Hello, Aspie World!

[Len Huppe]

Hi everyone - My name is Lenny and I am a newly self-diagnosed Aspie. My hopes are to meet others like myself and to chat about life, the universe and everything. The values that I live by are honesty, sincerity, loyalty, fairness, acceptance and inclusion. I like spending time with loved ones, listening to music, going for walks, reading, pets and wild animals. Lastly, I am most definitely a computer geek and net nerd.

 

[Rasputin]

Hi everyone - My name is Lenny and I am a newly self-diagnosed Aspie. My hopes are to meet others like myself and to chat about life, the universe and everything. The values that I live by are honesty, sincerity, loyalty, fairness, acceptance and inclusion. I like spending time with loved ones, listening to music, going for walks, reading, pets and wild animals. Lastly, I am most definitely a computer geek and net nerd.

Hello Lenny,

It sounds like you are in the right place. I was diagnosed in January, and have found the forums to be both friendly and informative. Welcome aboard!

 

[tree]

 

[Len Huppe]

Hello Lenny,

It sounds like you are in the right place. I was diagnosed in January, and have found the forums to be both friendly and informative. Welcome aboard!

Thank you for the reply. It took me a while to locate this web site and I like what I see so far. Time for me to dive in!

 

[Mia]

Welcome to the site Len (•◡•) /

 

[Aspychata]

Welcome to the hub.

 

[menander]

HI and welcome. It sounds like your autism has not interfered with a good life. That is good to hear! I hope you have a lovely time getting to know us.

 

[Len Huppe]

Thank you all for being so warm and welcoming to this stranger. I came here in hopes of making meaningful connections with others. I feel relieved to know that there are people out there willing to reach out to me in my time of need. While I am relieved to know what it is that I am up against, it does not ease the pain of loneliness. You have made me feel better today and I am grateful.

 

[Tom]

What kind of pets do you have?

 

[Len Huppe]

What kind of pets do you have?

I had a cat named Zoe but she got really sick and I was forced to put her down. I miss her. With money being super tight I don't know if I should get another pet. I want a dog but I don't know if its a good idea. Truth be told I find myself being very fearful lately following a failed relationship coming to an end. Not sure if I can provide a good home to a pet. Thank you for asking though. I love pets because they love unconditionally and don't judge. They taught me to be that way too!

 

[Rasputin]

I had a cat named Zoe but she got really sick and I was forced to put her down. I miss her. With money being super tight I don't know if I should get another pet. I want a dog but I don't know if its a good idea. Truth be told I find myself being very fearful lately following a failed relationship coming to an end. Not sure if I can provide a good home to a pet. Thank you for asking though. I love pets because they love unconditionally and don't judge. They taught me to be that way too!

Ken, sorry to hear about your relationship coming to an end. The natural tendency I think is to withdraw some following a break-up, because you just feel miserable. This happened to me years ago, before I asked for a job transfer and moved to another city. This forced me to venture out, and I made new friends. About a year later I met my wife. That was 30 years ago, so it might have been different had I been older. But, if you can try to stay positive and not dwell on the past.

 

[Len Huppe]

HI and welcome. It sounds like your autism has not interfered with a good life. That is good to hear! I hope you have a lovely time getting to know us.

I must admit that I have enjoyed some successes in my lifetime. Perhaps more than many of my fellow aspies. I have experienced the joy of falling in love and being loved in return. Sadly that has now come to an end. Because of my autism I am incapable of having an intimate relationship. Had I been aware of my autism earlier in life I would have sought help much sooner. One thing I hope to accomplish here is learn how other aspies deal with the roller coaster ride we collectively refer to as life.

 

[Len Huppe]

Ken, sorry to hear about your relationship coming to an end. The natural tendency I think is to withdraw some following a break-up, because you just feel miserable. This happened to me years ago, before I asked for a job transfer and moved to another city. This forced me to venture out, and I made new friends. About a year later I met my wife. That was 30 years ago, so it might have been different had I been older. But, if you can try to stay positive and not dwell on the past.

Withdrawing is precisely what I want to avoid. I have been there before and it does not work as a solution to anything. Human contact is what has always worked for me. That is why community resources like this web site are so important. I have only been here for a matter of hours and I am already indebted to the community. Thank you all of you!

 

[Rasputin]

I must admit that I have enjoyed some successes in my lifetime. Perhaps more than many of my fellow aspies. I have experienced the joy of falling in love and being loved in return. Sadly that has now come to an end. Because of my autism I am incapable of having an intimate relationship. Had I been aware of my autism earlier in life I would have sought help much sooner. One thing I hope to accomplish here is learn how other aspies deal with the roller coaster ride we collectively refer to as life.

Feel free to ask questions. You will get varied responses because we all have different experiences. But at the same time we are all similar in learning from each other.

 

[Thinx]

Hi and welcome, I hope that you enjoy it here, people are friendly. I am sorry to hear that your relationship has ended. I guess too I would respectfully disagree with the idea that an Aspie can't have a successful intimate relationship, plenty of us can and do, and indeed it sounds like you have had too. With your new awareness of autistic traits and brain difference, you are well placed to find strategies that work for how you are.

We were just discussing attachment styles too on another thread, as despite our autism we all have the ability to work on and develop our attachment security, which when you can disentangle it from autism a bit is a developmental system that is functional in neurodiverse people aswell as neurotypicals. Stay hopeful!

 

[SusanLR]

Welcome Len!

This community was a much needed place to share and learn from for me too when I was
diagnosed in my late fifties after my Mother died.
With no other family and a relationship of almost 20 years ending, yeah, I knew lonely like
never before in my life.

I always had a lot of pets too, then it was like I just didn't feel the desire after the losses.
An Aspie friend just went through much the same. Lost his Mother, no family, and lost his dog.
He was feeling the same about getting another dog and I told him how I was working through
those feelings.

I started out with small creatures. Weird things like frogs, a beetle farm, I raise super worms
and got involved with helping raise Monarch butterflies.
It was a start to letting things back into my life that weren't overwhelming.
He agreed.
You'd be surprised how keeping a pair of darkling beetles in a fish bowl on the table beside where
I eat helps me not feel alone. I watch them while I eat and drop pieces of bread into them.
Told you it's weird. But, it works.

I also like to garden, listen to music, watch a little TV, read interesting things online and of course
check in here nightly.

 

[Aspychata]

It may feel a little stormy and overcast right now in your life, but eventually the sun does come back and you start to feel more human again.

If unsure about animals, have you thought about volunteering for an animal rescue center? These centers sometimes partner with vets who offer reasonable prices for vaccines and check-ups. I also noticed there is pet medical insurance that breaks up the cost of exams.

 

[Len Huppe]

It may feel a little stormy and overcast right now in your life, but eventually the sun does come back and you start to feel more human again.

If unsure about animals, have you thought about volunteering for an animal rescue center? These centers sometimes partner with vets who offer reasonable prices for vaccines and check-ups. I also noticed there is pet medical insurance that breaks up the cost of exams. There are great people who volunteer in these places. Just jump on the website and look for the volunteer application for the place you are considering.

Sound advice. I offered to volunteer at The Animal Rescue League of New Hampshire but then covid hit and they closed their doors to the public. I think that as of today my home state is beginning to open up again. Its a scary thought but we cannot spend the rest of our lives hiding in our homes. The solitude is killing me.

 

[Len Huppe]

Welcome Len!

This community was a much needed place to share and learn from for me too when I was
diagnosed in my late fifties after my Mother died.
With no other family and a relationship of almost 20 years ending, yeah, I knew lonely like
never before in my life.

I always had a lot of pets too, then it was like I just didn't feel the desire after the losses.
An Aspie friend just went through much the same. Lost his Mother, no family, and lost his dog.
He was feeling the same about getting another dog and I told him how I was working through
those feelings.

I started out with small creatures. Weird things like frogs, a beetle farm, I raise super worms
and got involved with helping raise Monarch butterflies.
It was a start to letting things back into my life that weren't overwhelming.
He agreed.
You'd be surprised how keeping a pair of darkling beetles in a fish bowl on the table beside where
I eat helps me not feel alone. I watch them while I eat and drop pieces of bread into them.
Told you it's weird. But, it works.

I also like to garden, listen to music, watch a little TV, read interesting things online and of course
check in here nightly.

I am most definitely an animal lover. I grew up with everything from a turtle to hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, rabbits, fish, cats, dogs, birds ... you name it and we probably had it in our house. Nowadays I like to feed the critters in my back yard. I have mostly squirrels, chipmunks and a large variety of birds. What's really nice about that is that I don't have to clean their cages, and they don't have to live in cages. Thank you for reaching out!

 

[Len Huppe]

This community was a much needed place to share and learn from for me too when I was
diagnosed in my late fifties after my Mother died.
With no other family and a relationship of almost 20 years ending, yeah, I knew lonely like
never before in my life.

That pretty much describes me at the moment. The relationship that I lost was short-lived but it was the happiest time of my life. I had a beautiful woman that I love dearly standing by my side and promising that she would never leave me alone. Sadly that was not to be. We were unable to communicate effectively and as a result she felt completely alone. Now she is gone and I feel like I have been robbed of the most important relationship in my life. I know that I will get over her but right now the pain is excruciating. Once again I thank this community for reaching out to me in my time of need. In time I hope to give a lot back to this community.