Published on 12, July, 2020
Hello everyone I haven't posted on this site for a month or two as a lot of the time I feel like I shouldn't as I haven't had an official diagnosis of Autism but suspect I may have Aspergers. I am still awaiting my screening appointment and I've been on the waiting list about 8-9 months now.
My question is...
Does anybody else on this forum experience days when you think you are managing your life quite well and not suffering with worries and just about getting by in social situations for example if conversations are on your special interest, to then having days where things just keep popping up out of the norm and really annoying you or confusing you maybe because you've had to talk to someone you don't know and they try having a joke but you don't get it because you don't know them as a person?
Sorry if nobody understands my question I find it hard to describe my thoughts and feelings alot of the time.
Sorry if I've gone on or maybe it's just me maybe I'm not on the autism spectrum just a little confused.
Yes, what you're describing is a common autistic experience. People often seem to have the idea that if we're autistic, we should show the signs of it in a consistent way, but this is rarely the case. A lot depends on how much work our brain is having to do, stress levels, how much sleep we've had, and probably dozens of other factors.
A particular problem, and very common for people diagnosed late, is that we expend a lot of energy compensating for our autistic traits; maybe even achieving the same results as other people, but by a much more exhausting method (thinking a lot, instead of intuition.) But, because we have grown up doing this since infancy, we can often be unaware just how much we're doing it, and how tiring it can be. Fluctuations in our autistic traits aren't because the autism itself is changing at all, but because our ability to compensate varies a great deal depending on how much energy we have available to devote to it. The latest diagnostic guidelines specifically point out that autistic behaviours may not be noticeable until a person exceeds their ability to process the situation they find themself in.
It feels great and a relief that I am not alone so many good people on this forum and you have been very helpful thank you so much.
I understand also that this is a spectrum meaning anyone of us could have varying difficulties some more than other etc.
I will be ringing my assesment clinic within the next week as I need reasurrances that I am still on the waiting list I cannot help but worry if they have sent out an appointment letter and it hasn't arrived and then I could potentially miss my appointment and end up back to square one.
I last rang them 3 months ago and they said there is usually a 12 month waiting list but it's almost 9 months now.