In short: mild autism is when other people can't really tell that you have autism, and you are semi-independent. In the DSM I'm pretty sure there are these three "levels" which categorize the severity of a persons Autism, level one would be classed as mild.
Level 1: “Requiring support”
Without supports in place, deficits in social communication cause noticeable impairments. Difficulty initiating social interactions, and clear examples of atypical or unsuccessful responses to social overtures of others. May appear to have decreased interest in social interactions. For example, a person who is able to speak in full sentences and engages in communication but whose to-and-fro conversation with others fails, and whose attempts to make friends are odd and typically unsuccessful.
. The signs were all there for me growing up, but when I got older I've learned to manage and hide it from other people. Almost nobody knows I have this; at worst, a few teachers over the years though I may have been an aspie. It wasn't until I took the AQ test myself, and looked back throughout my life, to which I came to the self-conclusion that I have autism.
To put it a different way, it's basically just Aspergers but with the addition of asociality, mild IQ deficit, occasional monotone speech, usually a high level of verbal ability, some lack of eye contact, awkward but not inept etc.
Another interesting thing to mention about having an ASD is that, by definition, almost everyone has a bit of autism (i.e. they score >0 on the AQ test), but not enough for a full diagnosis. I scored 32 personally, which has stayed steady when I've re-taken the test in the future.
know what I mean?
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"Subclinical autistic traits" (atypical autism).
Normal intelligence, social and language development.
"vulnerable narcissistic defenses w/ mild borderline traits"; Body Dysmorphic Disorder, (self-diagnosed).
Our internal representation of reality: (
http://bit.ly/2BJuj5o)