Published on 12, July, 2020
My question is - do you have any place (community, environment, online,,, anywhere) where you feel you belong to and can be 'as you are' without masking or concealing the autism diagnosis?I'm an autistic adult who recently found out I'm autistic, in my 30s.Currently I feel a little lost, that I am reluctant to disclose my diagnosis at work, to my friends, even to my family... I feel I never experienced 'unmasking' too. So I'd love to hear some others stories who have places like you feel home.Thank you!
Mostly it's at home. But I'm 52, was only diagnosed a few months ago, and I have probably reached an age where I don't particularly care if I fit in (because I don't). I like going places e.g. a choir rehearsal, but I am the pedantic person who writes notes all over their music to remember what the conductor says (poor short-term memory), but if I annoy others with my 'knowledge' I'm not bothered, because I'm not there to please them, or even really to socialise/chat, I'm there to have fun singing in a group.
I also like museums and art galleries, where you can 'be with' something that interests you for a while and immerse yourself in it without any demands to make useless conversation.
Thanks for the comment. Wow I haven't thought about this before, but,,, yeah I think I don't enjoy hanging out with people, socializing (I have few friends who I'd love to meet - once or twice a year). I forgot that socializing is not an obligatory. Thank you!