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What confirmed your own autism suspicions?

Violetfred

Hello, I am very new to all this, so please forgive any faux-pa's I make regarding post-etiquette. 

I am awaiting autism  diagnosis on the NHS. I have read up extensively on the classic signs, but I am curious what specifically confirmed it for you.¹ I have made many analogies to people over the years, as I have struggled to find a cause for what I believe is behind my decades-long battle with anxiety and depression. I am 52 years old

It is like you are walking around in a big spacesuit. You can perform basic tasks but are unable to interact with people on an intimate level. They see you, but are unaware you are in this suit. It's frustrating, as you can see people living their lives, while you can only watch. 

This is the best description of how I feel and it is a desperately lonely place to be. I often contemplate the point of it all when It seems an impossible problem to conquer in an ever increasingly complicated world.

Apologies for the ramble, but it would be nice to know I'm not alone.

Parents

  • First up: Hi! Good to have you here! I’m also fairly new, but as long as you’re keeping the community rules in mind, there are no traps in posting etiquette, just type out what’s on your mind.

    If I’m being honest, my suspicions aren’t confirmed. I’m pretty sure, I have many autistic traits and I relate to the diagnostic criteria, but since I wasn’t able to seek any form of assessment yet, I can’t tell for sure. I like your metaphor and would like to add my favourite one as well:

    It’s like getting a savannah elephant and putting it in the desert where it constantly sees the so-called desert elephants (they are actually the same species and just adapted to different environments). The savannah elephant sees the others and they are surviving just fine. But even though they are the same species, the savannah elephant feels out of place. Additionally, nobody knows why it doesn’t get by as well, they are the same species after all. So nobody feels the need to explain anything and just thinks of the outsider as weird and different. Isolated and lonely, the only thing the savannah elephant can do now, is to mimic others as good as it can. He therefore needs much more energy to perform even the most basic tasks and is unable to truly connect to those around him.

    I’ve got many others, but I like this one (mainly because I love elephants). 

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  • First up: Hi! Good to have you here! I’m also fairly new, but as long as you’re keeping the community rules in mind, there are no traps in posting etiquette, just type out what’s on your mind.

    If I’m being honest, my suspicions aren’t confirmed. I’m pretty sure, I have many autistic traits and I relate to the diagnostic criteria, but since I wasn’t able to seek any form of assessment yet, I can’t tell for sure. I like your metaphor and would like to add my favourite one as well:

    It’s like getting a savannah elephant and putting it in the desert where it constantly sees the so-called desert elephants (they are actually the same species and just adapted to different environments). The savannah elephant sees the others and they are surviving just fine. But even though they are the same species, the savannah elephant feels out of place. Additionally, nobody knows why it doesn’t get by as well, they are the same species after all. So nobody feels the need to explain anything and just thinks of the outsider as weird and different. Isolated and lonely, the only thing the savannah elephant can do now, is to mimic others as good as it can. He therefore needs much more energy to perform even the most basic tasks and is unable to truly connect to those around him.

    I’ve got many others, but I like this one (mainly because I love elephants). 

Children