Published on 12, July, 2020
Well, I finally have a diagnosis after 33 years on this earth.
I feel vindicated. I feel relieved. This has been a long time coming. I’ve been living with the possibility that I might be autistic for several years now and to finally get the diagnosis is amazing. Growing up I always felt different to my peers in school. I could never put my finger on what was causing it. I’ve been through a lot since as an adult, some of it traumatic. Nonetheless, in spite of all this I kept trying my best to work through it until I could work through it no more and I had to know.
I know now what has been going on with me after 33 years. I finally have an answer. I am looking forward to what the future has in store for me. I know it won’t be easy there is still a lot that needs to be done before autism acceptance becomes action.
How did other people feel after finding out? I'd love to hear from others who have been diagnosed later in life.
Daniel
I felt relieved to have some kind of explanation for why my brain doesn't work how it should, but unfortunately any hopes I had that this diagnosis would kinda leave a trail of breadcrumbs that would lead me out of the desert were unrealistic. It's very much a case of read and hear as much as I can stomach and try to figure it out myself. I was diagnosed when I was 34.
I know this is perhaps not the best of phrases to use but I'm just glad that I'm not going crazy! As you say I have an explanation for why I see the world differently and why my brain is different.
Yeah I feel there will still be challenges and barriers going forward. However, one thing I don't seem to be is a quitter. I haven't read that much or watched that much around autism. I don't think I can take too much of it currently. I will probably just do things in my own time.