Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi, I'm Sophie.
I'm in my 30s and was diagnosed a few months ago. Like many people who were late diagnosed I've finally come to terms with the fact that I'm not a broken neurotypical, but a perfectly functioning autistic. I have gradually stopped masking too and now I have fewer but better friends.
I have pretty bad sensory difficulties (airports and public transport are awful) and find humans very complicated (unlike dogs, who are probably better than us).
I am happiest in nature, preferably running. I run very long distances (96 miles in one go is the longest) usually on trails. This coming year I hope to run 100km in less than 8hrs. I am obsessed with everything to do with ultra running, which is extremely useful as I enjoy planning and analysing my training and reading about new and better ways to train. I can't really conceive variations of "a long way", races are either short (I don't need a back pack to carry water etc) or they are long (carrying water, food, jacket etc). So 96 miles doesn't seem any farther than 50.
Keen to learn more about coping with sensory difficulties.
Hello and welcome! I’m female, just turned 39 but I was diagnosed mid December 2018 when I was 37. How are you finding the post diagnosis adjustment process so far?
The diagnostic process made me quite sad as it felt like going over all the times I messed up in the past.
Autism was mentioned in passing when I was in an eating disorder unit 15 years ago, and over the last year or so I came to realise it was extremely likely. When I moved from the country to a city things became really difficult (so much noise, all the time!) so I had to start making adjustments (I run everywhere instead of using public transport, go to the supermarket when Google says it's quiet, do all my other shopping online) and that's when I decided to ask my GP for an assessment.
I also now don't make myself do "normal" social things. I rarely go "out" but do socialise through running. I was lonely when I was trying to be social, now I'm not trying and I'm perfectly happy, which seems weird.
Despite the process of getting diagnosed feeling a bit traumatic (I felt a bit low for a few weeks afterwards) I'm now getting better at "forgiving" myself for all the things (social faux pas mostly) I did in the past that were the result of trying to be someone I'm not. That has been quite liberating.
Hi Sophie! The diagnosis also made me go over many situations in my past that I now realise are due to Autism. I’m sorry to hear about your eating disorder, my eldest who is 22 now and I highly suspect is also on the spectrum, suffered from ED very badly about 5/6 years ago. Luckily she’s in remission now and a lot more aware of her thought processes regarding ED. How is yours now? I mostly socialise with other autistic people now, it’s so much easier! I’ve also found that I’m able to forgive myself or ‘let myself off the hook’ for being different rather than worrying about it, since diagnosis. It certainly helps to know ‘why’.