Mild vs Moderate vs Severe Autism.

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Far as I know level 2 is considered moderate. But maybe you're on the mild end of moderate?

I wonder how the mild end of moderate might present?

What should I say?

I tend to stay away from modifiers. Autistic or not autistic, not "lots" or "mildly" so.

The reason I do that is that I believe it obscures/minimizes the underlying neurological basis in favor of observable behavioral issues. If a deaf person learns to lip-read, he/she is still deaf. Why, then, is someone who develops behavioral adaptations sometimes declared "cured" of autism? I get that it's tied to the DSM-5 criteria, but cynically that's often just a practical way to decide who need treatment for what behavioral issues and has less to do with identification of the autistic neurological substrate (still somewhat a mystery, granted).

I might "pass" as normal sometimes, but damn, I am tapdancing as fast as I can and it can be exhausting.

In my perfect world, science identifies neurological "types" -- to the extent there are types (but perhaps more likely statistical clusters around sets of criteria that make clean/useful divisions) -- which then inform understanding of individual behavioral issues and strategies for navigation through this world. Definitely not a one-dimensional slider (more <-> less). We're just at the beginning of actual understanding, and better metrics will inform better more targeted research, and vice-versa.

^Yeah, I agree. I think functioning labels are often based on how "normal" the person appears. For example, someone with an intellectual disability might be thought of as severely autistic regardless of how severe their actual autism symptoms are.

I am moderate

Moderate

I agree with MountainTrails and TheAP, I'm just autistic and my NT passing level is irrelevant.

Hi.

A score of 39; so yeah I am in the autism spectrum (remembering that the test I did is an indication of asperger's traits, not the severity of autism).
And as far as behavioural modification being an indication of an autistic being "cured", being the age I am means it is too late and trying to do that will lead me to being a robot, unable to think for myself and I would find it to be extremely cruel.
Nor will they eliminate my past experiences either.

Hard to say... my official diagnosis is Asperger's, not autism, so doesn't that mean mild? I mean it's often said to be a milder form of autism, right?

Not that I'm saying I haven't had trouble because of it but well, at least I'm still alive.

When I first received my diagnosis, it was called mild or light.

The impact its had on my life, is far from mild. Since starting anti-depressants, my mind has cleared some, leaving more room for me to notice where I fall short. As it were.

I'm just now really starting to learn how it affects me. And mostly how much.

It's a trip xD

That gave me a score of 35. I'm guessing the questions about imaginative play and my enjoying some social situations and changes in my routine even though they cause me anxiety is why it wasn't higher.

In my case, my imagination is so good that as a child I couldn't always tell it from reality, nor could I tell my dreams from reality. In my case I actually think it is part of being autistic.
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For the main question, I was diagnosed as an aspie, which is generally high functioning. However, I think I would make sense on the higher end of moderate.

Regardless, I find functioning labels to not really mean as much as some people think. I will likely be able to live on my own with assistance from my service dog (Though I have trouble with some self care skills, and my cognitive dysfunction is often horrid). Most low-functioning autistics will need support through their lives. That is the only real difference, as far as I can see. I have known autistics considered low-functioning that in many ways do much better than I.

Do you think most people with Autism are mild, moderate, or severe?

I think the majority are mild.

Why do you say that? I think the majority is mild-moderate.