Life with Down Syndrome

Re:Life with Down Syndrome by abstractspoon on Sunday November 01, 2026 @06:38PM (#50331084)

I'm not Downs but I have a personality disorder such that I've always felt different. I'm 60 now and yet to meet anyone, M or F, who seems remotely like me. I was married, didn't end well, and have a daughter who doesn't talk to me. I live every day bathed in the knowledge that I am utterly alone in the world, despite having 2 close female friends. It has always been this way. It will always be this way. I try to live a quiet secluded life.

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by DiggyJohnson on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @08:00AM (#50351478)

Thanks for sharing. You described the situation well imo, wish you the best

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by booty on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @08:06AM (#50351523)

Is it a recognized personality disorder?

(I'm guessing "no" but a lot of recognized conditions have huge variance in individuals, so having a recognized personality disorder also isn't a guarantee that there will be others with a similar mindset...)

More importantly, I wish you peace and happiness. It's a difficult hand to be dealt...

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by LoganDark on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @08:14AM (#50351589)

Many individuals also have more than one personality disorder. I have a partner with bipolar + borderline + OCPD and a bunch of other stuff. I have a fair few too (borderline and OCPD at least).

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by enjoyyourlife on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @09:33AM (#50352480)

Your HN user profile and https://morethanone.info are fascinating to me but I don't think that it's a good idea to promote 4chan here

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by Hnrobert42 on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @08:41AM (#50351873)

This sounds very difficult. There are so many people who live with loneliness. It reminds me of the "Tin Man" episode of Star Trek TNG.

I wish you well and hope you find your Tan Elbrun.

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by tokai on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @08:46AM (#50351919)

A personality disorder have nothing to do with Downs. One is a genetic disorder and the other is a maladaptive pattern of affect.

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by himata4113 on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @08:50AM (#50351957)

End result is the same though? Cause vs effect.

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by dgacmu on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @10:01AM (#50352872)

Many personality disorders have a strongly heritable component.

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by himata4113 on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @08:53AM (#50351983)

I was lucky enough to know that all I need is presence in my life. I don't really care for interaction or romance.

Remember that having children, getting married, living a fulfilling life is just the status quo and not the path your life has take. Be or do whatever makes you happy as long as you're not harming others.

Might be a bit late, but it's all about the ride and leaving something behind for others to enjoy is a nice extra.

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by jareklupinski on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @09:25AM (#50352387)

> I've always felt different

visit new york city's lower east side

everyone here is different :)

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Re:Life with Down Syndrome by shevy-java on Tuesday November 03, 2026 @10:04AM (#50352914)

Well - many people with a personality disorder don't even have kids, so perhaps you did something better than these; or, different, if better does not serve here.

I would not want to give any advice to anyone about their own personal lives, but surely the story you show here must be incomplete. Unless your daughter never spoke to you to begin with.

Even for people without any disorder, communication is not always trivial - some find it easy, others find it hard. For me it is hugely difficult to do small-talk and fake-talk. My brain does not work like that. Whereas if something is interesting, I can talk and listen easily.

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