Have you ever believed that you're not really autistic?

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That the doctors have been inaccurate, and you're not autistic, disabled or handicapped? I have before.

No not really, I have thought about it since doctors could only explain what it means using the sentence "you think different". But wikipedia and some other sites explained it perfectly fine and I could find myself in it.

Before people ever talked about Asperger's, I used to take personality tests.
One that I enjoyed was "Are You Eccentric?" ... and I was happy to score 7 out of 10, making me eccentric.

Then I read an article about a lady who had Asperger's and
who would come home from her job and go sit inside a cardboard box to decompress.
I shuddered, thinking that was just plain weird.
I could kind of relate to what the article said, but the box thing seemed just too strange.

But hey, you could certainly call her eccentric, right?

...

I always try to believe that I don't but my 'traits' are obvious to people, being out of touch with people and all that.

I was self diagnosed for a year and was in doubt a little bit, but I was mostly sure I was autistic. I then denied it and ignored it which happened at the beginning of a burnout that was mixed in with depression and suicidal and self harm based thoughts. And that is what got me to a phychologist who diagnosed me. Now I don't doubt, but becore my anxieties ran ramant.

I have questioned it, but it is pretty obvious because I have overwhelming sensory issues and I have a very difficult time maintaining a social life. Then there are all the strange behaviors and thoughts I have that I can't explain - like how everything has to be symmetrical, color coordinated, etc. I have always been a picky eater - all food has to have some crunchiness/chewiness to it or I won't touch it. Just seeing food that is white/gooey makes me feel sick. I eat almost the same thing every day and I am pretty happy with it.

I think I generally question myself when other people doubt/deny or I come to find certain aspects of Aspergers do not always coincide with my personal symptoms. But then again your autism is unique to you.

I've questioned it the first time. The first time I questioned it was when my parents told me about my diagnosis when about seven or eight. I didn't think it described me, but it sure explained why everyone was treating me funny. I questioned it for a second time a few years ago. Mainly because I didn't get along with aspies in real life. I also don't think I fit some of the criteria.

The conclusion I came to is that even though I do have some traits I don't think autism is a useful label for me. Even if an autism specialist would tell me I fit the criteria I still question the usefulness of that label. For me labels are both about accuracy and usefulness. I still think I'm neurodiverse, but I'm still looking for a better word than autism. Maybe I'll discover the right label when I'm middle aged like a lot of people on this site.

Yes. To be honest, lately I "go in and out" mentally about this issue constantly. Some days I'm thinking this just can't really be, "Look how 'normal' my response to this or that is!!"

Other days I'm so burdened by very typical autism-related responses to things and autism related traits, that I have no doubt.

But the times when I feel like it's all incorrect and maybe I'm not, are bothering me enough that I'm actually contemplating getting A SECOND evaluation.

I was diagnosed with autism at age 3.

I thought I was "cured" of "autism and retardation" through brain surgery.

As a young person, I had a vague notion that I was "autistic" in some ways. I knew that I was different, and that I had social difficulties. My difficulties were severe enough that I had to go to special schools most of my academic career. My foray into "regular school" was an unqualified failure.

There was a commercial (advert) about autism, though, about 1970, when I was 9. I didn't identify with the autistic person in the commercial.

One of my good friend's brother is profoundly autistic. My mother always said I'm lucky I didn't wind up like him.

When Asperger's came out in the early 1990s, it REALLY rang a bell for me--especially when I found it that it is a form of autism.

Finding out about Asperger's for the first time really rang a bell for me too, in a massive way. It's what opened my eyes and started me down the road to investigation and evaluation.

But I still struggle with really believing it some days, even now I've been diagnosed, part of that even being doubting the skill of that person.

I always think I'm normal till I actually start reflecting on my life and interacting with people that aren't family

OP diagnosis isn't 100% correct, so people must have been misdiagnosed with autism, though missed diagnosis seems far more common from what I read on WP. Have you ever received any alternative diagnoses?

Before I was diagnosed it was on my mind. Perhaps I really was "just shy", or maybe I had something but not ASD. But now I'm diagnosed I don't really doubt much about it - with one exception. The "gender differences". The general stuff about HFA/AS fits me, but when I read online about what girls with autism are like, the boy description describes me, not the girl one. According to the people who write those I'm a boy. Yet to really figure that one out.

Well there's no room for debate about me being disabled. But there is some degree of debate as to how much of it is from autism and how much is from severe dyspraxia. Although early on I had obvious autistic traits in how nonresponsive I was towards others.