Published on 12, July, 2020
I already made a similar post about this (called “Am I autistic or just adhd?”) but I wanted to go more in depth and neater on this following autistic signs and symptoms—the dsm-5 explanation of autism is too clinical and vague for me to understand fully, so this is what you get. Quick disclaimer: I’m not looking to be diagnosed online, just peer reviewed. If any of this sounds like autism then I’ll probably try to look into getting an assessment, if not I’ll stick to just getting tested for adhd as I originally planned
I do have some level of difficulty expressing emotions, which I’m sure would be a surprise to my friends and family. I usually copy other people’s expressions and force myself to perform facial emotion in conversation. If I’m happy, I do naturally smile, laugh, stim, etc, but generally speaking, I don’t naturally express that much emotion through my face, since my natural baseline mood is flat and neutral, and this probably reflects itself on my face
I also feel like I have some issues interpreting other people’s facial expressions, depending on the person and context. I am pretty good at deciphering expressions within my immediate family, but there are still micro expressions that I struggle to understand, and I still overthink my answers, often unconsciously inputting a negative bias onto interactions and expressions. With people outside my family, it’s harder. I can decode social cues and expressions if I’m paying attention, but I don’t feel like it comes naturally. I think I’m only as “skilled” as I am through my study of psychology and body language in years past, as well as using pattern recognition to see when a friend is down through their previous behaviors. It’s also difficult to tell when a person is laughing at a joke I made or if they’re laughing at me—often I can’t tell, and have to assume the best for the sake of my own mental health
Things this didn’t mention:
None of us here are therapists (at least I don't think so) Get on to your GP about it so the process can start