I refuse to get formerly identified. Adding labels to your health record feels dangerous in the US - so I’m happy to ‘suspect’ I’m autistic, stay on top of the research, and refuse to be boxed and labeled publicly.
Just shy of 34 years, was a little bit disappointed to find out that when I finally decided to get tested and shared it with my mom, she told me she’s quietly assumed my whole life and just never told me or did anything about it. I certainly could have used the resources, framework, and self understanding when I was younger instead of just thinking there was something wrong with me.
Something similar happened. Turns out my primary school didn’t believe in Autism, every family member mentioned it to my mum, but only my mum doubted so nobody ever brought it to me until I was put infront of a psychiatric nurse because my life was wrecked by the fact I was different
Something a bit like this happened with me. Apparently we did get an autism diagnosis sometime when I was a younger child, but we didn’t ultimately do much with that. I ended up in a social group or two in school for a little while, but they sucked and I eventually left them and we kind of just forgot about it. Fast forward to grad school when I burned out and got diagnosed with pretty severe depression and it came up again that I was autistic and that at least some of the depression probably came from the frustration that comes from the friction between my differences and society. It got so bad that I dropped out of grad school mere months before graduating and I’ve been moping around at home bouncing from one ineffective psych treatment to another.
Not the first time I hear this from parents! It infuriates me! Let’s pretend Jimmy’s leg is not broken, it’s going to be fine… sure mum/dad, sure…
I am almost 70 and have never been formally diagnosed (My GP mentioned it) and can’t afford to get formal assessment.
70 on lemmy? How’d you end up here?
Saw Lemmy a while back, joined and shortly thereafter I got kicked off reddit permanently so now here I am.
How long were you on reddit for? Just curious. My mom can even send an e transfer
Was on reddit for 10-12 yrs. Had one account for 5yrs. No password so it poofed at some point then I created other one that lasted about 8yrs before I got permabanned.
Huh, wow that’s interesting. I never got banned but just didn’t like the vibes over there. Anyways have a good 1!!!
I was also not too happy with Reddit so I was not to worried about the move to Lemmy.
You too.
38, great at masking. I work in a highly social enviornment (hospo) and have been for ~20 years.
Makes me feel like a sociopath but, people are relatively basic. A few quirky comments or general niceties go a long way for directing interactions the way you want them to transpire.
Its not been without its issues / hardships, lots of socially exhausted days, awkward interactions and one complete breakdown for 6 months. Saying so I’m well ontop of interacting with the humans and knowing my social limits / when I’m going overboard in a conversation but man it’s taken me a while.
I can very much relate to feeling like a sociopath. But masking is a form of disassociation, so I can’t really help it if I don’t feel a lot of the emotions I put on. And after doing that for a long time, I started picking up on the grander strokes of conversation. It makes me very guilty that I ever even think about how I could manipulate the conversation when I’m detached from it.
That’s an interesting way of looking at interactions with people.
The fact that we can be so detached and yet so involved, I don’t feel the guilt is justified.
Were not cut of the same cloth as lots of folks, and in order to cope with the sometimes difficult interactions we lead or drop a conversation to cope, letting us cope in our own way. Leaving them blind to what were actually experiencing.
Were trying to fit in and the guilt is on them not us, don’t feel guilt for being different.
Its a wild ride, since being diagnosed i’ve more embraced it than hidden it, but it has opened my eyes to who I am and how awful some people are.
My therapist and I think I might be on the spectrum, but who knows.
well, I didn’t even know they were assessing me for autism, until my doctor sat me down one day and told me that I’m autistic. But now that I’m diagnosed, I have a LOT of support. Thanks NDIS!
Technically still in this group
Same. I have some autistic and ADHD qualities but I manage and getting a diagnosis doesn’t seem like it would change my life in any way. So maybe I am and maybe I’m not. Who cares?
Meds have curbed lots of my ADHD life issues, I feel that post diagnosis and taking kiddie speed most days has made a massive improvement to my quality of life.
Having motivation to complete some basic life admin tasks or take on and complete projects has been such a massive improvement for me.
Understanding that getting a diagnosis in Australia took me over a year, and the process was costly. I’m sure in other areas of the globe it’s a similar process, and it felt to me like it’s not streamlined for someone with such a disability but for me the outcome is well worth the battle.
Looking back to who I was then and now, meds have opened so many doors and opportunities for me.
In my mid 20’s. I had confided in my mom of my suspicions before that and she just laughed at me.
Who’s laughing now, mother?
Too long. I thought that I was brain damaged until my late teens
I, for one, am lucky and was diagnosed in primary school. Maybe 2nd or 3rd grade.
I’ve sort of always known. What I didn’t know was how so many (all?) of my problems can be attributed to autism in some way. For the longest time, I thought it was just responsible for my difficulties in socializing.
Most of my life.
