I think it is time for another Aspie lesson on RJsCorner. This one is a very basic question

Are Aspies Narcissists?

One Aspie characteristic that I have in spades is I take things much more personally than NTs. I should probably stop here and explain NT. Those with Aspergers are considered more “neurodiverse” than much of the general population. To signal that difference people without Aspergers are called “neurotypical” or NT.

A major misconception about Aspies that often cause them to be labeled narcissists is that they are by causal appearances thought to be low in emotions. But the truth is that they are INCREDIBLY sensitive and often just “freeze” instead of trying to deal with them. Overwhelming emotions can lead to being dramatically hurt and upset about things that NTs take in stride. I personally have had more meltdowns than I can remember over emotional issues. I know I am not dealing with them as others expect, I just don’t know how to do that.

What looks like a lack of empathy is actually a response to being overwhelmed with emotions.

To the outside world we might appear to be narcissists who totally lack empathy, but that is just not the case. I was exposed to an extreme narcissist mother for much of my life and her lack of caring for others was the thing that upset me the most about her. How could she live only in her own self? Of course, I saw the same thing for the last four years coming from the Oval Office. That is one of the primary reasons I will not use that person’s name here on RJsCorner.

While I am sharing my reaction to my Aspie traits, I have another basic problem that I want to share. One of my primary goals in recent years is to become a better storyteller. In some ways I have grown in that skill and in others I have utterly failed. I can’t write fiction but I can write narratives that are fictional in nature. That sounds a little confusing, so I will explain it further.

A fictional writer makes up a story with multiple characters playing out the storyline. To me, that is a “he said/she said” type thing. It requires a person to get into different characters with many traits. I think I am getting pretty good at writing narratives which are my thoughts about a situation or circumstance but to put those words in other people’s mouths seems impossible.

In closing, I read a recent article about Greta Thunberg who is the Aspie teenager who recently came into international fame in the climate change venue. She said that she considers her Aspergers a superpower. In some ways I do too. But I still must recognize that it sets me apart from so many others and that is a hard thing to cope with sometimes. 😉