations. In some people with Asperger’s, their motor development may also be delayed, resulting in awkward movements or mannerisms.
Marc Stocco is a student-athlete and mental health advocate based in Surrey, British Columbia. Stocco has dedicated most of his life to playing baseball at a competitive level. Currently, he pitches for the University of Fraser Valley men’s baseball team, where he is a skilled player and caring teammate. As someone living with the condition himself, Stocco provides insight into a few of the key challenges of living with Asperger’s.
Anxiety and Depression
First and foremost, one of the greatest challenges people with Asperger syndrome face is overcoming any anxiety or depression they may feel. This is because anxiety and depression are more common for people with the condition. While it’s not something that everyone with Asperger’s is guaranteed to experience, Marc Stocco explains that it is more likely due to the fact that many people with it live a very particular, put-together life. The thought of this life-changing or falling apart is a common fear and worry among those living with Asperger’s.
In addition, what is outside one’s home can often feel scary, especially for people who have sensory sensitivities. Knowing how unpredictable the outside world is and the thought of dealing with things like crowds of people or loud noises can induce feelings of anxiety. Further, thinking you don’t belong in a world where it feels like you’re the only one not in on the joke can lead to feelings of depression. It can be difficult for people living with Asperger’s to achieve the same milestones as other people their age, such as making friends or living on their own.
Misdiagnoses
Marc Stocco says that another common challenge for people living with Asperger’s is that the condition is often misdiagnosed. It is not uncommon for someone who is eventually diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome to have been diagnosed with a myriad of other conditions beforehand. Incorrect diagnoses range from ADHD and Bipolar Disorder to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Narcissistic Personality Disorder, and Borderline Personality Disorder. Failing to be diagnosed properly the first time, and worse, to receive multiple different diagnoses throughout one’s young life can take a toll on a person and is one factor that can lead to greater symptoms of anxiety or depression for those living with Asperger’s.
Recognizing Emotions
Being able to recognize emotions in others and oneself and to regulate such emotions in oneself are both challenges that people living with Asperger syndrome face. Those with Asperger syndrome tend to have difficulty recognizing what emotions feel and look like, not just in others but also in themselves. In addition, understanding the different gradations of emotion can be difficult, which in turn, makes it hard to decipher the appropriate emotional response in various settings or when doing certain activities or speaking with certain people. This inability to understand certain emotional issues or recognize when others or oneself are feeling certain emotions means that people with Asperger’s might appear to say or do the wrong thing in an emotional situation. This is part of the reason that one of the greatest challenges of living with Asperger’s is making friends and forging meaningful connections with other people, shares Marc Stocco.
Regulating Impulses
Another challenge of living with Asperger’s relates to the regulation of impulses. Often people with Asperger’s struggle to manage or regulate their impulses. For example, when someone with Asperger’s becomes anxious, they may have trouble controlling the natural fight or flight response that kicks in, resulting in them simply getting up and leaving in the middle of a conversation or other situation. Further, filtering out distracting stimuli such as music or other noises can be difficult, which can lead to anxiety and then the fight or flight response mentioned previously. In line with regulating one’s impulses, people living with Asperger’s syndrome may also experience difficulty concentrating or paying attention to one thing at a time. Marc Stocco claims that sometimes those with Asperger’s have trouble fixing their attention for long periods of time, as well as analyzing information and correctly identifying what is relevant and what is irrelevant. The challenges relating to regulating impulses and attention span relate to the commonality of people with Asperger’s having very intense and specific interests, interests that may be eccentric but may also interfere with the completion of everyday tasks.
Final Thoughts from Marc Stocco
Lastly, Marc Stocco of Surrey, British Columbia, shares that one final challenge of living with Asperger’s is that of flexible thinking. The ability to be flexible in a range of ways is a skill that many people with Asperger’s lack. That is why it can be difficult to cope with a change to one’s routine, whether big or small. Such changes can trigger anxiety for people living with Asperger’s.
In addition, someone living with Asperger’s may be perceived as being very set in their ways, as to them, there may only be one correct way of approaching or solving a task. They may also have trouble accepting and understanding feedback or suggestions from others. Seeing the world as something other than black and white can be extremely difficult. For example, people with Asperger’s typically like rules and struggle to understand that sometimes there are exceptions to the rules or good reasons to break or bend the rules. Not only might they find it difficult to comprehend rule-breaking, but they may have very little tolerance for such behaviour.
