If You're Autistic

CoolBeans 9/15/2022 09:52 am 1017

I'm 18, I know for sure I have undiagnosed ADHD and have known for a while, but the thought also occurs to me that I could also have autism (along with the adhd). I find myself relating to what a lot of autistic people say they feel (taking things too literally, trouble with eye contact, cannot stop talking about my interests, etc.), but I also know that doesn't automatically make me autistic and that its a very broad spectrum.

So my questions to those who know they're autistic: Are you diagnosed? If not, how did you know you were autistic and at what age did it occur to you?

Edit: Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to reply here, and for the advice, all of your messages were very helpful and insightful! I haven't come to a definite conclusion (I wasn't expecting to-- but maybe someday I will). I have done more research because of this thread, and I still think I could be autistic, but I also think there is an array of things that could make me neurodivergent and more than just ADHD. Like I said, I haven't come to any conclusions, but I'm okay with that right now, and I think I'll just continue to be as I am.

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CoolBeans
Member

Oct 6, 2022 6:39 am

@asherneedssleep: I understand that, although me and my parents have a great relationship now, it’s a difficult subject to breach. Plus they have no modern concept of neurodivergency (not sure if I spelled that right lol) except what I’ve explained to them.

compost_in_training
Member

Sep 19, 2022 10:29 am

ive been wanting to get tested cuz ive shown quite a few of the signs but i havent mentioned in to my parental units cuz ehhhhhhhh

itswhackadoodletime
Member

Sep 16, 2022 5:27 am

I’ve got like half a diagnosis, basically unofficial autism. I knew I had autism when I was 12, my therapist at the time talked to my parents about getting a diagnosis they firmly refused, insisting on the “he can’t be autistic, he’s never shown symptoms” spiel. They took me out of therapy after that. My sister in law’s mother is a psychiatrist, so she helped me get the first part of a diagnosis (the actual test, and results). However, due to my parents’ ignorance, nothing is official.

scoobydoo
Member

Sep 15, 2022 8:47 pm

I was actually only diagnosed a few months ago but known for a while. but like it makes sense cause I've always been the weird kid kind of, as in playing differently, feeling like I needed to stim but not knowing why or how, and poor emotional regulation (also having a 'mean' resting face and people thinking I was scary). A lot of more subtle autistic behaviours happen in childhood and don't get picked up: ask your parents (if u can) how you played as a kid, for me it was things like stacking/arranging toys for fun, rejecting non-literal play (not wanting to play imagine etc.) I'd say read some research about autism in childhood and compare to your experiences, especially if you might have been masking as you've gotten older.

so yeah. being recognised as autistic has been pretty cool for me, cause everything makes sense now and I just feel happy to have my behaviours and how I function validated

WATERPARKS
Member

Sep 15, 2022 7:41 pm

i'm really thoroughly professionally diagnosed - i first got told i was autistic when i was 12, and eventually officially diagnosed when i was 16 (i'm 18 now). i also have adhd though and have gotten it professionally diagnosed, just not on paper yet. because of this i can't be sure anything i say is due to either autism or adhd but in my eyes its all just a conglomeration of the ways my brain is unusual.

even though it took til my teenage years for certainty i guess i've always just known something was "off" about me. being unusually prone to dramatic mood swings even for a child/teenager, being mature yet childish, having extremely intense interests, being particular about the way i do things etc. i think i fully understood that i was an odd one out when i was about 9 because this is when a large amount of bullying occurred. i was my parents' first child so they didn't have any abled/allistic baseline, hence they took until my tween years to realise there was something going on.

best advice i can give is to just take it slow. like a lot of other people have said there's so many ways autism can present and therefore there's a long list of conditions that have things in common with it. you can still use advice and strategies suggested for autistic people for yourself even if you're not sure.

but yeah there's no rush. there's no shame in saying "i probably have this, might not"

selfmed1cate
Member

Sep 15, 2022 7:25 pm

the autism diagnosis didn't happen until i was 14 (im 16 now), i kinda self diagnosed in the beginning after noticing a lot of behaviors like sleeping patterns, special interests, eating habits, tone sensitivity, different forms of affection, and breakdowns and how they usually occur, I pretty much figure out that I was most definitely autistic. when I was presented the opportunity to get diagnosed through my iep therapist they pretty much agreed that I was autistic after watching over me in groups and in individual sessions.

getting diagnosed later in life is hard but possible! they don't take older people as seriously as they should when we bring up a diagnosis we can pretty much conclude ourselves by talking to people with the diagnosis

Smolgecko
Member

Sep 15, 2022 6:29 pm

I'm autistic and I have adhd, I think I was diagnosed with autism around 8-11 years old, and adhd when I was almost 15 if my memory is right (I'm like a month and a half away from being 18 now)

Its very likely for you to have both adhd and autism, those two disorders tend to occur with eachother, but it could also just be that they also share a lot of symptoms

My best advice would maybe be to find an online quiz for both disorders (probably separately just to make sure, since they're kinda similar), or if you have a therapist they may be able to do a test for it, or whatever the right term is

Also, I don't believe this is a really "official" sign, or I'm not aware if it has become one, but from what I've read (and had to deal with myself) is that many autisitic people tend to have a lot of stomach issues, and sometimes problems with eating as well

Strawberry_BroStrider
Member

Sep 15, 2022 4:03 pm

yes, i am diagnosed! and i've known for a few years now. i was kinda in denial for a bit bcs it was so often presented as a "scary, bad disorder" that "ruined lives" and shit. lots of disorders are presented that way, makes it so much harder for people to actually get help and recognition. It kinda clicked for me when i watched cozykitsune's video on being dxed with autism (i think the video's been deleted? i can't find it anymore.) Specifically when she said she always had to turn her socks inside out do to sensory issues. I also did that, it was so bad it was almost painful for me to wear socks rightside in. I still can't wear tights or most pants either, even though the sock thing got a bit better with age.

Crumpet
Site Owner

Sep 15, 2022 3:22 pm

@13Killz: yeah, it’s very easy to get it wrong since it’s based primarily on observations and checklists. I used to be extremely against self diagnosis but then I saw and experienced how often formal diagnosis is wrong and was like, why am I valuing this nonsense so much? It has its uses but it’s not infallible