Could I be autistic? Not medical advice just seeking opinions.

I know I should consult a professional but even if I do have autism its probably mild and I also have other conditions which might get mixed up with it, which makes me think I wont be able to get an accurate diagnosis, atleast not without spending lots of money.

I wont diagnose myself as anything before visiting a professional but im just looking to see if it's even worth the hassle first. Any opinion would be appreciated.

Im currently 18 years old. I'm pretty broken mentally.  Mostly due to bad parenting but I wonder if autism might be a part of it.

I don't seem to have most talked about symptoms but some symptoms I've noticed I have are:

- I've had social anxiety since atleast the age of 12, the social anxiety could have been developed due to isolation but I think it started before I was really isolating myself too much and that the isolation just made it way worse overtime. Could have just been due to bad parenting tho.


- Im pretty sensitive to some smells, light, sounds and textures:

I would easily get carsick when in an old car because of the smell, and would most times have my shirt over my nose for the entire ride.
The smell of coffee in a car also made me carsick easily, im slightly sensitive to the smell in general but I think that it's mainly because I associate it with car sickness.
Im a bit sensitive to light after not being exposed to it for a while, but im pretty sure thats normal.
I cant stand the dry texture of my feet or hands and the sound when rubbing my feet against certain things or rubbing my hands together when they are dry
I get shivers just from imagining the texture and sound id get from rubbing my feet against a couch for example.
As a kid I would sometimes lick my hands to avoid the dry, stripy feeling.

- Im slightly hypermobile, my knees are hyperextended and my fingers sometimes cave in too much

- My posture is bad, but that's probably caused by years of being sedentary.

- I've definitely felt different and inferior to the rest of society in the past, and still do, but that's probably just because I have had and still have bad life circumstances. It was social anxiety, body dysmorphia and as a result depression at first, then I've started isolating myself more and more and now my life is a complete wreck. So I'd say I have a reason to feel different and inferior. Also, I've always been super self aware and self conscious, regarding what I do, how I look etc, but apparently autists lack self awareness?

- I struggle with social interactions ( social anxiety ) and eye contact too.


- I was told that as a baby I needed some physiotherapy to strengthen and my teeth took longer to show up and to fall off.

Theres probably more that I just dont know of right now or can't recall.

Parents
  • cptsd and autism do have significant overlap in the symptoms, but either way, your life will be better if you can get some help and therapy.  Either therapy to deal with your childhood issues (I am doing this now at 50 after a blighted life) but also guidance on how best to manage autistic issues (assuming you have autism). 
    I suggest writing everything down you can think of ... Go though the diagnostic criteria for cptsd and autism (there are great videos on youtube) and list everything out that applies to each of the criteria.  You will find that you need to teach your doctor about what autism and cptsd look like - this is why it is important to list your issues under the headings of the diagnostic criteria.
    If you review the videos on youtube, you will notice many other things that you thought were 'normal' that are not ... things that you do that are typical of autistic people, rather than the general population.

    There are also online assessments you can do .... do all of them and include the results!

    GOOD LUCK!

Reply
  • cptsd and autism do have significant overlap in the symptoms, but either way, your life will be better if you can get some help and therapy.  Either therapy to deal with your childhood issues (I am doing this now at 50 after a blighted life) but also guidance on how best to manage autistic issues (assuming you have autism). 
    I suggest writing everything down you can think of ... Go though the diagnostic criteria for cptsd and autism (there are great videos on youtube) and list everything out that applies to each of the criteria.  You will find that you need to teach your doctor about what autism and cptsd look like - this is why it is important to list your issues under the headings of the diagnostic criteria.
    If you review the videos on youtube, you will notice many other things that you thought were 'normal' that are not ... things that you do that are typical of autistic people, rather than the general population.

    There are also online assessments you can do .... do all of them and include the results!

    GOOD LUCK!

Children