Is your autism more apparent in certain situations?

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Mine is more noticeable, to myself at least, when I'm under stress or at work (which go together). It's also more noticeable the more people I'm trying to talk to at once. It's very noticeable when I'm with NTs who are my age and gender-- people whose lives are incredibly different from my own. I imagine they're all wondering why I don't have a house, husband, kids, or job. When I'm alone, if I'm under stress, I might be rocking, staring, or rubbing my feet together like a cricket. But when I'm talking one on one, or in a structured environment like a classroom, or alone and not under stress, I may not notice it and may appear perfectly "normal" to others. Is this pretty common?

Yes. It seems when I'm stressed or didn't get enough sleep I'm more meltdown prone and very touchy to watch people say around me. I also might be more clumsy than normal if I hadn't got enough sleep. I notice traits more with those issues. It's normal. You're fine.

Wow! I had no idea that there are other's with autism who are like this too! There are times like in structured environments and when talking one-on-one with a person, I don't seem autistic at all. At the most they notice that I'm really smart and knowledgable about things, but that's it. The at other times I can't make eye contact, I rock, flap, make strange facial expressions, speak strangely and in a babyish way, loose speech all together, and then of course meltdowns.

When I am talking to a person who is older than me they always think that I am a lot older than 18, and they don't usually think that there is anything different about me. But if I am with my peers, they seem to instantly know that I am different and they are really puzzled by me. But when I am shutting down or having a mini meltdown (just crying), people think that I am a lot younger and/or mentally handicapped. And then one time when my mom and I went to see Riverdance, I was so excited that I started flapping and rocking, my muscles tightened up, and was grinning with a weird facial expression. That was the first, and the last, time I was really like that in public. We were front row and some of the performers noticed and smiled at me.

the way I maintain my existence is by being aware of my body in the sense of seeing it as my ride and my brain as the computer that manages it. So I feed it and maintain it to keep it in that state if I lose control of any of that I go immediatly into Aspie mode and that is where I stay untill my body is brought back under control. Many other things are devastating as in meetings, conflicts, managers that i see as useless but these things still probably keeps me from maitaining that control

I think I am pretty much the same no matter when, it's just certain situations similar to what you mentioned: under pressure, lack of sleep, extreme excitement or aggravating situations is where my traits get more noticeable to others- where the invisible cape flies off.

It happens when I am hungry or under stress. It's more noticeable with lot of people and in school (which I don't go to anymore) or in a school setting, and when I have too much change in my routine. When I am with people I know, I do fine and when I am very calm I am very normal.

Yes when I get overwhelmed my brain waves a distress flag I worked in a restaurant for 2 and half years and I didn't have to much of a problem when I had two tables of customers but when the restaurant would fill up and it would be me and the customers thus a breakdown was about to happen luckily I had two cooks that I worked with whom helped out by taking the orders when they saw the look of panic on my face... My boss at the time wanted me to work the drunk shift (friday and saturday overnights) that didn't turn out too good because I would freeze up trying to make sense of what was going on.

Yes. Oh, god, yes.

Put me on the phone or in an interview. And I don't even want to think about all the phone interviews I've done...

Which makes me think of another good topic...

I believe my autism is more noticeable in social situations. I do not do chit chat well. I often have to fish for things to say in conversations. My autism is more noticeable in situations where things become too sensory involved like loud noises, bright lights, etc. I tend to shutdown in stressful situations and when my routine is broken.

UncannyValerie, I am very much like you. In a structured classroom situation, as long as I don't have a Misophonic trigger sound or as long as I am not being overwhelmed by sounds or bright lights or flashes like with a slide show I once saw, no one would be able to detect that I am Aspie. But when I am stressed or tired or overstimulated, almost everyone will notice. I can talk to lots of people at once though. But other than that I am pretty much like you.

This weekend my husband has family over and today it was very chaotic so I hid in my room to get away from it all. I was in and out of my room. I also couldn't stand to hear my son whine so my mother in law took him to the basement. I would say mine was more noticeable today and I withdrew from everyone and spent most of my time in my room. Now things are calmer so I don't feel as stressed or overwhelmed.

Stress and being tired bring Autistic traits out or make them harder to mask. Due to Executive Functioning deficits many on the spectrum have difficulty doing several things at once such as trying to talk with several people at the same time

Always. Most days, I am told I seem fairly "normal." But if you find me in a stressful situation--bright light, lots of noise / conflicting sound, too many distractions, social anxiety--I can't function. I am likely to cover my ears, close my eyes, flap my hands, or cry. I start sentences and struggle to finish them, or repeat the same thing over and over. Or sometimes I just hum the same long note continuously. Or I might start shouting at people to leave me alone.

I think it has actually gotten worse since childhood; I had a relatively low-stress childhood at home (school was another story) and so my meltdowns usually had the appearance of a normal temper tantrum, or "hormones". But when I left home and began taking on adult responsibilities, I fell apart pretty quickly, and often. It's hard to explain that I'm not trying to look childish, or manipulate people, because the rest of the time I have the appearance of someone who "should know better." But it's almost always the result of added stress. When I am in an environment in which I am the acknowledged authority on a subject, the only conspicuously "Aspie" trait is that I can carry on ad infinitum...