<p>David, they standards for diagnosis of Autism & Aspergers are being rewritten for the DSM V, and at this point it looks like they will do away with the “Aspergers” category and instead go for a diagnostic criteria based on severity of symptoms. </p>
<p>That is because just about everything you might read on a list of Asperger’s traits could also be a normal personality trait – the question isn’t whether a person has qualities A, B, and C, it is how persistent and severe those qualities are and whether they impact the person’s ability to function.</p>
<p>See: [Proposed</a> Revision | APA DSM-5](<a href=“http://www.dsm5.org/ProposedRevisions/Pages/proposedrevision.aspx?rid=94]Proposed”>http://www.dsm5.org/ProposedRevisions/Pages/proposedrevision.aspx?rid=94)</p>
<p>Notice part D of the new criteria: " Symptoms together limit and impair everyday functioning."</p>
<p>Also notice the chart for “severity”.</p>
<p>The point isn’t really what label can be attached to your personality traits, it is: do you need help? If you do feel you need help, then as a young adult the best route would be through some sort of counseling, to work on the areas where you feel you need help. </p>
<p>I think that the motivation behind the new DSM V criteria is partly because there has been a trend toward too much labeling, and it really doesn’t help anyone when normal variations in personality are pathologized. That is, it doesn’t help a person who is a little bit quirky to be seen as having some sort of “disorder” - and it doesn’t help the people who really do need a support when the severity of their condition is trivialized when they are lumped together under the same label as individuals who function well without support.</p>