My husband is 53 and for 2 years now (since we took early retirement and we spend more time together) I have suspected he is on the autistic spectrum. I would appreciate any independent views based on the behaviours below as I have no one to discuss with. I do not want him to speak to a professional given he has had physical (unrelated) conditions in the past few years so I don’t want him to see more doctors. Some relatives have suggested he has had certain behaviours since a child/teenager and he himself says he is ‘just a loner’. Behaviours include 1) staying up until 2-3am by himself - I have tried staying up till 2, he will wait till 3, if I stay up til 3, he will wait until 4 etc. I have said what impact this has on me and asked he occasionally comes to bed with me, but he never does. This has lasted pretty much since we met (20 years ago) 2) He prefers his own company eg goes walking by himself or sits alone 3) he is ‘emotionally neutral’ eg doesn’t show overt excitement or enjoyment at things I know he really likes 4) he is slow to interact in conversation or opts out (with me and friends, even his relatives) 5) our sex life has become one sided. All of these things have really been going on for many years, but are more obvious nowadays. He more recently has become snappy and insists he is right in conversations or asks me for my opinion then chooses to go with his own option - I bite my lip. We love each other very much.. Does this sound like autism? And can it get worse with age or is it mainly situational? Thoughts much appreciated.
