Should I get a diagnose?

Thanks for sharing the article it’s really helpful. As for hearing that it’s “trendy” to be autistic, sadly I heard sort of such comment from a professional… and it made me even more unwilling to seek such a diagnosis. I felt very much misunderstood and invalidated and also gaslit. So it’s also crucial to find a good therapist. 

It’s your decision of course but in my case for example the diagnosis is not necessary at all. Do your research, test yourself, read and see some other people’s lives experience and see how much you relate and ask yourself how you could benefit from having the diagnosis. See also if having it would possibly not start being a problem for you. I’m not reaching for that for few reasons, one of them is price of it and how hard and complicated it is. But everyone’s situation is different. I have my adjustments at work without showing any paper. Nobody never asked for that but I’m lucky to have understanding and accommodating manager. Knowing how I’m different is very helpful for me. Here are some examples: I know how I’m different and why, now I know what causes me stress and anxiety, I found the emotional wheel with help of other users of this site. This helped me a lot with processing and recognizing my own emotions, strengths and weaknesses. I also Found a Job that suits me, because I have tasks that don’t require much contact with others. And I’m good at that and I’m valued for my work. I just concentrate on improving the quality of my life without going for official diagnosis and it’s working. Maybe I will do it in the future if I need it. I can recommend you channel “autism from the inside” by Paul Micalleff on YouTube. Really good content 

Just to say that I don't believe that you absolutely need to have a diagnosis to get "reasonable adjustments" at work. Even if you do have a formal diagnosis, you still have to work out how it affects you specifically at work and how things can be tweaked at work so that you can function better. This might be done through an occupational health assessment which can also be done without a formal diagnosis, though a diagnosis should undoubtedly make the procedure easier in terms of providing evidence of your disability.

Note that disability in the Equality Act is not defined in terms of having any particular diagnosis, but in terms of whether you have a mental or physical impairment which has a substantial, long-term effect on your ability to carry out everyday activities. That can be evident without a diagnosis, and a diagnosis in itself may not say much about how you yourself are affected.

The key thing is that if you are struggling at work because of any disability (which can be evidenced in various ways besides a diagnosis of autism), you might refer yourself for an occupational health assessment to see what can be done. I've been through the process: it's hard!

Welcome to the community!

I recommend reading through the NAS's (recently updated) advice about the pros and cons of seeking a diagnosis:

https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/diagnosis/before-diagnosis/deciding-whether-to-seek-an-autism-assessment

It includes links to screening tools that are commonly used within the NHS and by autism assessors (I suggested starting with the AQ-10, which was used by my GP - for example - to confirm suitability for referral), along with plenty of links to related guidance and support.

NAS95082 said:

Should I get a diagnose for autism at this stage of my life?

I would do a bit more research first, starting with doing one of the free online autism tests to see if you score high enough to make it worth considering seriously. Search for terms like "free online autism test AQ 10" as this is a simplified version of the test that makes up part of the assessment.

I've noticed some sites give different results based on exactly the same input so I would note your answers and try more than one site to be confident in the results.

Regardless of the test results it sounds like you would benefit from understanding what the signs are of autism since it is quite possible to have a number of these but not severe enough to meet the criteria for a diagnisis. This is because autism is a spectrum condition and the label of "autistic" in our medical community is basically a label that you have enough traits at a severe enough level to be disabled.

Lots of people are not at this level but still have the traits and getting help for any of these that cause you an issue is a good idea.

There is a good breakdown of the traits here to help you identify:

https://www.cdc.gov/autism/signs-symptoms/index.html

The diagnosis is useful if you are seeking something called "reasonable adjustments" at work such as being able to wear earphones to block noise. have different lighting or possibly a bit more remote work but for those who don't need much help it has limited use.

Understanding yourself with how autism affects you and how to find better coping techniques is where the real benefit comes and is where I suggest you start.

Lastly, if you do identify with a lot of the traits on the list then I would recommend speaking with a therapist with expereience of autism and work through some of the issues with them. Quite a lot of people here struggle when they realise they are autistic as they have identify issues so a therapist is a good way to navigage this stage.