Ever since our little ProScout adventure, I've been putting a lot of thought into the link between Aspergers and acting. Initially I was thinking only of Iraq's lack of social skills and worrying about how she shuts down completely when she becomes overstimulated. How would those factors affect her as she attempts to break into "the business."
Little known fact: I am an Aspie myself. Of course when I was growing up, my parents also had my brother, who was 2 years older than me, to deal with... and compared to him I looked like the sweetest thing ever born. Yes - he was a super-Aspie. One of those braniac nut cases who was repeatedly mislabeled growing up because back in the 70's very little was known about Aspergers at all. He may have also been somewhat oxygen deprived at birth which compounded his issues. Personally, I believe his primary issue was Aspergers.
Like most male Aspies, my brother had a very singular focus. And that focus was (drum roll please...) weapons and explosives. He knew everything there was to know about every kind of weapon and how to make things go "boom!" Unfortunately he became less stable in his teens, and less understood. Life was not kind to him. He was very misunderstood. If more had been known about Aspergers back then, there is NO doubt in my mind that my brother could have been one of the top scientists in the field of bomb-making, bomb-detection, bomb disarming and so-on. Instead, his perceived mental instability meant he was not allowed to posses any weapons or bomb-making components. His single, most important focus was taken from him, leaving him adrift and even less stable than ever. He was labeled as mentally ill... yet if he had been understood, his amazing talents and abilities could have been channeled and he could have been happy and successful.
My oldest uncle is an Aspie (whether he knows it or not) and like many Aspies of his day he developed a love of buses. He turned his (far less dangerous) focus into a career creating all the bus schedules for a little town sometimes called NYC. Yes - he knew off the top of his head every single bus on every single rout as well as what time each bus would be where... and sometimes in his free time he drove a rout just for fun!
And Bill Gates - another amazingly talented Aspie who was allowed to turn his focus into an empire. My brother could have been so much more. He passed away from an accidental overdose while I was pregnant with The Skink.
Of course I was never diagnosed with Aspergers either, but then, I am a girl Aspie. My singular interest was (and still is) horses. I lived, ate and breathed for the purpose of knowing all there was to know about horses.
Yeah... that was me at age 9 with Wishing. At the time she was a 12-year-old, 12.2 hand-high buckskin Welsh pony. I can still tell you the names of almost all the horses that were at that barn that year, and what stall they were in.
Because my focus was a bit more healthy than my brother's, I was perceived as "normal." Socially I was a moron, but I could escape to the barn and my world was OK again. I never had large groups of friends, but always had one or two really good friends (most of whom were horse-crazy like me). At school I was teased and bullied and my grades weren't that great with the exception of writing/English... but I never could spell well.
I tried going to a college without horses, but being thrown into an entirely new social situation while undergoing a separation from my biggest focus... not such a great idea! So I transferred to a college with a riding team and took a horse to school!
Bad picture - I know. To get a good picture of me actually riding, I took a picture of a video. Here's a better one - my senior yearbook picture.
Anywhooo - back to my point about acting. I theorize that acting comes very naturally to many Aspies - especially those of us that seem "normal." The more normal we seem, the better actors or actresses we are! Performing became my second greatest love, and I did tons of theater when I was in school.
I believe for the most part, girls with Aspergers want to fit in with their peers. Therefore acting becomes a survival technique. My family moved quite a bit while I was growing up, and interestingly, my accent changed depending on where we lived and who I was speaking to. In Philadelphia my neutral D.C. accent quickly took on the more New Jersey quality indicative of the area. If I spoke with someone with a British accent, it was all I could do to not slip into that accent. I became a social chameleon.
I still struggled socially. If I had experienced a situation before, I was better armed to deal with it, but in new situations, I had nothing to go on. Inevitably, my choice of reactions often seemed odd to others. I modeled myself after my peers as much as I could to try to fit in, but never understood why anyone would want to go over to another person's house to try on clothes or makeup or just hang-out. If a person couldn't talk horse, I really wasn't interested. Further, putting myself in unfamiliar surroundings for the purpose of socializing - an activity I was not comfortable with or good at - - the whole thing gave me a sour stomach.
Ironically, I loved going to parties or any situation where there would be dancing. Provided the music was loud enough, I wouldn't have to rely on talking. I love rhythm and I have always been good at dancing! Going to a party just to meet people and socialize... to this day it makes me nauseous.
Yes - I am a born actress. I have to be. I act "normal" on a daily basis, and the older I get, the better I get at it.
Iraq is a very different person than I am. heck, we are all individuals. Just because I am an Aspie does NOT mean I automatically know how to deal with her Aspergers. Her Aspergers presents itself very differently than mine did. Where I was happy focusing on horses and playing with my toy horses, she focuses on arranging everything in our household to suit her requirements. Nobody's "stuff" is safe. If she can access it, she will rearrange it or relocate it.
Iraq is also far more prone to melt-downs than I ever was. I had a tendency to internalize all my emotions which wasn't particularly healthy for me, but it kept the people around me more comfortable. Iraq is far more external with her emotions - at home at least. Generally she behaves quite well in school and in other situations where she is dealing primarily with people other than myself. Home and family is her safe place... and she uses her safe place to rid herself of heaps of pent-up emotions gathered throughout the day.
As far as developing a career in modeling and acting for Iraq... perhaps it will work. I'll be sure to tell everyone that she works far better without me in the room! We'll just have to see how it goes, but if we can help Iraq develop a healthy focus in something that she's good at, it may make life just a little easier... or not. Only time will tell.
As a side-note, be on the lookout for an upcoming giveaway! The more comments I get, the more giveaways I may be able to offer, so let me hear your thoughts!
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