Published on 12, July, 2020
I think like quite a lot of autistic people (i am a 21 year old female) my friendships are usually quite intense and with only 1 or two people at a time rather than ever being in a big friendship group.
So far i have no autistic friends.
I notice that the neurotypical girl best friends i have had throughout life are almost always quite confident, outspoken, and extroverted . I feel like having these friends sometimes feels like a shield in social situations and helps me to be more confident- and then when we’re alone it makes me feel more able to be outspoken about things too as there’s less pressure on me to ‘keep the conversation going’ etc.
Was wondering if anyone else has noticed any patterns in their neurotypical friendships/ qualities in people they end up gravitating towards?
Two of my closest friends from school went on to become professional actors (both have appeared on stage, TV and film ), so that would fit in to your pattern of becoming friends with confident, extrovert people.
My daughter is also autistic and one of my friends is self-diagnosed (she is a medical doctor), but other than that I haven't had much interaction with other autists, except online.