Separating AS from personality.

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So it's not at all that I lacked identity. It's just that a lot of things I thought were 'just me' turned out to be [because of my] autistic traits. Well, guess what? Just because they're autistic traits doesn't mean they're not me!

Even my sexual orientation (which I only realized post-diagnosis) is affected by autism - autistic women are less likely than NT women to be heterosexual. Asexuality especially is overrepresented on the autism spectrum. And most LGTB people have no hesitation in saying their orientation is part of their identity. In fact the only people I've seen try to argue orientation is separate from identity have been homophobic gays.

In fact the only people I've seen try to argue orientation is separate from identity have been homophobic gays.

Please forgive my ignorance but I don't understand how a gay person can be homophobic.

Why do you focus so much on your impairments? You may have some social difficulties, but it's just because everybody's different. I'm glad you mentioned your photographic memory. That shows your autism also explains you have a great ability, a gift, that not many people have.
I think I have some kind of photographic memory, too. When I study for an exam, I take like photographs of the pages in my brain, and then, in the exam, it's almost as if I were cheating, because it's as if I could see the pages of the book and see some of the things that were written, where in the page they were written, etc. Is this a normal thing?.

Please forgive my ignorance but I don't understand how a gay person can be homophobic.

It's called overcompensation. They hate themselves so much, they think being gay is wrong for everyone so they are a homophobic. My ex boyfriend was the same way and now he came out as trans is a woman now and also claims to be bisexual mostly lesbian. It's like how some autistic people hate themselves they go around telling all the other autistic people how autism is a disease and they need to be cured and how bad it is to be autistic and they feel very negative about autistic people and they can't stand to be around them or around anyone who remind them of themselves.

Same thing here! I was so constantly bullied until I was 18, that I just thought I was like of another species. I thought there may be something wrong with me and that I was forced to be subdued to everyone.

Because autism largely affects me in a negative way. I can acknowledge the positives but the bad outway the good. Photographic memory is nice but I lack the ability to remember spoken words clearly, even 5 seconds after being told something. I have an intense focus but it's too intense and people get mad at me for neglecting important tasks because I was too focused in another topic. It's very frustrating.

I don't know a whole lot about photographic member, mine isn't perfect, like I can see a page in a book but the words are blurry and I can't read them. My photographic memory works best with remembering movies and episodes, I watched deadpool a total of 3 times and I can replay the entire movie in my head, I can't remember the script unfortunately but still mildly impresive

I thought everyone with the same name as me all get picked on. .

And most LGTB people have no hesitation in saying their orientation is part of their identity. In fact the only people I've seen try to argue orientation is separate from identity have been homophobic gays.

Please forgive my ignorance but I don't understand how a gay person can be homophobic.

I don't know a whole lot about photographic member, mine isn't perfect, like I can see a page in a book but the words are blurry and I can't read them. My photographic memory works best with remembering movies and episodes, I watched deadpool a total of 3 times and I can replay the entire movie in my head, I can't remember the script unfortunately but still mildly impresive

I think Asperger's explain why I was also singled out and rejected and picked on and why kids thoughts I was mean or weird. I never ever thought I wasn't human, I just believed I was put on this planet for people to pick on and I thought everyone with the same name as me all get picked on. I didn't really know I was that different. I knew I had more going on because there were other kids in my school who also had speech issues and none of them got picked up and singled out and treated different so I knew it wasn't due to my own speech.

From reading several of your posts, I am seeing that you are visually very strong but have trouble with language, speaking, reading etc. Do you find that it is difficult for you to read and comprehend what is written here at WP sometimes? Like does it take you a while to read and understand the posts? Would it be easier for you if written things came with illustrations to help you process what the written text is saying? I will often form mental images like movies or photographs in my mind when I read or hear something. Often times, if I cannot make a mental photo of the thing, I can't understand it, it makes no sense to me. Do you find that this is the same with you?

From reading several of your posts, I am seeing that you are visually very strong but have trouble with language, speaking, reading etc. Do you find that it is difficult for you to read and comprehend what is written here at WP sometimes? Like does it take you a while to read and understand the posts? Would it be easier for you if written things came with illustrations to help you process what the written text is saying? I will often form mental images like movies or photographs in my mind when I read or hear something. Often times, if I cannot make a mental photo of the thing, I can't understand it, it makes no sense to me. Do you find that this is the same with you?

That doesn't fit me at all.

Long before I knew I was autistic, I had a clear sense of my identity. It's just that a lot of identifying features I have are autism-related.

Here is probably how I'd have described myself pre-discovery (not pre-diagnosis because I suspected autism long before my diagnosis), and how that relates to autism:

I like strange things (intense unusual interests)
I'm weird and nonconformist (lack of innate desire to fit in, plus poor social skills)
I'm creative (unrelated to autism)
I'm smart (partly unrelated, but some of this self perception was related to strengths that are part of autistic skill scatter)
I'm disorganized (executive dysfunction)
I'm honest (dislike of lying due to literalism)
I have a strange sense of humor (turns out a lot of autistic people have a similar sense of humor to me)
I feel passionate about human rights (mostly due to a feminist mother rather than autism, but growing up as an outsider probably intensified this)
I'm a loner (reduced social motivation, plus defense against bullying)

So it's not at all that I lacked identity. It's just that a lot of things I thought were 'just me' turned out to be autistic traits. Well, guess what? Just because they're autistic traits doesn't mean they're not me!

Even my sexual orientation (which I only realized post-diagnosis) is affected by autism - autistic women are less likely than NT women to be heterosexual. Asexuality especially is overrepresented on the autism spectrum. And most LGTB people have no hesitation in saying their orientation is part of their identity. In fact the only people I've seen try to argue orientation is separate from identity have been homophobic gays.