I'm not sure whether this is an "Aspie" thing, an ADHD thing, or a bit of both, but it's happening more and more frequently.
I'm a writer, and have a "better than average" vocabulary, and I'm obsessed with word games. I understand the obsession to the words is part of an Aspie thing, which makes wonderful sense to me, because sometimes I think I'm more obsessed with writing the letters neatly in their little boxes, than I am to actually solving the puzzles, because many of the puzzles are very easy for me. (I do Hard-level puzzles, with erasable ink or white out, when needed).
However, for as long as I can remember, I often "misread" a clue word to the point of completely misunderstanding. It doesn't happen just in puzzles; I notice when I'm reading a post on Facebook, or reading e-mail, or a news story online, I often have to read it more than once, because I am misreading a word, which is changing the context of what I am reading.
For instance, the earliest occurence I can remember (when I was very young) was misreading "Martial Arts" for "Marital Arts," (which obviously have different meanings). However, not only am I sure to make sure the word is "Martial," I constantly remind myself (when coming across the same thing), that I made that mistake, and how I need to be conscious about it.
Another instance, is someone posted a picture stating, basically, Don't Leave Your Dog in a Hot Car, but every time I read it, I see, "Don't Leave Hotdogs in the Car." Again, because I know of my 'mistake' once, everytime I see it, I have to read it slowly and see if I can get it right the first time, and often I can't.
I am not suggesting I don't know the meaning of the words, I mean that even if I look at it 10 times, it won't be until the 11th time that I realize my mistake. Many times, the error is so great, I almost 'scold' myself for not picking up on the error, and other times, it's so minute, that anyone could misunderstand, but I am particularly hard on myself.
I know it adds to my anxiety, which I deal with pretty effectively lately, but I'm wondering if anyone else goes through this, or if this is just something unique to me. Other than ADHD, I've never had any learning disabilities diagnosed (ADHD was diagnosed a few years ago, but has apparently been present for a lifetime).
It never happened at work, when I was a proofreader, writer, copy editor, textbook editor, but it has always happened with puzzles.
I'm a writer, and have a "better than average" vocabulary, and I'm obsessed with word games. I understand the obsession to the words is part of an Aspie thing, which makes wonderful sense to me, because sometimes I think I'm more obsessed with writing the letters neatly in their little boxes, than I am to actually solving the puzzles, because many of the puzzles are very easy for me. (I do Hard-level puzzles, with erasable ink or white out, when needed).
However, for as long as I can remember, I often "misread" a clue word to the point of completely misunderstanding. It doesn't happen just in puzzles; I notice when I'm reading a post on Facebook, or reading e-mail, or a news story online, I often have to read it more than once, because I am misreading a word, which is changing the context of what I am reading.
For instance, the earliest occurence I can remember (when I was very young) was misreading "Martial Arts" for "Marital Arts," (which obviously have different meanings). However, not only am I sure to make sure the word is "Martial," I constantly remind myself (when coming across the same thing), that I made that mistake, and how I need to be conscious about it.
Another instance, is someone posted a picture stating, basically, Don't Leave Your Dog in a Hot Car, but every time I read it, I see, "Don't Leave Hotdogs in the Car." Again, because I know of my 'mistake' once, everytime I see it, I have to read it slowly and see if I can get it right the first time, and often I can't.
I am not suggesting I don't know the meaning of the words, I mean that even if I look at it 10 times, it won't be until the 11th time that I realize my mistake. Many times, the error is so great, I almost 'scold' myself for not picking up on the error, and other times, it's so minute, that anyone could misunderstand, but I am particularly hard on myself.
I know it adds to my anxiety, which I deal with pretty effectively lately, but I'm wondering if anyone else goes through this, or if this is just something unique to me. Other than ADHD, I've never had any learning disabilities diagnosed (ADHD was diagnosed a few years ago, but has apparently been present for a lifetime).
It never happened at work, when I was a proofreader, writer, copy editor, textbook editor, but it has always happened with puzzles.
