Published on 12, July, 2020
I’ve seen a few posts recently about differences between older and younger autistic people and their attitudes, and I remember at least one thread about whether or not we look younger than neurotypicals.
I’m curious to know whether the “older” among you actually feel your age.
I know I look much younger than my age and I’m in great physical health but I also feel psychologically much younger than my true age. Perhaps because I feel I’m still learning social rules everyone else mastered by the age of 20? Or because I never got to be a parent, which must be one of the life experiences that truly signals to people that they are no longer the younger generation?
My dad felt very much that the world had changed and left him behind and so he had nothing in common with the young, but I never really felt I had anything in common with other people even why I was chronologically young myself so I don’t feel any more alienated now that I’m older.
I am 40 but feel like I’m about 20. I have a lot of what I suppose most people would say are childish/teenage interests, I dress much younger than most people my age, I love anything cute or sparkly, I have no interested in “typical” grown up things like getting married and settling down or having children. I look much younger than I am (which is probably a combination of how I act and my style as well as some weirdly good genes!). I always felt really left out, everyone around me was always looking for the next promotion, desperately waiting to be proposed to, wanting to move in with partners, planning their dream and weddings and none of that was something I wanted to do.
I also am just not “grown up”… I don’t drink tea or coffee, and only drink squash or pop, id prefer chicken nuggets to a steak and fine wine, I have soft toys on my bed, at work my sellotape dispenser is a dinosaur and my post it notes are cat shaped, it’s just who I am!
I agree with this completely (other than im about 20 years younger and I cant handle the fizz of pop so I mostly drink water [blue wrapper only] and lemonaid)
Ahh it’s so interesting! I love the fizz of pop, definitely a sensory thing for me in a positive way, I find it fascinating that for you it’s the opposite! :)
For me it feels like my tongue is burning. Ive tried pop a few times but im only able to drink a couple tiny sips if I try hard enough.