I’ve been internet-diagnosed with autism plenty of times, but the one time I went to get evaluated, they said I didn’t have “it.”

But if it’s a spectrum with different combinations of different traits at different levels of intensity, maybe a diagnosis is irrelevant and what matters is what your constellation of traits actually is, regardless of an official diagnosis (which, let’s face it, is probably highly subjective outside of some constellations–that is to say, with a long enough list of psychologits, I could probably get a dx).

Personally, for me, what this means is I can look to autistic literature to see what resonates with me without worrying about the fact that I don’t share many of the hard markers for autism. For instance, my investment in the truth often conflicts with social niceties even though I can read people’s emotions. I can see myself as an unofficially atypical person in a lot of ways.

I’ll leave my resonsances in the comments below. Feel free to share yours.

  • Swaus01@piefed.socialEnglish
    1·
    3 days ago
    I don't think i'm autistic but i think i can clearly articulate why i might seem autistic to some people. This is just going to be me listing off traits. I am however diagnosed moderate ADHD
    • i like lists and categorising things. I went through a big phase of teenagehood where i liked to rank and classify things, because i had just discovered tierlists
    • I like speaking and communicating very formally and properly.
    • quiet speaking voice
    • speach tics/saying or repeating phrases for tiny crumbs of dopamine
    • mentally tired from talking a lot or doing a task i’m not interested in. Also get tired very easily, i’m hoping this is an allergy thing because it’s a nee problem and i’ve been trying to solve this problem with my doctors a lot this year)
    • take pride in being smart and knowing things including “fun facts” especially if it’s a quirky history thing. Counterpoint: this is less about the factoids themselves, and more about if there’s an interesting story to tell around something.
    • big human driven system things like workplaces, legal systems, national bureacracy, educational institutions and systems, they really interest me. As does politics.
    • actually put effort into school, act focused and interested in uni and did so at school. Neurotyoicals seem to hate people doing this, which is ironic because they would traditionally have been labelled as disruptive ADHD sufferers. Either everyone has adhd nowadays or neurotypicals just love making school worthless to go to.
    • Arcanepotato@crazypeople.onlineEnglish
      4·
      3 days ago

      take pride in being smart and knowing things including “fun facts” especially if it’s a quirky history thing. Counterpoint: this is less about the factoids themselves, and more about if there’s an interesting story to tell around something.

      My mom is visiting and I’m realizing that I only want to talk to her if it’s about concrete topics (which could include concrete but does not include any discussion about myself lol). It has nothing to do with her, rather that people I deal with in my daily life know better than to attempt that conversation pathway because I will just glitch lol