Singer on American Idol has Aspergers
 

and Tourettes!!!!

Well, you could have knocked me over. I always watch American Idol and one of my favorites this year is James Durbin. He's 22, has a girlfriend and a baby.

HE ALSO HAS ASPERGERS AND TOURETTES.

His dad died when he was 9 of a drug overdose and James was diagnosed with AS.

Now I have watched this guy interacting with his peers on stage, off stage, watched him sing, watched him speak (I immediately noticed the facial tics from day one and said "this guy has tourettes)

But Aspergers????

How on earth can this guy have aspergers? I have been in a room with 50 men with Aspergers (all varying degrees) and no one was like James Durbin.

I am totally clueless.

If anyone can explain this to me, how this guy can have the same diagnosis as Temple Grandin, have a girlfriend, a baby, AND HE SINGS and wants a future, well please clue me in.

Thanks,

Melody

Well, I must say I have to agree with you. If he does have Asperger's it is the MILDEST case I've ever seen. His eye contact is even typical. :cool: It will be interesting to see how the season progresses.

Years ago, my husband and I attended a support group with parents (there were maybe 4 parents), and everybod else had aspergers.

No one else even remotely acted like the guy on American Idol. Most of them acted like Temple Grandin (higher pitched voice), but not one of them looked or sounded like the guy on Idol.

I think there is a lot of mis-diagnosing going on.

I am getting to this thread really late, James is already off the show, but I can give you a clue as to why he might have aspergers!

As a person who was dx with autism as a kid, I understand it very well. Not only have I grown up around people on the autism spectrum, went to school with them, friends with them, but I have also met thousands of people, online and offline, with aspergers/autism, and have been friends with some of those "famous" people on the spectrum.
One of the biggest things I have learned over the years, from meeting people on the spectrum, is that EVERYONE is different! You will NEVER find two people on the spectrum that are exactly alike. Autism is defined as a disorder in social skills/social interaction, and this can present in so many different ways, there is no exact way to pinpoint a exact list of symptoms that everyone on the spectrum has.
The whole point of a diagnoses of autism/aspergers is so a person can get help with the issues they are facing. If a person isnt seen to be having issues, then they usually dont get the diagnoses. With proper help, most people on the spectrum progress threw out there life, and get much better with there issues with time. This is especially true for many people who are higher functioning, and people with aspergers. Many people who have major issues as a kid, progress to the point that they dont have many issues as adults. One thing is that everyone is different, so it is different for everyone on the spectrum, some dont have many issues as adults, while some people with autism are never able to talk or care for themself!

We dont know what life was like for James Durbin as a kid, we dont know what he went threw, what help he got, or what issues he still has.
We only seen him on a tv show, we dont know what issues he might/might not have in everyday life.

You cant NOT pinpoint a few things and say that this person is not on the spectrum.

Eye contact - there are just as many people on the spectrum that dont have a issue with this, as there are that do. You might find a person who cant communicate, who has no problem keeping eye contact, yet you might find a person with aspergers who cant keep eye contact. Everyone is different

Friends and girlfriends - there is nothing saying that people on the spectrum dont and cant have friends and families of there own! It totally is not uncommon for adults on the spectrum to have family, kids. And that is not just confined to the "mild" aspergers folks, many people with major issues that have the average family and kids.

Everyone one is different, we all have different issues, different strength and weaknesses

What's the saying when someone does something wrong? My bad??

You know something, you are absolutely right. I was dead wrong and I admit it when I'm wrong.

I sincerely apologize for saying something so insensitive. I don't know James. I do now MANY people with aspergers and he didn't fit that profile.

But, as you pointed out, it's a spectrum.

Thanks very much for taking me to task and getting my head to fit right on my body.

I shall look at these things very differently from now on.

thanks much

Melody

No need to apologize! All is good :)
He was/is a AWESOME singer regardless, to bad people with bad musical taste voted him off :hissyfit:

I saw this and wanted to see what it was about. I have met many with
asperger's and autism. THe thing is that all are different is so correct.
But the one thing I have found is the earlier they were diagnosed the
better they became at some of the things people see as asperger's traits.

I know that in one particular case, it was many years later. That a diagnosis of this was found. And its not only helped the student, but the whole
family, because the father has it too.

Donna:grouphug: