what is your functioning level in your opinion?

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Yes but you say you had speech delays.
I had no speech delays.

This is a very interesting topic.

1) what would you say is your functioning level? how does it differentiate from the functioning level in which they classificate you?

I'm not sure, I think I'd say "moderate" because while there are a lot of things I can do, the things that I struggle with, I struggle with a lot and they very much impact my life as well as the people around me too. I'm probably considered that or "high functioning" but I'm not sure. I've never really talked at all to anybody about that.

2) what are your biggest challenges in your opinion?

Getting out around people and not wanting to leave or be alone immediately, not feeling depressed or upset with myself for struggling with things others tell me are supposed to be "easy". I also struggle with not allowing myself to be manipulated or taken advantage of in friendships and I have trouble blocking out negative comments, especially when they come from people I respect and want to approve of me. My mother says I also have trouble with social cues and knowing when people are tired of hearing me talk about specific subjects.

3) what are some of the things you are good at?

I do well academically in college and did in school too. I think I also have a great ability to notice small details in things I encounter in everyday life. I also think I'm a very kind, understanding, and generous person. I also think I'm a person who knows what they like and is very, very passionate about their interests and loyal to the people they love.

1) I’m high functioning. I’m 25 and I have an aide 35 hours a week for my autism issues. Aside from the help I get from that and ssi I’m mostly independent.
2) anxiety, having goals but not having the skills to achieve them, social problems
3) I’m kind and determined

I had speech delays and was severe when I was very young.

For some reason, I became “mild” when I was about 5 years old. I feel like my neurology “cleared up” somehow. I was lucky, I feel.

I would grade my functioning level as autistic as f***.

You are a good success story. My advancement at around age 8 has been called due to developmental delay I believe.

#1 am weirdly a hfa , not necessarily managing it well . Used to mask better for periods of time . stimming ,now clearly identified . Unfortunately.
Identifying differences in NT vs ASD people much more distinctly .
Which is sad . Giving less benefit of the doubt to N T s

#2 anxiety , not identifing threats, especially in naivete with people, now finding , mostly no peeps are eventually better than any peeps . Trust abilities {almost } completely deteriorated . Various maladies associated with aspies healthwise . Those accidental death situations , having survived many now. Bit Skeptical on people these days . Still surprised.
Suffered the deleterious physical and mental side effects from those experiences. " Victim of a thousand phsyic Wars" phrase borrowed from animated movie ,heavey metal.

#3 still wants to be kind , and a hope for a better tomarrow . Can spot altruism much easier .
prefers to interact based on kindness .

I didnt speak until i was 8.
I was considered low functioning but now i am married and drive a bus so iv come a long way.

Yes you have, Caz.

That is the same as me. Although I have not come as far. Yet.

I am low functioning, anxiety, depression and OCD.
Unable to secure employment and unable to make friends.

I was able to juggle a full time job and responsibilities as a sole caregiver for a year.

Is how you are judged as being 'high functioning' based solely on no delayed development/speech delay ? If so that doesn't seem to account for people like me .

People with very high crystallised intelligence/verbal intelligence , but borderline fluid/non-verbal intelligence .

To me high-functioning isn't much to do with intelligence. A low-functioning autistic can be very intelligent. But generally speaking high-functioning means being capable of taking part in NT society without much (or any) support. OK I know some of you will say "how come I haven't got a job/relationship/my own home yet?" But the answer to that is whether you're high-functioning or not you still have an ASD, so some things will be of a challenge for you. Anyway, there are some NTs, or people without ASD but with other disorders, that struggle finding a job, partner or own home.

I'm very intelligent in some ways , but have not that good practical life skills . That was camouflaged for many years because although my wife wasn't book learned she had much better life skills than me , up to the point of her developing vascular dementia .

Outside of family and stepfamily , who are NT, I've not interacted with that many people who are .

I may have doubts if some NT people struggle with having a job, partner or own home. I think that this is quite characteristic for people with serious mental disorders. Maybe if they struggle, they have atypical ASD or a mental illness, psychosis? Some may have physical disabilities. But I think that having job, partner or own home is really important in telling how high-functioning someone is (and also when the person achieved that is important, like the fact if he/she had diagnosis of mental disorder (especially severe) or disability, help for people with disorders or disabilities, need of getting meds etc.). If you have partner, spouse, children, job (especially (relatively) good one), own home and you had no diagnosis of mental health problems or certificate of disability, you are probably high-functioning.