Published on 12, July, 2020
And I'm frightened for my safety. For years I was treated like a little boy instead of the little girl I was. Just subtle little things, comments about my handwriting and my hair, from the age of about four, which were designed to condition me into believing I was male. For example, I was cast as a snowman in a Christmas play when the other little girls were angels, but that's only one example; you might think it sounds silly to remember something like this and give it any thought, but actually these things add up to something very sinister. Drip, drip, drip. They clearly wanted to do it subtly every day so I'd slowly come to the realisation that I was supposed to be male. And then I got my Asperger's diagnosis at 15, and that was the official YOU ARE MALE message. Since then, clinicians and teachers, and even close family friends, have drip-drip-dripped in comments about autism being an extreme male brain thing and all men being on the spectrum. I know these things are being proved more and more to be untrue, and the latter one is downright stupid, but that makes it even more worrying. They want me to believe I'm male rather than female. I don't know why. It is killing me from the inside.
I AM NOW MAKING THIS VERY CLEAR - I STRONGLY IDENTIFY AS FEMALE, I AM SO PROUD TO BE FEMALE, BEING FEMALE IS SO PRECIOUS TO ME, BUT VILE EVIL PEOPLE IN MY LIFE ARE TRYING TO TAKE THIS AWAY FROM ME.
My parents say I'm being paranoid but they haven't walked in my shoes. I know the truth. Some people seem to believe me, thank goodness. I'm labelled a crazy girl so lots of people don't listen to me, but I know this has been going on. I have evidence. I want to talk to people from my past about this and ask them why they wanted to hurt me so badly but I'm going to university in September and I've got so many good things in my life right now, and I've got to stay out of trouble. I have to keep my head above water and just deal with this. I'm trapped. I can't confront anyone about it because they'll just say I need more medication, or try to tell me I can't do things. I have to suffer and no one wants to help. I feel so alone and so scared. I just want to be safe from this.
Has anyone else been through anything similar?
If you feel like a female and identify as a female, then you are female. Let everyone else figure out what they are, but you get to determine this for yourself.
The Aspergers diagnosis should not detract from that in any way. Lots of us here are females on the spectrum. That doesn't make us any less female.
NAS does a new course on females on the spectrum and right now it's free to take: https://www.autismonlinetraining.com/course/view.php?id=44
If you have interest, you could work through the course yourself (it doesn't take long), and you could also suggest to the people in your life that they could do so as well. While it is intended for professionals who would potentially be in a position to diagnose females, it's quite informative for others too.
I am female and I do identify as female, but I have people actively trying to take this away from me. I'm not a strong person and it scares me that I'm too weak to resist everyone.
That course sounds brilliant. Thank you for letting me know about it. :)