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Hi everybody

Siegfried Wolfram

Siegfried Wolfram

New Member
Hi, my name is Siegfried (I know, ask my mom, pretty ancient German name so you can call me Sig or something) and I am 36 years old. I was born and raised in Bulgaria, Europe.

When I was a kid, I was diagnosed with a genetic disease called Cystic Fibrosis (has nothing to do with autism or as far as I know) but I am relatively okay. The thing is, my mom thought I had autism because I couldn't look people in the eyes, got upset over tiny changes in routine, I never had any friends and what not.

Well, I don't know if I have autism, never went to a doctor for it or addressed it but to this day I still struggle with these activities. It seems to me I have thought myself to "pretend" I am normal, to "imitate" in a way what other people say and how they behave in social situations. I don't know if anyone else does it, I never really wanted to think about these things because I was embarrassed I couldn't do it and felt like I was not autistic because I could talk, communicate (although I was sweating like crazy and still do anytime someone talks to me)... but now my partner had me look at it again. And it seems I relate to a lot of experiences people on the spectrum have and I even cried when I realized how much in common I had with people on the spectrum. I am now starting to slowly accept myself as who I am.

I am really lonely, at 36, I don't have any friends now - nobody ever wanted to be my friend, apart from my partner... and the thing is, I feel like I need a place to share my thoughts and find someone I relate to so I don't feel like I'm the only one like me in the world. I was always ignored in my childhood. Maybe I was saying weird things because whatever I said, people pretended they didn't hear it. I hope this wasn't too long or obnoxious. Thank you for reading.
 
Welcome Siegfried:)

I am very familiar with CF,...I am a respiratory therapist and have dealt professionally with children and young adults with CF. I have to comment on how well you must have taken care of yourself, being 36. This says a lot about what kind of person you are. This is good news.

As far as "being on the spectrum", there are on-line tests,...the Autism Quotient (AQ test), as well as other tests through Cambridge University. These are NOT diagnostic, but will give you a better sense of where you are from a "personality profile" perspective. Do keep in mind that autism does have some crossover with with attention deficit disorders, obsessive compulsive disorders, and other personality disorders. In order to "tease" these things apart and obtain the correct diagnosis will require a professional.

I was not diagnosed until 52, and several others here were not diagnosed until adulthood,...so your situation does not appear unusual, at all.
 
Welcome Sig, I'm sure that you'll find some friends here.
може ли да намерите това, което търсите Hopefully that says "may you find what you are seeking"
 
Neonatal RRT said:
Welcome Siegfried:)

I am very familiar with CF,...I am a respiratory therapist and have dealt professionally with children and young adults with CF. I have to comment on how well you must have taken care of yourself, being 36. This says a lot about what kind of person you are. This is good news.

As far as "being on the spectrum", there are on-line tests,...the Autism Quotient (AQ test), as well as other tests through Cambridge University. These are NOT diagnostic, but will give you a better sense of where you are from a "personality profile" perspective. Do keep in mind that autism does have some crossover with with attention deficit disorders, obsessive compulsive disorders, and other personality disorders. In order to "tease" these things apart and obtain the correct diagnosis will require a professional.

I was not diagnosed until 52, and several others here were not diagnosed until adulthood,...so your situation does not appear unusual, at all.
Click to expand...
Hi, thanks for the answer, and thank you for the warm welcome! I am extremely grateful for people like you, thank you for the hard work being a respiratory therapist and the dedication to helping others! CF is getting harder and harder every day as you most probably know.. but I'm okay. I have to thank also my quite obsessive and pedantic routine-centered personality for never missing a single pill or breathing therapy. I will be 37 in March!

As for the tests for autism you mention, I will definitely go check them out and do them.
 
Major Tom said:
Welcome Sig, I'm sure that you'll find some friends here.
може ли да намерите това, което търсите Hopefully that says "may you find what you are seeking"
Click to expand...
Hi, thank you so much for the warm welcome! So, you don't know Bulgarian? The phrase says "Can you find what you are seeking". But I understand the meaning. This place is very warm and welcoming. Thank you so much!
 
Siegfried Wolfram said:
Hi, thanks for the answer, and thank you for the warm welcome! I am extremely grateful for people like you, thank you for the hard work being a respiratory therapist and the dedication to helping others! CF is getting harder and harder every day as you most probably know.. but I'm okay. I have to thank also my quite obsessive and pedantic routine-centered personality for never missing a single pill or breathing therapy. I will be 37 in March!

As for the tests for autism you mention, I will definitely go check them out and do them.
Click to expand...
I meant in 37 in April. For some reason can't edit it. Maybe I typed March because it's March now xD Anyway...
 
Siegfried Wolfram said:
Hi, thank you so much for the warm welcome! So, you don't know Bulgarian? The phrase says "Can you find what you are seeking". But I understand the meaning. This place is very warm and welcoming. Thank you so much!
Click to expand...

Nope, I just know English, Spanish a little and Japanese fairly well. I like learning new languages and making people feel welcomed. I think Bulgarian would be a difficult language because of the different characters. Sorry for the mix-up. I guess at least it was somewhat close. And not something like "I want to eat your cat" haha. Anyways, welcome again.
 
Siegfried Wolfram said:
Hi, thanks for the answer, and thank you for the warm welcome! I am extremely grateful for people like you, thank you for the hard work being a respiratory therapist and the dedication to helping others! CF is getting harder and harder every day as you most probably know.. but I'm okay. I have to thank also my quite obsessive and pedantic routine-centered personality for never missing a single pill or breathing therapy. I will be 37 in March!

As for the tests for autism you mention, I will definitely go check them out and do them.
Click to expand...

I just did the AQ test online. Here's what I got. I know its not for diagnostic purposes, but that seems to confirm what I was thinking.
hmmm.JPG
 
Major Tom said:
Nope, I just know English, Spanish a little and Japanese fairly well. I like learning new languages and making people feel welcomed. I think Bulgarian would be a difficult language because of the different characters. Sorry for the mix-up. I guess at least it was somewhat close. And not something like "I want to eat your cat" haha. Anyways, welcome again.
Click to expand...
That's so cool! No, you didn't say "I want to eat your cat" xD And it does feel welcoming to see someone write in your language. Thank you so much!
 
Siegfried Wolfram said:
Hi, my name is Siegfried (I know, ask my mom, pretty ancient German name so you can call me Sig or something) and I am 36 years old. I was born and raised in Bulgaria, Europe.

When I was a kid, I was diagnosed with a genetic disease called Cystic Fibrosis (has nothing to do with autism or as far as I know) but I am relatively okay. The thing is, my mom thought I had autism because I couldn't look people in the eyes, got upset over tiny changes in routine, I never had any friends and what not.

Well, I don't know if I have autism, never went to a doctor for it or addressed it but to this day I still struggle with these activities. It seems to me I have thought myself to "pretend" I am normal, to "imitate" in a way what other people say and how they behave in social situations. I don't know if anyone else does it, I never really wanted to think about these things because I was embarrassed I couldn't do it and felt like I was not autistic because I could talk, communicate (although I was sweating like crazy and still do anytime someone talks to me)... but now my partner had me look at it again. And it seems I relate to a lot of experiences people on the spectrum have and I even cried when I realized how much in common I had with people on the spectrum. I am now starting to slowly accept myself as who I am.

I am really lonely, at 36, I don't have any friends now - nobody ever wanted to be my friend, apart from my partner... and the thing is, I feel like I need a place to share my thoughts and find someone I relate to so I don't feel like I'm the only one like me in the world. I was always ignored in my childhood. Maybe I was saying weird things because whatever I said, people pretended they didn't hear it. I hope this wasn't too long or obnoxious. Thank you for reading.
Click to expand...
Hi, Sig. You aren't alone...that's something that I often wondered for years. I didn't know anything about Autism over a year ago and that I may be on the spectrum. Through my research, I had to dig even deeper due to all of my children exhibiting Autistic traits. It's been a world of discovery...and in that discovery, I have found that there is a world of incredible people sharing the same planet as I do.
 
Storm Hess said:
Hi, Sig. You aren't alone...that's something that I often wondered for years. I didn't know anything about Autism over a year ago and that I may be on the spectrum. Through my research, I had to dig even deeper due to all of my children exhibiting Autistic traits. It's been a world of discovery...and in that discovery, I have found that there is a world of incredible people sharing the same planet as I do.
Click to expand...
Yeah... I guess I’m starting to feel like that here... I’ve never been more welcomed anywhere really. I’m very flattered.
 
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