Asperger's, to be precise.

Nearly two years ago, I found out that I have Asperger's Syndrome, or high-functioning autism under the DSM V. This changed things. Someone had switched on a lightbulb and my Aspergic clumsiness lessened now that I was no longer groping in the dark. A lot of my habits were linked together, the reasons for my struggles became clear, a path towards gaining social skills unveiled itself, all that good stuff.

Learning about Asperger's changed how I viewed myself, how I viewed my past and how I viewed my future. I wasn't a freak; I was just different. None of the taunts from high school bothered me anymore, because not only had my peers misjudged me, I had misjudged myself. In the words of Dr. Tony Atwood (I think), I was no longer a failing neurotypical: I was a successful Aspie.

The world never seemed clearer than the day I learned that my brain was wired differently.

Other things became clear to me too. When I told a high school friend of my diagnosis, her first reaction was "But you're so normal!" Other friends suggested that maybe I was overreacting, I probably didn't have Asperger's. Family tried to suggest that I was merely sensitive and bright.

See, the problem with autism is like most everything else to do with the mind. It's not commonly understood and popular media has no idea what it's talking about. In some ways, it's even worse than depression and anxiety. BuzzFeed doesn't post endless articles about how autism is unfairly stigmatized. Tumblr doesn't have an echo chamber about how not all autistic children are unable to read or vocalize properly.

The most common organization Autism Speaks doesn't even live up to its name, with not a single autistic member on its board. "This disease has taken our children away. It’s time to get them back." - Are you kidding me? Autism isn't a disease. Autism is part of who I am. I choose to work on the negatives, but there's no way I would want to be a neurotypical.

And then there's the anti-vaxxers. Oh, how they argue against vaccines because of a (non-existent) risk of autism. You have to love how they'd rather their kids die than have autism.

Autism isn't about that. Autism isn't all struggles and disabilities. Yes, a number of autistic people are unable to perform many basic tasks. No, not all autistic people are. Saying that all autistic people are slow thinkers and act weird is like saying that all girls like the color pink and play with dolls. Oh wait.