Aspergers Test
Our Aspergers Test is designed as a fast guide to identify whether you or a loved one are likely to be affected by Aspergers. Whereas this is not a formal medical diagnosis, the Aspergers Test will give you a 'reasonable indication' of the likelihood and severity of Aspergers.
It is important to remember that even 'formal diagnosis' is not the same thing as 'effective treatment'. The first is merely a label, whereas the latter consists of support, help, management and on-going improvement in terms of ability and quality of life. Getting 'hung up' on diagnosis and making the assumption that once the box is ticked, state help will automatically follow can often lead to disappointment. Unfortunately, as is the case for many mental health spectrum issues, dealing with Aspergers is often down to the sufferer and their family getting the right help from a private sector specialist.
Take The Aspergers Test
The Aspergers Test consists of a set of statements, to which you will either 'agree' or 'disagree'. Keep a written note of the number of statements you agree with and add them together to form a total at the end of the test. This total will be used to assess the likelihood and severity of Aspergers.
- I am comfortable to be on my own, doing the things I like.
- I like doing certain things over and over.
- When I'm focused on doing something - other things don't matter.
- I find certain things particularly interesting or stimulating.
- I find knowing specific facts about certain things to be rewarding.
- Learning and gathering information about my particular interest seems far more rewarding than socialising with other people.
- I notice links and patterns in things I find interesting.
- I tend to visualise well in my minds eye.
- I find it easy to remember things that are important to me.
- I don't like being interrupted or disturbed when I'm doing something important.
- I like to do things my way and don't like to change.
- I find transitioning from one thing to another can be stressful.
- I tend to notice things like sounds or smells that other people don't.
- Sometimes I find things like sounds, smells or textures to be overwhelming - which make me feel bad.
- The voice in my head talks non-stop, all the time.
- The thoughts in my head often worry me and make me feel anxious.
- I like routines because they help me feel safe.
- New experiences tend to make me feel anxious.
- I have at least one physical ritual I use (for example - rocking, tapping a foot, waving a hand, shaking my head, etc) when I feel under pressure or try to express myself.
- I'm not very physically co-ordinated and struggle to take part in group sports or perform very delicate tasks.
- I find the idea of spontaneity to be disturbing and prefer things to be planned in advance.
- The more I can plan something, the more confident I feel.
- I don't really see the point in small talk or chatting about things that don't matter.
- People say the language I use tends to be more sophisticated than most, although I rarely notice it.
- I find it easy to talk about myself and my interests - but difficult to talk about other peoples interests.
- I often dominate a conversation when talking about my interests and fail to notice the other persons response.
- I find it hard to understand what other people are thinking or feeling.
- I find it hard to initiate conversations, particularly with people I don't know.
- I struggle to maintain a conversation if it is outside of my special interests.
- I struggle with grasping the concept of give and take in social situations as the rules are so complex.
- I tend not to know when to speak and when to be quiet.
- I find maintaining eye contact to be stressful.
- I struggle to read body language, facial expressions and tonality during social interactions.
- I tend to take what people say literally - even when they are joking.
- I am wary about what I say to some people as their reactions seem to make no sense.
- I find it difficult to make new friends.
- I feel awkward when I find a member of the opposite sex attractive but don't know what to say.
- Social occasions often make me feel anxious.
- Most people simply don't understand me - yet they are the ones that seem to make little sense.
- In social situations I tend to stay as anonymous as possible... unless the topic of conversation shifts to something I find interesting at which time I become motivated to talk.
- I share little in common with most people in terms of what they find interesting (for example - celebrity gossip, TV soaps and dramas, pop music, etc). It's all so dreary.
- Although I am intellectually bright - I still find certain things very complex which an average neuro-typical would simply take for granted.
- I spend a lot of my life feeling anxious and get depressed from time to time.
- Although I'm good at working with specific details, when it comes to 'big stuff' like prioritising and organising my day I tend to find it difficult.
- When I get frustrated I find it difficult to calm down.
- If I had a way to control how I felt emotionally, my life would be easier.
- Overcoming underlying anxiety would make my life far more pleasurable.
- Learning the rules for interacting with neuro-typicals would make social situations much better for me.
- Understanding how to apply my intellect would help me achieve what I want from life.
- Although apprehensive about change, I am prepared to learn how to help myself improve my quality of life.
Add up the number of statements you agree with and use the next section to assess how you may be affected by Aspergers. We will also include some advice on what to do next.
Aspergers Test Scoring
If you scored below 20 you are almost certainly in the neuro-typical range. The closer to 20 you scored the more likely it is that you prefer control and order in your life.
If you scored between 20 and 32, you could well fall within the mild range of Aspergers. Although you probably adapt reasonably well to neuro-typicals and society in general, you could benefit from specialised help to 'fine tune' the way yo go about things in order to maximise your quality of life.
If you scored between 33 and 42, you are almost certainly a full blown Aspergers sufferer. You will no doubt be struggling with social interactions., anxiety, emotional flare-ups, rigid thoughts and control issues. If you continue to maintain your intuitive ways, you will reap more of the same results. However, with our specialised help you will be able to create positive lasting change, both in terms of how you feel and also an ongoing improvement to your quality of life.
If you scored 43 to 50, you fall into what we would consider to be the 'severe range' of Aspergers. It's probably not the place that you wanted to find yourself, but the truth is that you stand to gain the most by getting specialised help. We understand that life can be both confusing and tough, however this is only because your intuitive way of dealing with things makes it so. When you learn 'better ways' to perceive, understand and act on things - you'll find that the pressure and anxiety rapidly diminishes. Every Aspie we have ever worked with has plenty going for them, but it is only when they learn the tools and techniques that make their lives so much easier that they really begin to excel. Right now you are almost certainly disadvantaged because of Aspergers, yet with the right specialised help you can turn this around. Your intellect and your skill sets merely need to be applied in the right direction rather than you continuing to maintain the intuitive ways that make your life so difficult.
What To Do Now...
Aspergers Help For Aspies
If you are an Aspergers sufferer, the thought of speaking to us probably generates a certain amount of anxiety. Most people (Aspies and neuro-typicals) that contact us for the first time have some underlying fear or reservation about what may happen. The thing is that we're used to working with these sorts of problems and people just like you. It's no big deal.
However, as Aspies often pride themselves on their ability to see logic and reason, we'd like to to think about this: Yes, you may be feeling a little anxious about contacting us and that anxiety may be enough to convince you not to bother. However, if you do nothing you'll have the same response tomorrow and the day after that... in essence nothing will change and you'll continue to struggle. Is paying attention to that anxiety niggle really helping you over the long term or is this part of the intuitive Aspergers condition that keeps you precisely where you don't want to be?
If you want to continue to live your life around anxiety and difficulties, stop reading now and close this window. We can't help people that are not willing to help themselves.
If you do want to help yourself, to make your life easier, to feel better emotionally, to understand how to best respond to situations - pick up the phone and call us on 01782 855585, 11am to 9pm, seven days a week. We'll explain what we can do to help...
Aspergers Help For Parents / Carers
If you've arrived here you've probably already realised that the NHS don't provide a great deal of useful help for Aspergers sufferers or their parents/carers. Generally speaking, NHS Aspergers help consists of ongoing box-ticking assessments but no genuinely useful practical approaches designed to deliver measurable improvement. NHS priorities are to complete their paperwork, keep their funding coming in and keep their staff in work - not to fix their clients problems. In the private sector it doesn't work that way. We earn our wages by getting results for our clients - if we don't get results, we don't get paid. Simple.
We understand how frustrating it is to wait (potentially months) for NHS appointments only to find that it's just another assessment and there's no real help. It is important to understand that not all providers work that way. We have to get results for our clients and we have to do it efficiently and without bureaucracy. So, if you want genuine help for someone with Aspergers - we can provide just that.
If you haven't already read our page on Aspergers Treatment - it gives an overview on how we work. If you would prefer to speak to a Consultant and discuss things in detail, we would be happy to answer all your questions and concerns without any obligation. You can contact us on 01782 855585, 11am to 9pm, seven days a week.
