Asperger's syndrome in adults: table of diagnostic criteria

When it comes to autism, the imagination of the common man draws a portrait of a beautiful, silent boy, looking in one direction and making the same type of rhythmic movements. But in fact, both children and adults can suffer from autism, regardless of gender. In addition, autism has a large number of forms, so in modern psychiatry this pathology is called autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

The mildest and most common form of ASD is Asperger's syndrome. This disorder is congenital and its first signs can be detected at an early age. Despite the fact that a large number of people suffer from this syndrome, it is rarely diagnosed, especially in our country. The fact is that in Russia this diagnosis is usually given only to children. Until now, many psychiatrists are of the opinion that by the age of 18, mild forms of autism should either disappear or develop into more severe pathologies. This statement has long been refuted, because Asperger syndrome is a congenital pathology that cannot be treated. However, in adult patients this diagnosis is changed to classic autism (Kanner syndrome) or a similar disorder, such as schizoid.

As for children, their parents rarely bring them to see specialists because they do not see the problem. Such children have a fairly high intelligence, and their isolation and reluctance to communicate with peers is often explained by their character traits. This is why in our country a large number of people are left alone with their problem.

Description of the pathology

Mental disorders occur differently in different people. However, people with Asperger's syndrome share a number of common characteristics. This concerns interaction with society, behavior, thinking with a special cognitive style, perception of the world, the functioning of the senses, etc. How pronounced the symptoms will be depends on the individual characteristics of the person. But neither age, nor gender, nor belonging to a particular race has an impact on the process of pathology formation.

So, a person with Asperger's syndrome can be recognized by the following signs:

1. Difficulties in building a system of interaction with society. People with this form of ASD show varying degrees of interest in social interaction. The vast majority strive to reduce contact with society to a minimum. To some extent, this can be explained by society’s misunderstanding and rejection of people with similar problems. Negative life experiences and the need to make enormous efforts to maintain relationships lead to the fact that people with this disorder often lead a secluded lifestyle. Although among them there are those who want to interact with other people, despite difficulties and failures. The syndrome leads to the fact that a person is unable to understand allegorical speech, jokes, and ambiguous statements. He does not understand sign language, he does not perceive differences in the tone of voice, and cannot distinguish emotions from facial expressions. The experiences of other people and their feelings are inaccessible to a person with this type of ASD. He builds interactions with others on his own terms, and nothing more. Rejection of these rules leads to complete detachment and refusal to interact with society.
2. Narrow interests, fixation on one type of activity. Autism spectrum disorders are characterized by the need to have a clear routine, work schedule, detailed plan and specific instructions. In order to somehow organize the surrounding space, people with Asperger's syndrome become deeply immersed in certain activities. As a result, they receive peace and satisfaction, and also get rid of background anxiety. If interests have applied value, then they can subsequently become part of professional activity. The duration of fixation on one type of activity can be different, it ranges from several days to years.
3. Features of speech development. Many diagnostic methods contain instructions that the syndrome should be excluded if the patient does not have clinically significant delays in speech development. However, with this syndrome there are still some speech features. Such people use it only as a tool for exchanging information, and not for building relationships with others. That is, the conversation has no emotional overtones, there is no humor in the speech, etc. A person with pathology will interpret the words of his interlocutor in a literal sense, so the general meaning of the statement may be distorted or not understood at all. Figurative speech and metaphors are perceived only when reading works of fiction, but in conversation this will cause great difficulties.
4. Sensory perception. People with ASD process incoming and outgoing sensory information differently than others. Asperger syndrome involves either low or high sensitivity in one or more senses. For example, when talking with several interlocutors, so-called audio confusion may occur. A person may also be unable to distinguish certain patterns, smells, textures, and textures of food.
5. Motor function disorder. The syndrome is often accompanied by some clumsiness. The individual may have difficulty fastening buttons, going up and down stairs, spatial orientation, etc. But this symptom is not the main one when making a diagnosis, since not all patients have problems with movement.
6. Thinking. Such people are distinguished by a special type of cognitive activity. In the specialized literature they often write that such people have a special cognitive style of thinking. Attention is usually focused not on the main thing, but on details or unimportant stimuli. More preference is given to abstract things rather than precise technical information.

A person with a combination of all these signs experiences great difficulties when communicating with people around him. But the presence of this pathology is not a death sentence. Life with Asperger syndrome can be quite normal; such people can successfully lead social activities, work, and have families. Experienced psychotherapists provide assistance in socialization.

There are psychotherapy methods that can improve the quality of life of people with autism spectrum disorders. But this is only possible by contacting specialists and making an appropriate diagnosis.

Examples of autism tests for adults

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The tests are used only during the initial screening of an adult patient to determine the need for further evaluation. The most popular and most frequently used diagnostics will be discussed below.

AspieQuiz

The technique consists of 150 questions that affect personal, professional and social areas of life. Examples of questions are: is it difficult for a person to be around strangers, do you have problems with asexuality, how passionate are you about your business, and so on. After answering all the questions, testing will assess your intellectual, social characteristics and ability to accept incoming information.

RAADS-R testing

This testing can only be completed in a specialist’s office, since the online tests offered cannot give an accurate result. The peculiarity of this test is that it absolutely does not give false positive results, since during the examination behavioral characteristics are taken into account not only at the present moment, but also up to 16 years of age. In psychology, this age is critical and marks a kind of transition from puberty to adulthood.

TAS20

This test is designed to test the sick person’s ability to perceive the emotions of the interlocutor. According to previous studies, only 20% of people with autism can understand another speaker. Moreover, this recognition may be somewhat inhibited. The test consists of three scales: how well a person recognizes the emotions shown to him, how well he can describe them, as well as features of externally oriented thinking.

Which test to take for a particular patient is determined by the attending physician. You are only allowed to take the ASPIE on your own on the Internet, but with its results it is still better to contact a psychologist or psychotherapist.

Diagnostic criteria

The symptoms described above are common to most autism spectrum disorders. Various techniques used by specialists around the world help diagnose Asperger syndrome. The main criteria are presented in the table:

Diagnosing Asperger's syndrome is quite difficult; for this, a psychiatrist or psychotherapist must have certain experience and knowledge.

To make a diagnosis, it is necessary to carefully study the patient’s life history, analyze his behavior, and conduct a conversation with relatives and loved ones. The vast majority of symptoms fit the description of the character traits of an introvert, so experts use special medical tests to identify or exclude neurological disorders.

Treatment

Complete elimination of symptoms is impossible; manifestations persist throughout life. The goal of therapy is to correct the emotional background, reduce the level of anxiety, increase social competence, and successfully adapt to society. According to indications, patients are prescribed antidepressants, sedatives and anti-anxiety drugs, and other drugs. The most important role is played by psychotherapy with the participation of a specialist who is well acquainted with the specifics of the work. When choosing a technique and conducting psychotherapeutic correction of autism in adult women, the following aspects are taken into account:

• Difficulties in communication . Clients are accustomed to hiding their discomfort and high levels of stress. In this regard, the psychologist may have difficulties interpreting non-verbal signals, which entails an incorrect assessment of the client’s experiences. Patients, in turn, find it difficult to recognize the therapist’s communication signals, which complicates the formation of a psychotherapeutic alliance.
• Problems expressing feelings . Outwardly, women with autism often appear unemotional, but in fact, they are characterized by intense, deep emotions that are difficult to express outwardly. Many people either suffer from alexithymia or deliberately suppress their feelings because they are afraid of losing their temper. Therefore, the psychologist’s call for open expression of negative emotions may cause confusion or resistance.
• Wrong interpretation . Specialists in some areas are aimed at looking for the sources of problems in the client’s traumatic past. Meanwhile, the basis of an autistic person’s difficulties is often not childhood trauma, but the peculiarities of brain functioning. At the same time, this does not at all exclude the influence of a traumatic component, for example, bullying during school years, so leaving this topic without attention also seems to be the wrong tactic.

Along with the above, the work takes into account difficulties in completing homework, the need to focus on practical strategies, the effectiveness of the educational component and the use of visual materials (diagrams, tables, computer modeling). With sufficient training of a specialist, psychotherapy provides good results, helps restore mental balance, improve relationships with oneself and others, and increase the level of adaptation.

To schedule a consultation, just call 8(969)060-93-93.

Asperger's syndrome in women

Statistics show that Asperger's syndrome and other autism spectrum disorders are more common in boys. However, girls can also have autism or one of its variants.

Relatively recently, a study was conducted in Scotland (Rutherford et al, 2016), the results of which were very interesting. It turns out that among young children with Asperger's syndrome the ratio of boys to girls is 5.5:1, for teenagers the ratio is 2.3:1, and for adults it is 1.8:1. Based on this, we can conclude that this pathology does not occur less frequently in women, it is simply diagnosed later. While boys are brought to doctors by their parents, girls turn to specialists on their own when they become adults.

This state of affairs is partly due to the fact that some symptoms in girls occur differently than in boys. Parents should be wary of their daughter's behavior:

• subtle behavioral problems. They are not, according to parents and teachers, something destructive. Therefore, they are often not taken into account. Well, is it really worth taking a girl to a psychiatrist if she doesn’t want to communicate with her classmates? But if a child is too withdrawn and shy, and is constantly alone, then you should think about it and take a closer look at him;
• selective mutism. This symptom means that the girl cannot speak in some situations, and she cannot choose when exactly she can speak and when not. That is, this week she will be able to answer in school, but next week she will not. It is impossible to predict the incidence of mutism;
• communicates mainly with boys. Such girls are usually called “tomboys”. Girls with ASD do not share their peers’ passion for fashionable clothes and hairstyles; they simply do not understand why this is necessary. The moment of puberty can come as a shock for them; they are completely devoid of sexuality and do not experience sexual desire. Young women on the autism spectrum may want to have children, but they find adoption more acceptable than having their own due to their reluctance to be intimate with a man;
• being in a fantasy world. Children tend to immerse themselves in made-up stories and become captivated by fairy-tale characters. As you grow older, such passion recedes, and more real things come to the fore. However, girls with Asperger's syndrome continue to live in fantasy worlds. Psychotherapists explain this by saying that in reality people with ASD feel out of place, but in a fictional world they are loved for who they are.

Asperger syndrome cannot be cured, but identifying it and understanding the characteristics of a person with this pathology allows you to build normal relationships in the family. This applies to both parents with children and spouses. Quite often, women with ASD refuse intimate intimacy, although they sincerely love their spouse. Impaired sensory perception leads to the fact that touching the body (especially in sensitive areas) is perceived as unpleasant or painful. The desire to live according to a routine can turn intimacy into a clearly planned ritual, which a neurotypical partner will quickly get bored with. Understanding what Asperger's syndrome is will help save the family.

Girls with this pathology feel unhappy; they often want to have a loved one and a family, but it is extremely difficult for them to build relationships with the opposite sex. In addition to problems associated with ASD, girls and young women experience depression, gender dysphoria, anorexia nervosa and anxiety disorders due to emotional distress. All this, as well as the desire to understand themselves and the causes of their problems, brings them to the psychotherapist’s office. And only after receiving information about Asperger's syndrome do they accept themselves and learn to live with their innate “peculiarities.” There is no need to fear that you will be misunderstood or forever labeled as “abnormal.” Awareness of the problem is the first step towards improving your own life.

Why does it occur

When talking about whether there is a mild form of autism, one cannot help but dwell on the factors leading to its occurrence. Among them are disturbances in the activity of the human genetic apparatus that arose during the period of intrauterine development due to:

• influence of ionizing radiation;
• infection of amniotic fluid with viral or bacterial agents;
• close contact of the expectant mother with dangerous chemical compounds;
• Mom’s chronic neurological diseases, due to which she took psychotropics for a long time.

The hereditary factor cannot be written off either. It has been noticed that if one of the child’s close relatives is diagnosed with autism, the risk of the child developing the disease increases significantly.

Establishing diagnosis

If you suspect the development of a disorder, you need to make an appointment with an experienced psychotherapist as soon as possible. The doctor will conduct a diagnosis that will confirm or refute the preliminary diagnosis. During the examination, the following techniques and methods are usually used:

• conversation;
• behavioral skills assessment;
• studying the characteristics of movements;
• Ultrasound of the brain;
• electroencephalography.

If the disease is confirmed, it is important not to despair and not give up. Doctors know how to make the lives of autistic people fulfilling. Call - 8(969)060-93-93.

How the disease develops

Scientists have been able to establish that gene or mutational disorders underlying mental disorders create conditions for damage to certain areas of the central nervous system . Because of this, the connections between neurons necessary for full social integration are disrupted. At the same time, negative adjustments occur in the functioning of the mirror cells of the brain.

These processes create conditions for the development and progression of the disease. A person begins to repeat the same type of actions and phrases many times. Over time, painful symptoms become more diverse.

How does the disease manifest itself?

Mild autism in children and adults manifests itself as follows:

• when in contact with others, the patient never looks them in the eye;
• An autistic person is not interested in communicating with other people; he tries to spend all his time alone;
• the patient does not accept tactile contact, does not tolerate when someone touches him;
• autistic person cannot tolerate loud sounds and noises;
• if there is an opportunity to remain silent, the patient will do so - he does not like to talk to anyone;
• In childhood, he often throws tantrums.

A patient with mild autism has difficulty adapting socially. Because of this, it is difficult for him to study at school, college, work in a workforce, and make acquaintances. The life of an autistic person is monotonous and boring, but he cannot do otherwise.