Hyperlexia in autistic adults

Recently the subject of hyperlexia came up on another thread where I briefly discussed it, but I've since been wondering if it can help mask autism.

Hyperlexia in children is categorized by word reading ability well above what would be expected for their age, and an intense fascination for written material from an early age. It is now thought that there are three types of hyperlexia, and type 2 occurs in children with autism - they often prefer books and magnetic letters over other toys, and frequently remember important numbers like license plates and birth dates.

In adults, hyperlexia includes preferring written communication over verbal conversation, feeling more comfortable writing than speaking, a love of language, patterns & wordplay, and getting lost in a book. Here is a link to a fuller description:

https://www.sagebrushcounseling.com/blog/hyperlexia-in-adults

I'm wondering if an ability to be incredibly articulate in writing helps mask verbal communication problems?

Parents
  • I'm a wordy person, I read and get lost in books, I enjoy word puzzles, I'm interested in word meanings and origins. I have a very good vocabulalry and in many ways I do prefer written communication, especially to the phone, but I'm OK face to face and I rarely have a problem getting across my point, although some people have already made up their minds about something and there's no changing them.

Reply
  • I'm a wordy person, I read and get lost in books, I enjoy word puzzles, I'm interested in word meanings and origins. I have a very good vocabulalry and in many ways I do prefer written communication, especially to the phone, but I'm OK face to face and I rarely have a problem getting across my point, although some people have already made up their minds about something and there's no changing them.

Children
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