Asperger's and PTSD

[Andygriffith3351]

Ereth could you please try to be less argumentative this thread is to help people with PTSD not to argue over what PTSD is or wether or not people have it. Sorry its not all you ereth just evryone please stop arguing over that .

 

[Ereth]

I started posting in this thread to address a problem that I see happening with medical conditions of all kinds---namely, the misappropriation of labels associated with them. I think discussing what constitutes real PTSD is an important part of trying to help people who have it. If people don't know what PTSD is and just throw the term around to describe every little bit of stress they have, how are the people who truly suffer supposed to get the recognition and help they deserve? The same is true for depression, or schizophrenia, or anything else.

I apologize if I sound argumentative, but this is extremely important to me and I'm not going to treat the issue with kid gloves. That solves nothing.

 

[Ste11aeres]

Re-reading the original post, it seems to me that the original poster started this thread with the intention of having discussion, so that people could share their opinions. It seems that that was the original intention of this thread: not offering support.

Don't get me wrong, support is important. But so is discussion and ideas.

 

[Christy]

The same is true for depression, or schizophrenia, or anything else.
.

Or aspergers for that matter.

I wonder, if PTSD is about how a person feels and responds to a certain threatening incident, could aspies or auties be more suspectable to Ptsd?? A common trait is the inability to understand the intentions of other people so maybe we interpret the situation worse than it really is. also we tend to get ourselves into trouble more readily as we often don't read people properly.

I'd be interested to find out if the rate of PTSD in aspies is higher than the rate of PTSD in NTs. From what I've read in this thread (so no, I have absolutely no experience with this subject), PTSD is all about perception and the response to it. Aspergers is fundamentally about our warped ability to perceive the world.

 

[Ereth]

I'd be interested to find out if the rate of PTSD in aspies is higher than the rate of PTSD in NTs. From what I've read in this thread (so no, I have absolutely no experience with this subject), PTSD is all about perception and the response to it. Aspergers is fundamentally about our warped ability to perceive the world.

I haven't heard about any studies of PTSD in people with ASD versus people who don't, but it takes a certain type of traumatic event (either experiencing it firsthand or witnessing it) to cause PTSD. I'm not sure that ASD would necessarily cause a misperception of that magnitude---but again, I haven't heard of any studies that would presumably address this. I need to remember to look into the subject later.

 

[Christy]

I haven't heard about any studies of PTSD in people with ASD versus people who don't, but it takes a certain type of traumatic event (either experiencing it firsthand or witnessing it) to cause PTSD.

Yes Ereth, I'm pretty sure that point has been made already.

 

[Ste11aeres]

Or aspergers for that matter.

I wonder, if PTSD is about how a person feels and responds to a certain threatening incident, could aspies or auties be more suspectable to Ptsd?? A common trait is the inability to understand the intentions of other people so maybe we interpret the situation worse than it really is. also we tend to get ourselves into trouble more readily as we often don't read people properly.

I'd be interested to find out if the rate of PTSD in aspies is higher than the rate of PTSD in NTs. From what I've read in this thread (so no, I have absolutely no experience with this subject), PTSD is all about perception and the response to it. Aspergers is fundamentally about our warped ability to perceive the world.

I wonder if healing and recovery after getting PTSD, or after an event that would easily cause PTSD is different for Aspies than for NTs.
How does a person's level of social support from others affect this?
http://www.memphis.edu/psychology/people/faculty/beck/robinaughmarquesetal2011.pdf

 

[Warwick C]

I stayed out of it for as long as I could, as I did not feel qualified to comment. I would say Ereth that your knowledge is open to interpretation as your knowledge is second hand.

I may have had it but I am not sure. My experience is.

My father died when I was 13. My father and I were crewing on another boat when it capsized, I was trapped inside and my father and the boat owner was on the out side. What I found out was that I never asked about him during the rescue and had been holding that fact until last year, I had been holding it for 36 yrs.

 

[Ereth]

Warwick, you're really objecting because this hasn't happened to me directly? Sorry, but you don't get to say that. Those I am close to have told me in graphic detail about what happened to them. Out of respect for their privacy, I will not mention the details here. I certainly can't speak for every case of PTSD out there, but I've learned plenty about the condition from hearing what my loved ones have endured and what they continue to go through every day. Not once have I claimed to be the ultimate authority on PTSD. But you should know that what I am saying comes directly from people who have to live with the aftermath of what happened to them years ago every day of their lives.

 

[Christy]

No Ereth, I think the exasperation toward you coming from pretty much everyone participating in this thread is your domination of the topic and persistent insistence that any opinion or thought needs to be directly responded to and/or corrected by you. It is frustrating as you squash any discussion by not allowing thoughts and ideas to be developed because you express YOUR opinion in a manner that prevents it.

Furthermore, the mods are obviously watching this thread and seem to think your behaviour is acceptable because they like your posts?! What the hell??

 

[wyverary]

Well, I'm stepping in now. Let's end the ad hominem attacks, shall we? Last I saw, we had all of ONE expert chime in on this thread, whose own posts I should add seem to have been rather ignored or lightly dismissed, and now we have people accusing each other of "pretending to be experts." Please stop dismissing people's experience, knowledge, and thoughts simply because they don't happen to have a Masters or PhD in psychology, and let's please keep it civil. This is a very sensitive topic, and I don't want to have to close it down.

Thanks.

 

[Gomendosi]

I have to wonder... if somebody can diagnose themselves with Aspergers, then why not PTSD, who are we to say little Johnny isn't an aspie if he says he is, therefore, who are we to say he doesn't have PTSD if he thinks it's so.
The individual knows themselves best after all, and a trained professional would be second best qualified, however, hearing stories from mates, not so much.

I would be tempted to say that if you think you got PTSD from opening a jar then how do I know that you didn't, how am I to gauge another individuals trauma and terror from any select event, even should I share the event I am a completely different and seperate individual and the experience, while fundamentally the exact same, could well induce It in one and not the other!
For my money this is one of those things like Aspergers that could be a very grey area indeed for a long time to come.

 

[Warwick C]

Thank you Christy and Wyv, I was starting to get pissed off, with Ereths comments and the stating the the nonprofessional aspect being used as an excuse rather than a disclaimer.

 

[Ereth]

No Ereth, I think the exasperation toward you coming from pretty much everyone participating in this thread is your domination of the topic and persistent insistence that any opinion or thought needs to be directly responded to and/or corrected by you. It is frustrating as you squash any discussion by not allowing thoughts and ideas to be developed because you express YOUR opinion in a manner that prevents it.

Furthermore, the mods are obviously watching this thread and seem to think your behaviour is acceptable because they like your posts?! What the hell??

I'm honestly tired of everyone assuming I'm automatically in the wrong just because I'm invested in this topic enough to respond to everyone. I never once swore at anybody, or in any way consciously insinuated that somebody else's thoughts on this topic weren't valuable. In responding to others, I have tried to present my point of view in a polite, if forthright, way. In fact, before I was personally addressed in this topic, I've done nothing but present my own thoughts and respond to others' thoughts in what I thought was an appropriate manner. I know I'm intimidating, but it's not as if I'm sitting at my keyboard going "Haha! Everyone is wrong except for me!" That's not what I'm doing. I never meant to hurt anybody.

I don't know what did to make everyone decide to gang up on me, but I'm sorry for hurting you all, and for monopolizing the thread.

 

[Sportster]

I'm going to ask Brent or King to lock this thread since it's starting to turn into a place of contention. What is happening here is not what I intended when I started the thread. The original premise of this thread was to discuss the connection between AS and PTSD from a personal point of view, not to invite opinions that have done nothing but cause bitterness and a lot of hurt feelings. Aspies Central is supposed to be a safe and friendly place, but this sort of thing is hurting that image.

 

[Brent]

Locked per request.