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starkid
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21 Nov 2017, 2:35 am

How would you determine whether someone's difficulty figuring out social situations was caused by ASD or social isolation if there was no early childhood history available and the person met diagnostic criteria for ASD?

I mean social isolation like not interacting with people outside the immediate family except to attend school. Never hanging out with friends, no dating, never going anywhere except school and home.



StampySquiddyFan
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21 Nov 2017, 12:20 pm

I would say by other signs that are neurological in nature, like sensory issues, stimming, obsessions, etc.


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Strawberry_Alien
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21 Nov 2017, 8:06 pm

I am both autistic and someone who spent a lot of time socially isolated when I was younger. While my difficulties with social skills could be explained by either (or both), other things seem to point more towards autism. For example, I am very sensitive to lights, sounds, textures, and am prone to becoming overstimulated. I am literal minded and tend to take statements at face value. I have prosopagnosia. I have been told that I move and walk in an odd and distinctive manner. I stim in typically autistic ways to calm myself and to express emotion. (I actually didn't consciously realize I did that until after I read up on my diagnosis.) I tend to get obsessive over my interests and sometimes like to talk incessantly to other people about them. Etc.

I also find that I generally relate more easily to autistic people than to allistic people.

My autism was likely a contributor to (though not the sole cause of) my social isolation, as well. I found it very difficult to navigate social situations after I moved and did not have my old friends to talk to, and other people thought I was weird and did not like me. I was okay with being alone, so this did not bother me as much as it probably would most allistics. (But I don't know, maybe that was just me and not an autism thing.) I immersed myself in my interests and hobbies instead of trying to make friends. (I have since gotten much better at social skills and actually have friends now.)

To try to distinguish the two, I would look at signs of autism not directly related to social skills. I would also consider if having autism contributed to the social isolation.



KanyeWestFan
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22 Nov 2017, 4:14 pm

Not being self-aware was the cause for me, I wasn't all there when I was younger so I had tunnel vision to my reality