Published on 12, July, 2020
I haven't been part of this online community for long, and I'm only part-way through the autism diagnosis process at the moment.
What I am finding incredible is how comfortable I feel here, especially as I struggle so much to connect with people in other spheres of life.
As a child I felt like an outsider in my birth family, so much so that I became convinced I was adopted. Eventually I had to acknowledge this was unlikely (my unusual nose is identical to my dad's!).
Being part of this community is like being on one of those TV programmes where people are reunited with long lost siblings. They may have been apart for many years but once they are together they share so much common ground.
My birth family will always be my birth family, but it is wonderful to have found all these new autistic brothers and sisters.
It's quite overwhelming, but in a good way.
Did you feel the same when you joined this online community?
I'm so glad to hear you feel that way, Sunflower.
It's much the same for me too. After 44 years of just filing my autistic thoughts under "don't ever talk about this", and driving myself insane trying to cover up my autistic behaviours, it has been such a revelation to me to be able to talk to other people openly without fear of being unfairly judged, cold-shouldered, or just thought crazy or lying. I've learned about, and come to accept, the way that I am far more because of the generous support of people on the forums than from anything any professional ever did. After four years, I still come here and have "aha" moments where something just clicks into place and suddenly makes sense because of the insights shared by other people.
It certainly can be overwhelming sometimes, and I even find myself crying into my keyboard now and then, but it's so nice to have moments of being overwhelmed by something positive for a change after years of being overwhelmed only by frustrations!
That's such a lovely way of putting it - generous support is exactly what I am finding here. Making connections and finding acceptance fills me with relief.