Discovering how autism affects you - strategy needed

Hi I am doing it for me so I know how autism affects me in all of the sub headings within autism

/thank you. This is really helpful

Thank you I will try this

I can only say what I did when filling in the background questionnaire for my autism assessment. I looked through the diagnostic manual ICD-10 for the criteria for diagnosing ASD. Then I fitted my traits and history into all the necessary sub-sections. That way the organisation is already done for you.

Are you doing this for you, or is this a form you need to fill in for some reason?

Hello kayaker, here are a few thoughts that may help:

kayaker said:

I am struggling with my identity as I don’t know where to start and how to record the information.

I'm assuming you are talking about your autistic identity so I'll work with this.

I would start by looking at the list of traits that come with autism and see which ones you have that are noticable - write these down in a list (maybe use a word processer) and number them from 1 to, well whatever the last one is. The list can be found here:

https://thespectrum.org.au/autism-diagnosis/checklist-adults/

Next start a section for each trait - use the description as the title of that section and write out how it presents itself for you. Maybe give it a rating of 1 to 5 for how much of a problem if can be for you (1 = minor annoyance, 5 = disabling).

Once complete, you now have more or less a snapshot of what autism if for you in a very rough form. It can be much more nuanced than this of course as some elements will affect others in positive or negative ways, but you at least have it all in one place.

Next, to understand more about the most troublesome traits I would use a book like:

Autism For Dummies (2025) - ISBN 9781394301003 (paberback); ISBN 9781394301027 (ebook)

Which has a very easy to lookup format and saves you having to read loads of chapters to get to what you need. It should give you the most important info quickly.

By the end of this you will probably be a bit overwhelmend so take a good break, save any files you wrote and come back to them when you have relaxed and go through them again.

The last step I would take for now is to try to get a therapist who really understands autism, run through the list with them and ask for help in formulating a strategy to help. They will know how to ask the right questions and can often help you think of other things to add, then build a plan to help you work on yourself if that is what you want.

Some people only want to vent, some want to be acknowledged, some to be pushed a bit into taking action and some want to get stuck in to the work - plus a few other variants. Your therapist should be able to identify this in you and adapt the therapy to suit.

This is all in the opinion of some random person from the internet so don't take it as fact - do your own research and reach your own conclusions please.

Good luck

Thank you. In essence I need to come up with a list of the different areas of autism I think so I can then start filling in each area how it affects me. I'm finding it very over whelming to start

Everyone is different.

Just write down what you like and don't like as you think of them. It will takes weeks. E.g.

1. Soft clothes feel nice
2. Don't like getting wet
3. Walk on toes when barefoot
4. Playing with tassels/bears/pen feels good, standing outside in the sun feels good/bad
5. Am too hot/ cold in bed and can't sleep
6. Overhead light is too bright, lamps are ok.
7. I like to spend 30 mins alone after getting home.
8. I don't like my shoes.

Then note down things that cause feelings. E.g.

1. Got asked to do something new at work, heart rate went up,
2. Loud noise makes mafe me feel stressed
3. Caffeine makes me have more negative thoughts 
4. A glass of wine makes me feel calm
5. I feel anxious, I didn't sleep well last night.
6. It's hard to pay the bills

Then you can start thinking about how to mitigate them. So avoid loud noises, wear earplugs, take 2 minutes to calm yourself afterwards -step outside, take 5 deep breathes, think of something nice.

Have decaffeinated coffee, have a glass of wine a few times each week, try to get better sleep.

Have a fidget toy. Plan each day in advance, ask for better notice instructions. Give yourself more time or leeway. Use leave smarter. Make more time for yourself. 

Set up direct debits. Have better sleep hygiene.

You can also search on YouTube for videos about autism or autistic accommodations. There are quite a few to get you started.

The things you like or don't like will come out of this. E.g. like reading, don't like cinema, like ice skating, don't like pub, like walks in country, like tea shop, like knitting, like flowers, don't like cycling.

Only you know what causes you anxiety and problems and what you like.

The main thing is to show yourself some compassion if you struggle with something, and to vote how you feel. Anxious, heart rate up, sleepy, happy, calm, etc. It takes time.