I've been occasionally visiting online communities for autistic people and been finding some of the things they talk about relatable. I know there are autistic posters on here so I'd like to ask you some questions.

  1. What are some of the signs of autism?

  2. How to tell the difference between autism and just being an introvert?

  3. Is there any reason to seek autism diagnosis as an adult?

  • Commiejones [comrade/them, he/him]
    ·
    6 months ago

    Autism has many ways of manifesting itself. Its like a grab bag everyone gets a different mix of divergencies. Personally I think most people have a Neuro diverse trait or two and we only get called autistic when we have so much can't hide them.

    I'd say social awkwardness is a common thread. I'm not introverted at all, I don't notice if people want me to shut up.

    Getting more than "yes you are autistic" can be pretty involved and you might have to see a specialist for a while but a proper diagnosis figures out what divergencies you are working which helps you come up with ways to cope with them in the allistic world. Having labels and definitions can put things in context and help you understand why human interactions went the way they did in the past and allow you to prevent undesirable patterns from repeating. Saying "I'm autistic in X way and so I need you to Y" goes a long way.