David Dunn was 12 when he went through what he calls the lonliest period of his life.
"I have Asperger's Syndrome. It's considered a form of high-functioning autism. It's on the autism spectrum. I've known I had it since I was 12. And for the longest time, I struggled with having it," he told NBC 5."It affected me in a really, really detrimental way."
Years later, he's coming to terms with the condition he now sees as less of a disorder and more of just who he is.
"On the one hand, you have this tunnel vision where you hyper-focus toward the subject you find interesting. It's made me mildly successful in my endeavors, and I'm appreciative of it, but reading social cues, maintaining relationships, making friendships, being introduced to new people, it's always gonna be a challenge," he said.
Dunn is a senior at UT Arlington where is he studying broadcast communications. He wants to go into film criticism or editorial writing when he graduates in May.
A column in the Dallas Morning News in March showed his ability to express himself and humanize a disorder he thinks is laughed at too often.
"I’m lucky because I’m considered high functioning. I tell people, 'I have Asperger's. And they’re like, 'Really? I had no idea you had that?' And they’re shocked. People who are on the middle ground of the autism spectrum, where it’s visible, they don’t have a choice in hiding their condition, so why should I?" he said.
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David expects autism to slow him down at some point.
"Some days it is gonna stop me," he said.
Yet he's determined to, "keep moving forward. That’s the only thing you can do. It’s the instilled human spirit in everyone. If you want to live your fullest potential, you have to do that regardless if you have Asperger’s or something else you’re fighting in your life."
His words of wisdom go on: "But everyone’s dealing with something. You have to push through it. If not for yourself, then for the person next to you."
