ASD and understanding flirting

Hi everyone, back again as I'm still overthinking my son's first assessment appointment.  He is 19.

One of the questions asked was 'Do you know when someone is flirting with you?.  I could tell he was a bit embarrassed by being asked even though he had a covid face mask on - his eyes altered and he moved a bit in his chair.  He shifted in his seat and replied 'yes I do' then hastily said 'because it has happened to me and I knew'.

I really don't know if he's telling the truth here or whether he was embarrassed so said this because he thinks he should know and didn't want her to think he didn't (I don't know he has this thought process).  I could be completely wrong with this, but I thought ASD made you struggle alot with knowing when someone is flirting or can it be easier for some than others?.

I wish this was all over, it's driving me insane as I keep going over his responses in my head. 

Thank you for your thoughts.

Parents
  • I'm also male.  I don't think I could really recognise flirting.  I'm genuinely not sure if anyone has really flirted with me in the past, unless we had already started dating each other (that made it clearer).  Thinking back, I can recall a number of interactions over the years where I genuinely do not know if someone was flirting with me.  I'm not sure how I would have answered the question as a teenager.  I would probably have been very embarrassed over the whole thing.

    That said, I don't think there's any reason to disbelieve your son just because the answer surprised you.  At the end of the day, it's his assessment.

Reply
  • I'm also male.  I don't think I could really recognise flirting.  I'm genuinely not sure if anyone has really flirted with me in the past, unless we had already started dating each other (that made it clearer).  Thinking back, I can recall a number of interactions over the years where I genuinely do not know if someone was flirting with me.  I'm not sure how I would have answered the question as a teenager.  I would probably have been very embarrassed over the whole thing.

    That said, I don't think there's any reason to disbelieve your son just because the answer surprised you.  At the end of the day, it's his assessment.

Children
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