Signs of autism in your childhood

TheCatWoman said:

I said I didn't and only ate them first so as I had the rest of my dinner to take the taste away

So much me with potato purée! Whenever I visited my auntie she always prepared that and was happy that I always ate it first but I didn’t dare tell her that I hate it. I only liked it when I was pregnant. 

I was painfully shy and reserved. I was selectively mute at Infant school, on and off. I enjoyed spinning round and round in the playground. At home I liked being in enclosed spaces, such as cupboards, my wardrobe and an old linen basket with a hinged lid. I could fit in the linen basket with a book or comic. I had little interest in food before I was about eight years old, ate very little and was very picky about what I ate. I was obsessed with animals, and spent a lot of time wading in ponds and at various times had newts, frogs, lizards, water insects and even an injured hedgehog.

The first day of nursery school was when I knew I was different, I felt nothing in common with the other children.

Infant school was the same, I didn’t play with the other children. I played chess when the teacher while the rest of the class was happy with plasticine. I remember doing PE indoors in the hall, it was to be done in bare feet. I think that is the first meltdown I can remember, from then on I was allowed to wear plimsolls. I still never go barefoot.
I didn’t see other children in school holidays, I preferred to be on my own doing my own hobbies. I found food a challenge, I preferred to eat the different items of meal in order of importance, both of my adult children also do this.

School reports mostly just stated I was quiet and didn’t join in, I think the general was “ he doesn’t make his presence felt in the classroom.” My parents had zero interest in my school work, I can’t remember ever having a story book read to me.

Houses never had showers when I was a child but once they did become the norm I tried but knew it was never going to happen again. I could never workout why I couldn’t catch, throw or kick a ball, running was another challenge.

I was OK with most foods, obviously there are some you just don't like, like, bananas and  sardines in tomato sauce, but I was also of the generation that ate what was put in front of us. My Dad once said that I must really like sprouts and was astonished when I said I didn't and only ate them first so as I had the rest of my dinner to take the taste away.

I was very isolated as a child and only ever played with 1 other child before I started school. I hated school, it was so loud and I was totally overwhelmed, it took me ages to make any friends. Later on, when I was about 9-10 I overheard that I was known as 'the weird girl', I think some of that was because my home life was so different to that of my "friends", not always in a bad way, but not living in a council house, not having a car, or going on holiday, watching BBC rather than ITV.

I was always suseptable to getting over exicited, at times watching Scooby Doo would leave me unable to sit still. I also got overwhelming feeling of dread and discomfort at knowing how something would end and still having to watch, listen or read it, like a slow motion car crash, I still get that. I got increasingly nervous too, again that could have other reasons. 

I used to do repeat a lot of things, stuff like sewing, I would do the same patterns over and over and would get really upset if somebody changed or interfeared with it, I had things that had to be done in a certan way.

I'm certain that I've always been this way, not helped by my strange upbringing, but so many things could have been different, I was never encouraged to do anything, any time I expressed an interest in something , I was put off of it and the gods forbid I ever made an exhibition of myself!

My Mum recently cleared out her loft and found the majority of my school reports, not as eye opening as I’d hoped in regards of maybe using them as evidence for getting an assessment. 

One of my favourite comments is from Year 3 - “Katie does not much enjoy PE, she does however always join in.”

My Mum said that teacher was always flabbergasted by my complete lack of ability including not being able to walk in a straight line 

Where do I start?

Yes, I had issues with coordination during PE too.

According to my parents, I lost the verbal skills I'd acquired, and stopped talking, at 18 months. I slowly got those back, but then developed obsessions with numbers, letters of the alphabet, and was prone to huge tantrums.

The smell of fried food, in lard or butter, used to make me feel sick. And I've never been able to stand eggs, especially not fried eggs. That didn't go dgoen very well in my family. We were guilt tripped over starving children in other countries too. 

At secondary school. I was bullied a lot, became a pariah really. Fun.

At uni and beyond I got it in the neck for avoiding eye contact. I had plenty of ADHD issues too, like being absent minded, zoning out, and forgetting and losing things such as PE outfits, scarves, keys.

But unless you remained non verbal, pushing cars around in the corner, non of this would be seen as autism. And it's highly unlikely I'll ever be diagnosed as an adult, there is stuff on my medical notes from the time I was sent to psychologists, shrinks etc, but I have been living abroad since 1996, permanently from 1999. 

I had some speech delay. Till 3 I didn’t speak at all and very little bubbling. Suddenly at around age 3 started talking with full sentences. Some sort of anomaly, might be related to autism I think. And I didn’t like being hugged as a baby and toddler. Still not accepting hugs just like that. Only very few people in my family have a right to hug me. 

Unknown said:

Stuttering - yes

I put a question mark on stuttering as I'm not sure whether it is a sign.

My assessor asked about speech delay as a child but I couldn't remember - so I told him about stuttering.

I wonder if it is related.

I know that I couldn't get a word in edgeways in my house and I think that was partly the reason I found it hard to talk.

When I was relaxed though and with my 'chosen' friend I could talk the hind legs off a donkey.

I am much quieter now.

I kept my school reports, going back to my junior school, for half a century and then unfortunately threw them away a few years before my diagnosis.

Teachers were very honest in those days and I think it would be very interesting indeed to be able to read them now and see the signs that they may have pointed out.

I remember 3 points from my junior (ie before 12) reports:

If Debra put a quarter of the energy she puts into talking into her school work she would do very well.

Although not physically well co-ordinated, Debra enjoys Physical Education (sports).

Debra appears to enjoy time spent with her very small amount of chosen friends (something like that, but it was actually one).

Does anyone else still have their school reports or remember anything from them?

Alien0n3arth said:

you posted this thread at the best moment for me! It means a lot to me exactly now! Thank you!

I'm really pleased to hear that and it has therefore been the greatest achievement of my day

Stuttering - yes
Watching what was a lot of TV in the late 1950s and early 1960s
Bad sleeping as a baby and toddler -yes

Being bullied

   you posted this thread at the best moment for me! It means a lot to me exactly now! Thank you!

For me it was best play with a boy. My mom had two friends (she had more) but these two had sons in more or less my age. It was action and a lot of fun with car accidents, building houses etc. and the boy let me play his cars and other toys and he was proud when I complemented them. Unlike my female cousin- don’t touch my toys! You gonna break them! 

Bad sleeping as a baby. Very fussy eater. Couldn’t eat lots of foods because they felt weird. Obsessions. It was all there.  I am angry I was born when I was as I believe an earlier diagnosis would have made my life easier to a degree.  I have messed up so many jobs and courses are I burned out on them and didn’t know why I couldn’t do what normal people do. 

I'll have a think about mine - I thought up so many since my diagnosis.

I'm replying here because it's amazing how someone else's experience makes you realise something new about your own.

'only able to interact with one child' - YES!! That was me too!

Not playing with the group of children, only able to interact with one child, Sensitive to noises (panic attacks, crying) , struggling to accept disruptions in a routine (for example school trip) living in my own world having specific interest such as trams, magnets and later architecture. Not willing to interact with peers, but with adults instead. Being bullied. Studying furniture in someone’s house as a guest. Being annoyed by seems in clothes but also able To recreate the process of making clothes just from watching them hanging in the shop.