Empathy Quotient

[Edwardo Piet]

I got 65.
I have always been fascinated how some people, not necessarily those above me, seem to brag about having very little empathy, like as if empathy is a weakness.
And of course I feel sorry for them then, that they don't seem to realise that they are missing the thing that makes us most human.

But you don't know what you're missing either

To be honest, I brag about all kinds of truth. Both good and bad. The truth is always worth bragging about. Even if you're a murderer if you brag about it you get locked up but if you don't then justice doesn't happen. So bragging about all truths, both good and bad, is perfectly fine with me!

I am what I am so I may as well embrace it.

Perhaps if I was more empathetic I'd think there was something wrong about bragging about one's own nature? Meh, I don't see why. I hope that if I was empathetic I'd brag about being empathetic instead.

So when is bragging/arrogance wrong? When it's false or exaggerated. Same with modesty. Modesty is bad when it's false modesty.

Now, I must admit, I'm coming across as very obnoxious. I am sure. But why would I care about that?

I avoid obnoxiousness in real life just so I don't get punched in the face or at least bullied. Or even if I'm mocked verbally, despite it not hurting my feelings, I'll get anxiety about it being taken further and myself getting physically attacked. So, I avoid rudeness and obnoxiousness in real life, in order to stay safe and to avoid my own anxiety. But on the internet I can truly be myself. Why do you think I love the internet so much and have no friends in RL? At least no friends yet. I had one once for a couple of years before he fucked off to Scotland.

---

I got 38. My husband once tried to convince me that I had Aspergers although I disagree. My dad has undiagnosed Aspergers and an uncle does too. Aspects of it run in my family. I noticed how some of the questions apply to my family for example. So it's only 8 above the max for being on the spectrum, but on the other, 40 is the average so overall I am quite happy with it.

If it's undiagnosed how do you know they have it?

I wondered that too. I was suspected as having it for years but I wasn't certain until I actually had my diagnosis in March. I feel soooooooo much better now as literally my whole life makes sense now. Especially considering it's an all pervasive disorder that affects many aspects of who I am and my personality (which is why, personally, I consider it a large part of my identity. Much more than, say, not believing in gods is).

Even without the support it's just a big step forward just to have self-understanding. In fact that's the main thing I get from it.