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Is your relationship like a 'business' agreement....?

ladybug

Well-Known Member
ok, so I don't want to make this sound odd or like an NT 'not getting' her Aspie partner.....
but sometimes... not always but sometimes my relationship with my Aspie partner seems a bit business like.... like he tries to 'help' sort my problems, rather than listen and be there, listening and being a shoulder to rely on, I don't always want him to fix or sort a situation... sometimes I just need him to be supportive and be supportive of the decision I come to...
So my question is.. do you try to 'fix' any problems that your partner has ... or can you say, honestly that you try to support/ help them....?
 
You might try being honest and upfront about what you want and need. Example: "When I share about my problems with you, I am wanting you to do these things for me:
To listen,
to affirm that I am heard and understood by saying things like "Uh-huh," "I see," "that does sound hard," etc., and
Sitting with me, sharing support by just being there together with me, then saying, "I'm here for you."

You may get an honest attempt to do this from your mate.

Or, you may get an astounded "But...... that makes no logical sense! If I care about you, shouldn't I help by providing another perspective, or solutions? Isn't it cruel to just listen, and not give ideas? Won't you feel unsupported?"

Basically, for some of us, providing solutions when a mate is hurting *is* precisely how we express our caring and supportiveness. ;)

If you can recognize and feel satisfied by his efforts to soothe and support you by providing solutions.... hooray! You both win. However, if you need something different, you can surely ask for it. Be clear, as it won't be intuitive for him.

Best success! :)
 
ok, so I don't want to make this sound odd or like an NT 'not getting' her Aspie partner.....
but sometimes... not always but sometimes my relationship with my Aspie partner seems a bit business like.... like he tries to 'help' sort my problems, rather than listen and be there, listening and being a shoulder to rely on, I don't always want him to fix or sort a situation... sometimes I just need him to be supportive and be supportive of the decision I come to...
So my question is.. do you try to 'fix' any problems that your partner has ... or can you say, honestly that you try to support/ help them....?

I'm more of a fixer than a supporter - to me "supporting" doesn't feel like I am doing anything, it's an odd concept to me.
 
ok, so I don't want to make this sound odd or like an NT 'not getting' her Aspie partner.....
but sometimes... not always but sometimes my relationship with my Aspie partner seems a bit business like.... like he tries to 'help' sort my problems, rather than listen and be there, listening and being a shoulder to rely on, I don't always want him to fix or sort a situation... sometimes I just need him to be supportive and be supportive of the decision I come to...
So my question is.. do you try to 'fix' any problems that your partner has ... or can you say, honestly that you try to support/ help them....?

'Business-like' in respect of viewing us as a team. Different skill sets and personalities, same goal.

Fixing problems I'd always considered to be a male-brained trait.(females express emotions, worries, thoughts, men feel it their duty to fix it and make everything okay for the female again)
With an Aspie you're going to get super focus and thee most efficient and effective solution possible.

Let him know that listening is all you want.

Otherwise he has to guess, and might get it wrong.
Going straight to default setting and fixing things isn't as chaotic as guessing.
 
ok, so I don't want to make this sound odd or like an NT 'not getting' her Aspie partner.....
but sometimes... not always but sometimes my relationship with my Aspie partner seems a bit business like.... like he tries to 'help' sort my problems, rather than listen and be there, listening and being a shoulder to rely on, I don't always want him to fix or sort a situation... sometimes I just need him to be supportive and be supportive of the decision I come to...
So my question is.. do you try to 'fix' any problems that your partner has ... or can you say, honestly that you try to support/ help them....?

I think this is a man and women issue, and not just an NT and Aspie issue. It is common for women to say what you have just said regarding men, too, regardless if he has a condition or not, but you cannot regularly change a man to think or act like a woman, just as you cannot change most women to think or act regularly like a man, unless you want the other to be someone else to just gratify you which is fine on rarer occasion.

But, then the reverse should be true. When a woman turns overly emotional a guy should have the right to say, "There are times I want you to be strong enough to talk issues out with me (the man,)", or to be rational, and not repetitive, negative, emotional or inflammatory. Men and women are different. So, yes, many guys often do like solving problems, and perhaps many women are more apt to talk about problems, or wanting support.

But, let's say a guy shows supports every now and then against his nature, and this stresses him out as it is not him, and as he has no way to know how to act during her times of need, and he has to read her mind. And let's say she keeps talking about the same problem in circles, despite his support, or she may come up with another problem as she now has her husband 'trained" to verbally or physically give support and get attention, when he rather solve so as to stop any obsessiveness, negativity, or drama? The guy may then revert back to his normal genetic ways.

Also, if a woman already has their mind made up of what their decision is, without wanting to get the guy's input, it would seem like she should not necessarily need his support, as she is strong enough having made her decision already. And after all, how do you know if the guy agrees with your decision? What if he disagreed? So, he must agree if he does not? Guys often want to think things out, look at different solutions, and will have their own opinion what is best.

Until men can feel less vulnerable to support, and not be seen as weak, and until many women can find ways to not cry or get angry over every small wrong in their life, or act stronger in ways, for smaller issues, many guys will continually need to fix things because it is against their nature to be continually emotionally supporting when they often show love more by those other actions. It can drain them being someone else too much, just as much as it drains women to want things fixed too much or not get comfort from men. That is why women often have female friends, for those support reasons, and why guys need friends as well, to get away from excessive problemed or negative talk where they are not allowed to help in the ways they know and do best.

So, while it is true guys may not seem to listen about a woman's need for support, guys feel the same way: they feel not listened to as well those times the woman gets overly emotional or refusing to look at logic, during those times when the man wonders why she cannot see things from his perspective, and act accordingly. No use fighting over the differences between men and women, or NTs and Aspies. Let each be themselves if no abuse is occurring, and focus on the positives of each other instead. Get your other needs elsewhere, if it cannot be fulfilled by the other, or move on if you are not happy as things are.

I agree though it would be good if both men and women could instinctively support the other every now and then, if possible, but to allow times where solutions can be talked about too, for bigger issues. So, I am sorry if you rarely feel support from your husband, but try to empathize with him, too. It must not be easy to have a condition he never asked for, nor is it easy for men to come up with answers all the time, and help these ways, when they could be enjoying life doing their own things and being less worried about issues.
 
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I think that you should try to tell him upfront what you are expecting, just make sure not to sound like you're correcting his behavior. He might also need practical keys rather than just the theoretical expression of a desire.

Now, be prepared to the fact that this can go one of several ways:
- He might be willing to give you what you expect and succeed at it,
- He might be willing, yet unable no matter how hard he tries (which could cause him a lot of stress and pressure from the perceived failure, or even just from the constant trying),
- He might not be particularly interested in trying if it makes no sense to him.

Asking any change of him would logically call for some changes in you, too, such as accepting that he may not be the one you go to if you're looking for particular reactions.
Think of it as someone who has an illness, is having a terrible time mentally coping with it, and needs surgery: they need to go to the psychologist to talk about whatever is going on in their head, and the surgeon to remove the physical cause of their illness, but it would be a terrible idea to ask for emotional support from the surgeon, or to hand a scalpel to the psychologist.

Speaking from experience: I have been made aware time and time again of my perceived coldness when problems are discussed with me. I understand the way I respond isn't what's expected from me, but all I am able to give is a practical solution (and usually a pretty good one). I will feel concern. I will feel some form of sympathy and/or empathy. But I'm not wired for comforting words, and even after trying for over 10 years, there still no sign of improvement. It has made me feel miserable and guilty, until I realized that I'm offering support in my own way.
 
I'm an aspie and my boyfriend is NT, and he's always trying to fix things, too. If I have a real-world problem and he comes up with a solution, great. But a lot of the time I'm just venting, blowing off steam to make myself feel better or to sort through my thoughts by talking them out. And he offers some "solutions" that wouldn't really fix anything, and then when I tell him "I don't think there's anything I can do about this right now," he seems to lose interest in the conversation. Because there isn't anything for him to fix.

I think it's more a guy thing than an Asperger's thing. A guy with Asperger's might be a double whammy.
 
I'm an aspie and my boyfriend is NT, and he's always trying to fix things, too. If I have a real-world problem and he comes up with a solution, great. But a lot of the time I'm just venting, blowing off steam to make myself feel better or to sort through my thoughts by talking them out. And he offers some "solutions" that wouldn't really fix anything, and then when I tell him "I don't think there's anything I can do about this right now," he seems to lose interest in the conversation. Because there isn't anything for him to fix.

I think it's more a guy thing than an Asperger's thing. A guy with Asperger's might be a double whammy.
Ha...!! Yes!! Good point.... sometimes i think I focus on the Aspie angle rather than the male thing...!!!
 
I think that you should try to tell him upfront what you are expecting, just make sure not to sound like you're correcting his behavior. He might also need practical keys rather than just the theoretical expression of a desire.

Now, be prepared to the fact that this can go one of several ways:
- He might be willing to give you what you expect and succeed at it,
- He might be willing, yet unable no matter how hard he tries (which could cause him a lot of stress and pressure from the perceived failure, or even just from the constant trying),
- He might not be particularly interested in trying if it makes no sense to him.

Asking any change of him would logically call for some changes in you, too, such as accepting that he may not be the one you go to if you're looking for particular reactions.
Think of it as someone who has an illness, is having a terrible time mentally coping with it, and needs surgery: they need to go to the psychologist to talk about whatever is going on in their head, and the surgeon to remove the physical cause of their illness, but it would be a terrible idea to ask for emotional support from the surgeon, or to hand a scalpel to the psychologist.

Speaking from experience: I have been made aware time and time again of my perceived coldness when problems are discussed with me. I understand the way I respond isn't what's expected from me, but all I am able to give is a practical solution (and usually a pretty good one). I will feel concern. I will feel some form of sympathy and/or empathy. But I'm not wired for comforting words, and even after trying for over 10 years, there still no sign of improvement. It has made me feel miserable and guilty, until I realized that I'm offering support in my own way.
I see what you mean, he *does* tend to be very practical and a sorter.... yes but in that practical doing sense, as opposed to the just being there and listening....
 
I don't know if it is an Aspie thing or not, but, that has always been my way of showing love in my mind to others. A chance to jump in and find a solution or fix a problem is like a forte. Grab the bull by the horns.
Maybe that doesn't equate to display of love.
So it might be an Aspie trait as it seems we show love differently to what most NTs expect?

Gifting has always been another biggie for me.
If I give someone even a small token gift, to me, that is a show of love. Just ways that come easier than words or actions I guess.
Like Pebble and the Penquin. :confused:
 
Speaking for my self- I have a problem solving brain and trained as a designer.

However it seems to work by constantly trying out every conceivable possibility. This takes an immense amount of processing power doing so.

When I have a heart to heart with the SO (Significant Other) It starts trying to work out all the possibilities of what is going on. So she tells me that her boss is be a Jack Ass. Brain kicks off trying to work out why the boss is being Jack Ass.

Meanwhile SO is moving on to feelings and fall out of bosses' Jack Ass-ery and pouring out what a terrible day it was. Brain is now multitasking all these other problems and possibilities. With an overload of information the brain starts to slow down and outward responses get shut down. So trying to process what maybe an emotional equivalent of an info-dump just gets too much. So more automatic scripts kick in (including the one that it is probably best to make affirmative sounds and not provide solutions at this point).

Some aspies are trained in social stories Social stories and comic strips - NAS and using things like emoticon charts so they can indicate emotional states. These are visual queues that can either give warning of an invisible inner emotional state or visually work through what is going on using stickmen cartoons- (sometimes they are done in reverse starting with I feeling very sad right now. I had a bad day. It started with my boss being a Jack Ass and that upset me). Sometimes it is easier to process these things visually rather than verbally/ through body language.

In my case there is inner feelings but it is hard to express sympathy in the right way or quickly enough to give suitable feed back to the SO.
 
ok, so I don't want to make this sound odd or like an NT 'not getting' her Aspie partner.....
but sometimes... not always but sometimes my relationship with my Aspie partner seems a bit business like.... like he tries to 'help' sort my problems, rather than listen and be there, listening and being a shoulder to rely on, I don't always want him to fix or sort a situation... sometimes I just need him to be supportive and be supportive of the decision I come to...
So my question is.. do you try to 'fix' any problems that your partner has ... or can you say, honestly that you try to support/ help them....?

A book that was about the differences between men and women was a national bestseller not so long ago. One of those differences was our way of dealing with problems and the difficulties this difference causes between men and women. The book was not about Aspie men and NT women. It was about people, and aimed more at NTs. I believe the title was something about Men being from Mars and women being from Venus.

It seems to be implying that men and women are so different that we are aliens to each other. This means, that unless you have a same-sex marriage, you will have to work to understand each other and learn to get along.

The problems between an Aspie/NT couple are probably going to take more effort and patience on both sides to work out, than for two NTs. I think it is usually a good idea to do what it takes to grow in understanding of each other, NT or not.
 
A book that was about the differences between men and women was a national bestseller not so long ago. One of those differences was our way of dealing with problems and the difficulties this difference causes between men and women. The book was not about Aspie men and NT women. It was about people, and aimed more at NTs. I believe the title was something about Men being from Mars and women being from Venus.

It seems to be implying that men and women are so different that we are aliens to each other. This means, that unless you have a same-sex marriage, you will have to work to understand each other and learn to get along.

The problems between an Aspie/NT couple are probably going to take more effort and patience on both sides to work out, than for two NTs. I think it is usually a good idea to do what it takes to grow in understanding of each other, NT or not.

My book about the people i meet :

I am from mars youre an anus.
 
Speaking for my self- I have a problem solving brain and trained as a designer.

However it seems to work by constantly trying out every conceivable possibility. This takes an immense amount of processing power doing so.

When I have a heart to heart with the SO (Significant Other) It starts trying to work out all the possibilities of what is going on. So she tells me that her boss is be a Jack Ass. Brain kicks off trying to work out why the boss is being Jack Ass.

Meanwhile SO is moving on to feelings and fall out of bosses' Jack Ass-ery and pouring out what a terrible day it was. Brain is now multitasking all these other problems and possibilities. With an overload of information the brain starts to slow down and outward responses get shut down. So trying to process what maybe an emotional equivalent of an info-dump just gets too much. So more automatic scripts kick in (including the one that it is probably best to make affirmative sounds and not provide solutions at this point).

Some aspies are trained in social stories Social stories and comic strips - NAS and using things like emoticon charts so they can indicate emotional states. These are visual queues that can either give warning of an invisible inner emotional state or visually work through what is going on using stickmen cartoons- (sometimes they are done in reverse starting with I feeling very sad right now. I had a bad day. It started with my boss being a Jack Ass and that upset me). Sometimes it is easier to process these things visually rather than verbally/ through body language.

In my case there is inner feelings but it is hard to express sympathy in the right way or quickly enough to give suitable feed back to the SO.
That's very interesting... I've often had to remind my other that we are 'still' discussing the topic..... when he appears to have mentally wandered off.....
This leads to frustration and the thought that I'm not being listened to...
Tonight, himself has decided to go on a trip with his brother- to India - during my next court appointment.....!! Total oblivion....!!! It's hard not to feel a bit irrelevant....,
 
A problem may be, that if he's just listening and nodding, trying to jump in with supportive comments here and there, he may get confused when to speak and what to say. I get disconnected when my gf is telling me a longish story or having a rant.. then I go in my head, and start self talking, then end up not listening. And I'm trying to listen.. but if I can't get out the responses I wish to say in time cause I miss-time things I get anxiety fast. You've lost me completely by then.

However, ultra focus/fixing keeps me in 'the room' so to speak.
 
A problem may be, that if he's just listening and nodding, trying to jump in with supportive comments here and there, he may get confused when to speak and what to say. I get disconnected when my gf is telling me a longish story or having a rant.. then I go in my head, and start self talking, then end up not listening. And I'm trying to listen.. but if I can't get out the responses I wish to say in time cause I miss-time things I get anxiety fast. You've lost me completely by then.

However, ultra focus/fixing keeps me in 'the room' so to speak.
A problem may be, that if he's just listening and nodding, trying to jump in with supportive comments here and there, he may get confused when to speak and what to say. I get disconnected when my gf is telling me a longish story or having a rant.. then I go in my head, and start self talking, then end up not listening. And I'm trying to listen.. but if I can't get out the responses I wish to say in time cause I miss-time things I get anxiety fast. You've lost me completely by then.

However, ultra focus/fixing keeps me in 'the room' so to speak.
Ok... so share how to get to the ultra focusing/fixing bit.... what words phrases are used to keep you 'on task' with that conversation...?
 

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