Hi!
New here, i’m 17 and just got diagnosed which i’m aware isn’t super late but still feels like i’m mourning an entire childhood. I’m so angry at the people around me for not realising, it seems so so obvious looking back on it. I had to go through 2 years of complete invalidation in order to get a diagnosis and honestly the process was traumatic. Nobody believed me, not my parents or any of my family, not my teachers or most of my friends, even a few medical professionals brushed me aside once they learned i was an exceptional student saying that i couldn’t possibly be autistic because i “managed to make eye contact” “showed empathy” and “excelled academically”. I knew the entire time, i’ve known for as long as i can remember, that i’m autistic, and even i began to doubt myself (and still do) because of this experience. My diagnosis didn’t even feel as much of a relief as i thought it would, it was more just “yeah… obviously”. it’s been a week since my official diagnosis and i guess i’m just asking for advice on how to move forward, any tips on unmasking would be greatly appreciated and how to find yourself after hiding for almost 18 years! I feel very alone as of right now and it’s not nice at all, i feel like i can’t relate to anyone and nobody else has had a similar experience to me :/
