Aspergers traits in adult females?

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Was just wondering if any of these would apply to an adult female with possible Aspergers,
1. repeats herself often. says the same sayings, words a lot or goes on about the same topic.
2. is fascinated by bright colours , glitter, soft textures
3. dislikes loud noises to a certain degree of thundering, lightning is easily startled by am ambulance going past for example.
4. wears the same clothes often buys the same jewellery,clothes but in different colours
5. has obessieve interests
6 gets overly attached to males if straight.
7. struggles to find her place in the world, feels misplaced on the planet, but is fascinated about space and whats out there, more so then other people.
8 struggles in social situations, understanding jokes, or unable to keep track of more than one convo and gets confused.
9. will shut down when overwhelmed becomes distant quiet, and will retreat to her own space. complains of lights being too bright and eye sight too vivid.
10. fidgets often even as an adult,
11. experiences heightened anxiety an depression
12. watches and listens to the same movies and music over and over again
13. does not handle it well being in a packed out club/ place
14. does not like eye contact with strangers, and only fleeting eye contact with family and friends.
15. is parnoid about trying new foods
16 tends to overshare her business
17 talks over people, struggles to know when to talk on the phone.
I've never been actively diagnoised with AS but been told by people this is all of what I do..
are any of these possible signs/ outcomes?

All of these are possibly signs of Asperger's.

Many of them sound a bit like me and I was officially diagnosed a little less than a year ago.

Thank you for replying yeah I'm 24 , and I've known all my life something isn't right I obsess over my health too , when I have panic attacks it has to be something else. I've also been abused took advantage of by others an can get carried away in sexual situations I also took that quiz few months back am also scored likely aspie so yeah it's likely iam

I am not formally diagnosed, but have my diagnosis appointment one week today. I have put in bold all of the ones that describe me.

Most of those sound like me. I think that they are all possible signs of Asperger's Syndrome.

Thankyou all for the replies,
I can't be diagnosed yet because im mentally unwell with Agoraphobia due to being abused by an ex 4 years ago, and unable to get out easy now without panic attacks, my last grandmother has had a huge stroke so this has also mentally disturbed me. I don't cope well with death at all, and I'm dreading the day it is my grandmother's time. I believe in God, but I often do ask why me, and why do people take advantage of me , and why did I have to get abused, Being finally noised as an Aspergers would be a eye opener for me, and finally my family may be abit more understanding of why I'm so odd in their words. But at the moment I can't be diagnosed because of being Agoraphobic is the pyschologist's main aim, she suspects I could be mildly autistic, but I won't be assessed till a later date.
So please let me know if possible how your assessment went for autism,

sorry for mis-spellings my laptop spazzed out
but you get what I mean,
I also am quite gifted in the subject Art/drawing cartoons
I can draw disney stuff and paint most disney stuff to a very good outcome.
I have always interested in art since a young age and my drawing skills have always been impressive,
what really intrigued my therapist is the fact I can draw naturally and learnt myself, I wasn't taught how to draw the way I can it was through deep practice and dedication, which I think is perhaps something else seen in Aspergers with a deep interest,
Also I have always been overly interested in butterfiles, where I will colour pictures of them alot, draw them, have clothes and items with butterfiles on too.

Greetings. I bolded the ones I am, though I am not an adult yet (will be next year though). Some of them I bolded, but not fully them, like 6 and 7. Some of the are 100% me (1, 5, 10, 11, 12, 14 (kinda yes), 16, 17). There are links on the internet that explain symptoms of Aspergers in females (though if your region uses the DSM, Aspergers doesn't exist anymore). Here are some links I found to sites that list a bunch of symptoms of female Aspergers:
http://www.help4aspergers.com/pb/wp_a58 ... d4f6a.html
https://everydayaspergers.com/2012/02/1 ... les-girls/
https://taniaannmarshall.wordpress.com/ ... -syndrome/

I like the first link the best, but you make relate more to the third link, I am unsure. I found that I fit 95% of the things in the first link. Some I can't say, like stuff about adulthood, but basically everything else is me. I am officially diagnosed, after a year or so pondering. But hope this information helps

I dont have trouble with facial expressions, tho i do struggle with empathy and putting myself in other people's shoes as it often feels overwhelming to me, do all autistic's struggle with defining facial expressions??

Again, not diagnosed currently, but in case my experience is any use...

I don't believe I have any trouble with facial expressions. If anything, I pick up on subtleties that people don't realise they're showing. Facial expressions have always been my indicator when I've said something that hasn't gone down well (though, equally, if I'm so wrapped up in getting what I'm saying out of my mouth then I can sometimes not be focused enough to notice).

Tone of voice I am utterly useless with, but facial expressions I find quite easy to read.

I find I am most of these things except the being overly attached to males and wearing jewelry thing. I prefer comfortable, casual clothes and jewelry is anything but, although I like shiny or sparkly things.

I am often suspicious of foods I've never tried and I absolutely loathe the phrase "How do you know you won't like it if you don't try it?" Well how do I know I *will* like it? And if it's something that looks or smells incredibly vile or has fish in it, than it's a pretty accurate guess that I won't like it.

I'm not really afraid of thunder and lightning, it's usually man-made loud sudden noises that make me jump, like car horns, which I know some people blast at me just to be jerks.

I don't really have a hard time understanding jokes and I enjoy telling them, however. But the only way I could tell them to a group of people and actually have them listen and acknowledge my existence is by doing stand-up.

What I bolded is basically what I experience myself. I suspect that I have Asperger Syndrome myself, but I am actually diagnosed as having an autistic disorder (which isn't considered as Asperger Syndrome but classic autism in some ways).

I know other traits for me is that I'm also overly childish. Most of my interests as well as how I do things tends to be very childish/child-like. I love anything that most younger children would be into. I also have what most would consider as a security blanket that I sleep with each night. I watch Disney Junior on a daily basis as well. I just really enjoy things that or under my general age level (I'm 27). I don't know if this part of AS in women as well per se... but I know it's something that is a concern for me.

There isn't really one symptom as specific as struggles with facial expressions that all autistics have. General symptoms across the five diagnostic criteria are the thing, and this falls under the difficulty adapting to social situations category. Which, on your list, you qualify in other specifics; #6 - #8 are examples.

My official diagnostic assessment--I'll try to remember. It was about a year ago. I meant to write up a comprehensive description of it here on wp right after it happened, when it was fresh in my memory. But things happened and I was unable to get on the Internet much right then. By the time I was back online a lot, much of the experience had faded.

OK, let's see...
My first visit was a getting to know the psychiatrist thing, a lot of general questions not unlike a review of symptoms. Alert and oriented x3, well appearing adult female, appearing somewhat younger than her stated age of forty-six, comments on how I was dressed and groomed and whether my affect was flat or dysthymic (I don't think it was, if I recall correctly I was a bit emotional and fighting tears at times so more likely emotionally dis-regulated or something like that was probably what she put down). That sort of thing.

She asked me about bring in a specialist who would administer the more targeted Asperger's diagnostic tests and I agreed. So third visit, he was there, and I think it was about five hours of testing. Some of it felt like I was in pre-school again, with building blocks and flashcards and picture books.

There was a picture book with flying frogs, and I was asked to tell story as I turned pages. I believe this is to see if you are capable of imaginative intelligence. It was easier to just describe what I saw on each page, but I did some speculative storytelling as well. I like telling story but have a hard time coming up with an original kernel of idea to build off of.

Then there were pictures of people in settings such as park, beach and cityscape and I was to describe each picture and talk about the people and what they were doing and what was going on.
They tested my working memory with lots of flash cards. There would be a group of pictures I would look at, then they'd take it away and show one picture at a time and ask if each had been in the original group.
Then there would be a pack of flash cards attached like a spiral notebook showing one simple picture at a time for fifty pictures, then the next fifty pages would have two pictures on each page and I was to point to the one that had been among the first set of fifty pages. There were two books like that.
They did the same thing with just words; I was given a list of twelve or fifteen words, the psychiatrist would repeat the list then ask me to repeat it back to her. We would do another thing, then ask how many of the words from the first list I could remember. She said I didn't have to repeat it in the same order. Then we'd do another thing, and then she would repeat the list in a different order and ask me to repeat it back to her again. It was a list that could be broken down into three or four categories, so I found it easier to remember it in groups; four items of furniture, four animals, four modes of transportation--categorizing it like that made it easier to remember. I think it may have been part of the diagnostic criteria for that part of the test, actually--whether you recited the list back in the order you'd first heard it, or whether you re-organized it by category. Then she would say random similar words and ask if they were part of the list. Like the original list had horse, zebra, giraffe and cow, along with the other eleven words, and she would ask if goat were one of the words. Then she would say the original list again and I would repeat it.
Then there was a second group of words, the same length, which could also be broken down into four categories. I was asked the same questions, along with the question as to whether the word was part of the first wordlist or the second.
This test was interspersed with the others, so that my mind would be on other things and then the attempt to bring it back to the wordlists. Probably testing my ability to transition between tasks as well as testing my memory.

There was a complex line drawing, based on a pentagon like a house lying on one side, but with other shapes projecting from a side or a corner, and divided internally, with patterns drawn in. I was asked to copy it out on my own sheet of paper. Then both the original and my copy were hidden and I was asked to redraw it from memory. We would again go to a different activity, then I would be asked to draw the shape from memory again to see how well I remembered it. I drew that thing at least five times throughout the course of the assessment.

There were two or three vocabulary tests, one of which only involved the pronunciation of words. There were only two words on it that I didn't recognize, and one of them I was able to define by breaking it down etymologically. Other word lists I was to say what I thought the word meant, or I was given between two and four possible meanings and select the best definition, or come up with a homonym. I think there might have been a list where I was to spell the word, but I'm not sure about that. I'm good with language, so I did well on that part of the test.

There was a three-part reading/color test, where first I read the list of the words red, green and blue repeated over and over again--three columns so it ended up being sixty words altogether.
The second sheet showed the colors, but the word red would be green, the word blue would be red, the word green would be blue, and I was to read the word but not the color. I had to do it as fast as I could, and sometimes my eyes would see the color red and want to say red even though it was the word green or blue spelled out in red letters.
The third page was the same as the second, but this time I was to say the color of the letters no matter what the word was. This was even harder; I wanted to say red if the word red was green, blue if the word green was blue etc.

There was a spacial comprehension test, with foam shape blocks and patterns on paper. I was to arrange the blocks so they would match the paper.
There was a similar test with red and white cubes. Each cube had a red face, a white face, and faces that were bisected red and white either diagonally or vertically. There were, once again, patterns drawn on paper, and I arranged the cubes to match the pattern on the paper. This was timed, and they also made note of whether it went together on my first go or whether I'd make a false start and have to take it apart and start over if it didn't work.

There was a long, long written test with many many statements that are fairly typical on a psychiatry exam, the kind where you rate it 1-5 with 1 being never, 3 meaning sometimes and 5 meaning always. You know, like I worry about things, I am sad or empty, I feel irritated when things are out of place, I like to watch running water, I like to watch things burn, I like to sit by myself in the dark, I obsess over social injustice, I have weird or disturbing dreams, I prefer to confront people directly when I have an issue with them, I prefer bright and vibrant colors to pale or muted ones, I was bullied in school, I like/understand/relate to animals better than to people, I struggle with thoughts about hurting people, it's hard for me to fall asleep because I can't switch off my mind et cetera ad nauseum. That was a long one.

I was also asked to stand up and demonstrate, and describe verbally while I did it, what it is like to brush your teeth. The steps to doing that basic self-care test, both in words and in motions. That one made me feel like I was about seven years old. Lots of the formal assessment did, actually.

There were more specific tasks and tests; I'm having trouble remembering any of the other particulars at the moment. I know there was more, though.

Anyway I did receive back an assessment with recommendations, a summary of which appears in my signature. It would be called Asperger's if Asperger's hadn't been taken out of the DMV. As it is, I am considered a Level One Autistic, without language impairment or learning disability, requiring some support. It said I should seek some accommodations from my employer, but didn't specify anything.

On your list, I relate to #1, #2 somewhat, #3 (although I don't mind thunder and lightning there are other noises that get to me), #5, #7, #8 (another specific example for me is I can't for the life of me tell fun teasing from bullying to serious criticism and correction), #9, #11, #12, #13 (my husband had to physically escort me out of Pike Place Market a few summers ago. My daughters were very disappointed as they were excited to see it but I was freaking out about all the strangers brushing elbows with me), #14, #15, #16 (when I do talk at all I overdisclose, so I talk less and less) and #17. It's no fun when they have me answer phones at work because I suck at knowing when it's my turn to talk and when I need to listen. So there are awkward silences alternating with me and the person on the other line talking over eachother.

Anyway I do think it likely that after you and your psychologist work through the agoraphobia thing, you will test positive for Autism as well.

Hope this helps.

All ring true but 7, 14 & 15.

In regards to 7, 1/2 true in struggle to find my place in the world, but I think that even those who do not have this wiring might feel this way at times. The difference is, I feel it all the time?

I’ve won the battle over eye contact. I may struggle to find my place in this world, but my focus is not on what is out there in outer space.

#14 was the battleground for me. I made myself make eye contact to, first, the point of extreme discomfort (sweats, shakes, red face, anxiety) after hiding my face behind others when i was a child. Shy was what they called me. Now I can stare and make eye contact with the best of them. For me, it's both a handy tool in trying to read someone, and also a way to disguise my wiring and blend in. You can get more information from observing a person, even if it is uncomfortable.

Is it possible (I am 62) to break oneself of not being able to make eye contact, if you work many years. It was for me. Much work, much fear and anxiety. So the tests, won't show that and will take my score lower. For at this age, I have relearned by myself how to fit in and blend. I still cannot be socially acceptable and must take care not to speak at times. It's a hell of a lot of work. I read customers rather well to size them up for a sale, but that is a short swim. Put me in a room socially and if I do not stay quiet, the act is up rather soon, and I don't even see it coming in their facial responses.

So from my perspective being on the border of the Aspie test, and having beat this out of me to a certain point.. it is possible to blend, no matter how uncomfortable you are still inside.

I did it for work. I did it well. Well, maybe not so well as other co-workers tagged me as not normal? Not socially acceptable.. something being off. But, for a shorter conversation, swim with someone from mainstream society, it was possible to put it on long enough to make a sale.. Hell.. to be at least #2 in sales in any company that I have worked for!

But hell, it is work. Certainly not worth putting on the dog to have someone, a group or individual accept me for someone I am not. What is the benefit of that... they like you, they accept you, but it's not really you they like, but the image you force forward?

I used to do this when I had obsessions but it was based on impulsivity, not unawareness. I do sometimes repeat phrases.


I'm fascinated or mesmerised by bright colours, and I do love teddy bears.


Thundering and lightning doesn't bother me but I don't like sudden loud noises like an ambulance suddenly turning on its siren as it passes me. I also find it hard to ignore certain loud noises like crying babies and loud motorcycles.


Not sure if this is strictly an AS trait as different people have different tastes, but if choice of clothing is sensory-related then it might be more of an AS thing.


I had obsessive interests from the ages of 11-25, but my obsessions have always revolved around people.


Um...is this AS??


I've always been more interested in people and social interaction.


It depends on the environment. If I'm socialising in a crowded bar or club I don't feel comfortable and I don't always know what to do or what to say, but if I'm socialising otherwise I'm OK and do enjoy it.


I've never had sensory issues with light, in fact no light is ever too bright for me. I have been overwhelmed before by things but it doesn't make me become distant or quiet, although it can affect my mood like I can begin to feel agitated or irritable.


O have ADHD so I just put it down to that.


Yes I have experienced anxiety and depression. I have an anxiety disorder.

Not excessively.


I'm not keen on any clubs or bars.


I generally avoid eye contact with passing strangers unless someone is asking me for directions or whatever, but I don't have trouble with eye contact otherwise.

I can be paranoid but I have emetophobia (fear of vomiting). I'm more paranoid about how things are cooked.


I do tend to overshare my business and feelings.

I'm rather easy to talk to and don't often interrupt or talk over people. I'm good at having long conversations with a close relative or friend over the phone.

I'm not sure if this list accurately describes females on the spectrum. I have traits that aren't listed here, and most of the traits listed here I can't relate to at all.

1. repeats herself often. says the same sayings, words a lot or goes on about the same topic.
yes that could be a sign of autism, but i know a lot of people who are not on the spectrum who repeat the same sayings and words over again. a lot of people talk always about the same topic: when they go home, they talk to their spouse about what happened at work, or about their hobby. a lot of people have hobbies, but autistic people have special interests which are bit more intense. non autistic people like to have hobbies but don't need them. autistic people NEED special interests to function in their life. special interests can take over someone's life, they may cause sleep problems, they can make autistic people go in hyperfocus mode, which makes them forget to drink or eat.

2. is fascinated by bright colours , glitter, soft textures
a lot of girls are full of glittery, shiny things at home. autistic people use bright lights, glitter, soft texture as a form of stimming. stimming serves the purpose to express how we feel: stress makes me stim a lot. stimming is also used as a way of relaxing, or isolating ourselves from the world, or as mean of emotional regulation.

3. dislikes loud noises to a certain degree of thundering, lightning is easily startled by am ambulance going past for example.
not all autistic people dislike loud noises. only the ones who have auditory processing disorder: they don't like them because their hears could hurt, or because they're not able to listen what people say to them if there's a lot of noise.

4. wears the same clothes often buys the same jewellery,clothes but in different colours
that could be a sign of autism, but also a sign of minimalism. i wear always the same clothes because i find it hard to find ones that are comfortable, so i never buy anything new. i've had the same clothes for years. and yes a lot of times they do bother me.

5. has obessieve interests
yes, that could be a sign of autism

6 gets overly attached to males if straight.
not a sign of autism. a lot of non autistic girls prefer the company of males because girls tend to be too bitchy and jelous of eachother, in general. a lot of girls on the spectrum may prefer the company of boys because they find it hard to express their feelings, and males have a way to communicate that is more direct, and they mainly talk about everyday things and not about feelings. a lot of girls on the spectrum may have alexithymia, which is a difficulty in experiencing, recognizing, and expressing feelings with words.

7. struggles to find her place in the world, feels misplaced on the planet, but is fascinated about space and whats out there, more so then other people.
yes that could be a sign autism, you remind me of me because of this. but this also could be a sign of a lot of mental illnesses.

8 struggles in social situations, understanding jokes, or unable to keep track of more than one convo and gets confused.
that's a sign of autism. people with social anxiety also have those troubles.

9. will shut down when overwhelmed becomes distant quiet, and will retreat to her own space. complains of lights being too bright and eye sight too vivid.
yes irlen syndrome can be a b***h, it causes a lot of us to be sensitive to light, and it causes shutdowns. shutdowns are emotional reactions to stress. they work like this:

in my experience a shutdown starts with a emotional reaction towards something. The same trigger that caused a meltdown in one person, can cause a shutdown in me.Then my mind slows down. Everyone and everything moves faster than normal, i feel under a lot of stress.Then somebody says something bad and I feel like i want everything to pause. and my mind slowly starts to shutdown, it slows down so I start to produce less thoughts and my mind is almost empty. People appear to be moving slower than they actually are.
I curl on myself and to the outside world it appears like i'm tired or sad or that i’m trying to avoid doing what is asked of me. I feel very very tired, like I ingested an entire bottle of anxiety medication. It's hard to think but if do, and i try to think about moving my fingers or my hands or my legs, i can't move them. It's like i'm completely stuck in my body. I can hear things but can't pay attention or understand the things people say around me. I'm not paying attention to anything but my eyes are open.
I'm trapped in my body and i want to stay there. I can't move, I cant' talk because there's a pressure on my neck that blocks my vocal cords, and so i give up and i try to let my body do its thing: i try to rest. I wanna disappear. in the midst of a shutdown I retreat from the outside world, by going inside, or within myself for comfort, in an effort to self-calm and remove whatever caused my stress. Being physically, mentally, and emotionally immobilized by overwhelming stress permits mel to not feel the harrowing enormity of what’s happening to me, which in my hyperarousal state might threaten my very sanity. i feel emptiness in my chest, like there’s empty space. i find it hard to take breaths.
Then after several minutes (after more than an hour usually, i think the time i spend in shutdown mode is connected to how much stress i have, so i can stay hours in that state) I can respond to people, but only with a nod at first, cause words are hard to come out, then monosyllabic answers, like yes or no come out: i can think of more words but if i try to speak my body doesn’t let me speak. I can’t answer open ended questions like:” what happened?”, “what do you want me to bring you?”...i can only answer yes or no questions like “do you want some water?”, “do you want to take a walk?”.
Then I start moving my torso. My legs...i think: “can i move my legs? Let me try”, and I try to move them using my arms , like disabled people do to get out of the wheelchair. After I think that I'm able to work, I stand up, I walk. I tremble because all the energy that was anesthetized inside of me has to come out. I breathe fast. After a few steps I need to go back to a place where I can lie down, I feel so tired, I want to sleep. I don’t try to walk every time, because walking doesn’t do anything. Manly I do it if people ask me if I want to get some air.
During a shutdown it doesn’t help me to hear people talking to me . I don’t want people touching me, I don’t want people trying to distract me, I don’t want the place to be lit with harsh lights, I don’t want to hear any loud noises. I would like people to sit next to me in silence. Sometimes I overheard people talk quietly to each other and express their concern for me: I liked that. I wouldn’t have liked it if they expressed their concern directly to me, because i didn’t want to be bothered and because i couldn’t respond. I don’t want to be alone in those moments. I would like to wear my headphones if the place is noisy, or a hat or sunglasses if the place has bright lights. After a shutdown I want people to give me some time to sleep. In the hours or days following a shutdown there's a period of mini-depression during which I feel down emotionally and so I need to rest. I isolate myself and postpone my activities. There’s not really a quick way to deal with it.

see if you can identify with this description of shutdowns.

10. fidgets often even as an adult,
yes it's a sign of stress

11. experiences heightened anxiety an depression
yes could be. but anxiety and depression about what? that's what we have to figure out

12. watches and listens to the same movies and music over and over again
yes i do that too. also a lot of children do this, and some adults who are socially isolated who are not on the spectrum

13. does not handle it well being in a packed out club/ place
yes, sensory issues causes us to feel stress and anxiety

14. does not like eye contact with strangers, and only fleeting eye contact with family and friends.
eye contact for me it's hard because of irlen syndrome. i have trouble with anyone. if you have trouble with strangers you may be shy or socially anxious. a lot of people on the spectrum are socially anxious.

15. is parnoid about trying new foods
yes me too, i have a restricted diet

16 tends to overshare her business
yes some people have verbal diarrhea. the problem starts if you talk about your business because you find it hard to talk about other things. this difficulty could very well be a sign of autism.

17 talks over people, struggles to know when to talk on the phone.
yes, that's a possible sign of autism. talking over people is a sign of stress and is also a sign of bipolar disorder. i have both.