Autism Spectrum Disorders: Asperger Stereotypes

According to the Center of Disease Control, “About 1 percent of the world population has autism spectrum disorder” (CDC 1). While this may not seem like a large number, one percent of the population equates to about seventy-three million people. Of these seventy-three million people, there are countless individuals who have made an appearance in the news, on television, or in major companies. The daily lives of these individuals include a plethora of challenges that many people would not give second thought about. One form of Autism that is frequent in the celebrity population is Asperger Syndrome. This disease inhibits an individual’s social skills and emotional control, two traits that are usually required when in the public eye. Asperger

He was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome in the early eighties after his wife convinced him to visit a doctor when she noticed oddities in his behavior. When Aykroyd learned that he had a form of Autism, he was able to cope with the symptoms much better than predicted due to it not being the first time he had battled with a life-affecting disease. Dan Aykroyd said in an interview with Daily Mail that he “was diagnosed with Tourette’s at 12. I had physical tics, nervousness and made grunting noises and it affected how outgoing I was” (Ewing 1). His battle with Tourette’s at a young age helped him to deal with his diagnosis of Asperger’s later on. He learned the importance of going to therapy beforehand when dealing with Tourette’s, which helped his symptoms of Asperger's become easily manageable. In contrast to the lack of creativity Dan Aykroyd faced when he was diagnosed with Tourette’s, his diagnosis and understanding of Asperger's helped him to further his career as a comedian and screenwriter. Throughout his career, Aykroyd has credited his famous characters and ideas to the way Asperger syndrome affects his brain. In his childhood, Dan Aykroyd often talked to himself and made up characters in his head to help occupy his brain. He has said that his way of thinking “ could have been a source of ridicule but I felt it helped me creatively – whenever I heard a voice in

Susan Boyle is a Scottish singer who gained a famous status overnight when she blew the audience away with her singing performance at Britain's Got Talent in 2009. However, before her stunning performance, Boyle was laughed at by the audience due to odd behavior that she displayed. The reason for her odd behavior was due to anxiety and social challenges caused by her syndrome, which she was not aware of at the time. Boyle was misdiagnosed as a child with brain damage instead of Asperger’s, a mistake that is still commonly made in today’s society. When she received her true diagnosis in 2013, Boyle said that she “always knew it was an unfair label. Now I have a clearer understanding of what's wrong and I feel relieved and a bit more relaxed about myself” (The Australian 1). Susan Boyle often spoke out about how brain damage was an insignia she believed did not fit her condition, so when she received her correct diagnosis, she believed that she had found a correct identification for her symptoms. Ever since then, the performer has sought ways to help herself control the symptoms of Asperger Syndrome that have affected her life the most. Although Susan Boyle sought help to manage the effects of her condition, her growing fame only damaged her efforts. Ever since her famous 2009 performance, the musician was able to build the singing career she had always dreamed of. This dream,