Asperger’s syndrome does not exist. Subsequent to a flurry of highly professional conversations and the stroke of a pen the world bible for psychiatric diagnosis, the DSM, has done away with Asperger’s for good.

That’s not to say that the set of symptoms that used to be called Asperger’s have gone away. Now instead, according to the DSM, they are gathered beneath a diagnostic umbrella called Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

On the face of it this may not sound like a big thing however I think this change heralds a significant movement forward in the bureaucracy of mainstream psychiatric thinking. This new version of the truth is more useful.

Once people were defined by a diagnosis of Asperger’s as living inside the lump of a monolithic and incurable disease. Now there are a range of symptomatic propensities, each of which can be individually and collectively improved.

The challenges defined by ASD are the same challenges most so called normal people face. People including those with a potential ASD diagnosis all want to have close, fulfilling, and productive relationships but struggle to understand what other people are really thinking and particularly feeling and so struggle to find and maintain said relationships.

People with ASD are perfectly intelligent but don’t find they get a good result in a world where being socially successful is crucial. The anxiety this creates makes the problem manifestly more difficult and indeed, as a hint towards the next new more useful truth, this anxiety in effect becomes the problem.

They have trouble comprehending and empathising with the emotions of other people. They miss or misunderstand the subtle messages sent by facial expression, eye contact and body language. In failing to match the message they are in turn misinterpreted by others.

They also have trouble thinking in a way that matches the social world surrounding them. ASD people are very concrete and literal and so again they miss or misunderstand the subtleties in human interactions and again are critically misunderstood.

With the death of Asperger’s syndrome the gateways for growth have been opened. There really is a problem and some people’s challenges are large however with an ASD umbrella each aspect of the issue can be learnt through. 

We’ve all got a touch of ASD, but with somewhere between a little or a lot of experience and learning, we’re going to be alright.

Martin Hunter Jones is an honorary member of the Australian Counselling Association.