Are you trying to be funny with this title here? Because that is a rather clever pun, I think.
"Calling all brains" - often the smartest people you know, are Aspies. I once worked in a university department - it was bedlam, with all the unstable geniuses everywhere, each raving on about his/her own special field (although it is interesting to note - the women in the department did seem mostly saner. There were a few sane-seeming men, too, among the usual obsessive geniuses).
Or are you wanting brains to answer your question? As I said, a good one indeed.
What defines Asperger's Syndrome? Have a browse online for anything written by Tony Attwood on the subject. Although he's an Aussie, he's definitely made his mark on the world stage in this area.
For us, we were told that Asperger's is a form of high-functioning autism, but one in which there is no history of language delay. This is why difficult child 1, who talked and communicated at the usual milestones but scores as "mild-moderate" on the Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) questionnaire, is labelled as Aspie, but difficult child 3, who had significant language delay and scored moderate for Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD), is not Asperger's but fully autistic. (which is a bit inaccurate - Asperger's is also 'fully autistic' too).
For an informal peek at the Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) questionnaire, go to http://www.childbrain.com. You can do the online test there on behalf of your children but you can't use it as a diagnostic tool, only as a thought-provoking stimulus for you. Print it out and take it to a specialist, let them think about it on a more professional level.
Looking at what you've indicated about your son, I notice he's been labelled ADHD since he was 5. You sound like you feel it's not the whole picture - I felt the same way about difficult child 1. I kept asking, "Why is he so withdrawn when people are looking at him? Why is he so odd, socially? Why does he curl up in a ball on the floor, for hours, rather than have people sing Happy Birthday to him?"
It took until difficult child 3 was diagnosed, and someone finally joined the dots for his older brother (15, by this time) that we got the more appropriate label. And ironically, now he is 23 even his girlfriend insists there's nothing wrong with him. But there is, we can see it. It's just that he's 'morphed' his Asperger's into a fun-loving, energetic, enthusiastic (on his pet topic) and highly intellectual young man. Immature in many ways, but a lot of common sense is creeping in. That, plus the innate rule-following that goes hand in hand with this condition (their rules, though) means that I have a young man to be proud of.
When he's stressed he doesn't cope well. Increasingly, it takes more stress for him to fall apart so he's needing my help less and less. When he needs help he's like a needy five year old. When he's coping, he's a tower of strength.
And his father, we now realise, is much the same, but he had to adapt and cope without medical intervention or support.
Support can make a big difference. You also need to really understand what is making them tick. But once you've got a system working, you will be amazed at the incredible brain power you've helped them unleash.
Marg
