I hate labels. I'm a person. I happen to have some aspects of my personality that coincide with high-functional autism, but that's not who I am. I am a unique being who can fit into many labels at many different times, including the label Adam.
If researchers want to label people based on their personality traits, let them. Those researchers are simply missing out on the person behind the label.
If you can't tell, I've been labeled many things in my life, ranging from genius to moron, and even as far afield as schizotypal (not schizophrenic, but most doctors don't know the difference, just as they don't know whether their ivory towers are the whole of their existence). Those labels, even the 'good' ones, have not brought me joy... only pain. I recognize the value of labels... It is an easy way to communicate abstract, complex topics, but it doesn't mean that I can like them when they are applied to me.
Sorry for the rant, Jesse... You've just unwittingly hit a nerve that I didn't realize was sore until just now. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
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People often say that 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder,' and I say that the most liberating thing about beauty is realizing that you are the beholder. This empowers us to find beauty in places where others have not dared to look, including inside ourselves.
--Salma Hayek
My blog: Adam's Peace |