Diagnosis: Autism
Posted on May 24th, 2010 in Autism & HealthA few people might know by now that I am autistic. I have only been officially diagnosed about 2 weeks ago but it was something I have suspected for quite some time. Because of this suspicion I requested a referral to an institute specialized in adult autism diagnosis. This refferal ultimately resulted in an expected diagnosis of Autism.
The reactions of some people on my diagnosis have been weird to say the least. At first some stated they don’t think I “have” autism, and now, after the diagnosis, they react like I am somehow different than before.
This is nonsense of course but it has in such a short time already made clear to me that there is much ignorance and, as a result, prejudice surrounding autism, especially concerning some social aspects.
For example; most autistic people (me included) have a profound lack of empathic abilities. Our (apparent lack of) reaction to other peoples emotional states can often be wrongly interpreted as being rude or anti-social.
I feel the need to state that we (or at least the most of us) do care about other people’s feelings, but we are simply unable to tune in to the other person’s emotional state. We might even be completely unaware of the emotion, even when we are the cause.
The short documentary “Autism Reality” by Alex Plank gives a short and insightful view on autism.
Especially the comment on how mentally exhausting it is to act normal was immediately very recognizable to me. Like most in my position I have learned scripts for social interaction by observing other people. Making eye contact for example, does not come naturally to me and it is a conscious process. Concentrating on someone speaking to me and “acting normal” is therefore mentally hard work and sometimes I can simply not keep up…
For now, let me conclude with this; there are a lot of aspects to autism, both good and bad. Autism in itself is neither good nor bad and, in my opinion, not a disorder but a difference.
I hope you keep that in mind next time you see me or another autistic person!
I am probably somewhere along the spectrum myself, but I have never risked a true diagnosis. What (finally) prompted you to seek a referral? Now that you have confirmed what you suspected, how will your life change (do you think)?
Good luck!
Thank you, I have always felt different but reasoned that my past experiences (being a cancer survivor since age 10) were the cause. The possibility of autism simply didn’t occur to me until I encountered a few autistic people. Upon discussing my suspicion with my parents, they confirmed that I had shown autistic traits since I was a baby. A diagnosis was never made because I never had any problems in coping with life. After reading more on the subject I was certain this explained a lot about me, but I wanted to be sure. So I decided that on my next check-up in the hospital I would ask for a referral, they gave me one without hesitation.
I believe it will help me understand myself and others better and maybe it will help others to understand me better too. Another hope I have is that I will be able to prevent problems or more effectively deal with problems related to autism, knowing where problems can arise. Luckily I haven’t had many problems yet!
Going through the diagnosis was exciting but also scary as the outcome might not be as expected. My only advise to you and anyone else is that if you choose to seek a diagnosis, to seek it where there are psychologists specialized in autism.