One of the blessings of AS

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I've noticed in several forums over the past couple weeks passing refrences to the notion that Aspies tend to have a physical appearance that causes them to look noticeably younger than their peer group. Is this in any way established as a common fact, or is it more in the realm of urban legend?

It's always been true for me, in that I continued to be carded buying alcohol or cigarettes until after the age of thirty. I'm 49 now and in the past six or seven years have had to show a driver's license to a coworker at least twice, because they insisted that I was pulling their leg when I mentioned my age. Neither would believe that I was beyond my late twenties. Now I look at photographs from high school, and I had a bit of a babyface, but I did not look eight when I was fifteen. I mean it's not as extreme as say Gary Coleman, but seeing others mention this in connection with As made me curious. How common is this phenomena among Aspies?

Until I was mid-thirties I always looked much younger than my age ( eg: when 32 was taken for 18-20 max in a cafe job, frequently) though not as much as you by the sound of it.

But within a couple of years of becoming a mother things changed. Now I think I sometimes almost look older than some/many women my age.

Not sure that I would have called it a blessing though.

Last edited by ouinon on 18 May 2008, 1:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I appear to be younger than my natural age, as well. I have a baby face. :O)

Yes, often people tell me i look younger than i am. And i also frequently get told that i act younger than i am as well

Me too!

Me three. I look at it as a blessing though, not a curse.

Last edited by LoveableNerd on 18 May 2008, 1:56 pm, edited 2 times in total.

I see it as a blessing as well. Its nice getting all giddy over something that "normal" adults couldnt care less about. Like pokemon on TV or something

i don't sun worship, and i didn't start wearing make-up until i was twenty. when i DO wear it, i don't wear much.
when i was 21, i was refused a ticket to a rated R movie due to the lack of ID. my boyfriend had to buy a ticket for me.

The drinking age here is 19, and I was last carded when I was 40.

I have a round baby-face, and one time my sister told me I looked to be about 12 (I'm 17).

I am jealous of you guys. People think that I am older, when they judge me on appearance. I also have the 'problem' that I appear really serious. Most of the time people think that I am 4 years older than I really am.

It was convenient when I was young, I could visit bars at an early age
But now I am getting a bit annoyed.

I'm another aspie with a baby-face. And many people have said that I have an endearing childish naivete.

Well, maybe it was just a matter of exchanging one blessing for another. Kids are a pretty wonderful thing to have in your life. At least until they become teenagers and decide that you're a moron and they hate you.

As for acting younger, maybe that's what keeps us looking young, the fact that we think like kids, too. I'd rather talk about music and movies and comic books any day than the things I hear NTs my age babbling on about: Football, Nascar, "Reality" Television, the stock market, building a deck...yawwn...glad I brought my Hot Wheels Batmobile to play with...

I'm 20 and people frequently assume me to be a minor and/or about 16 years old.

If that is due to being on spectrum... good lord, then that's the biggest advantage ever. I don't want to look old!

But back then, when I was a child, I was always thought to be about 2 to 5 years older than I was!

Yes, I am 25 and look like a teenager. I hope the trend continues throughout my life.

All I know is that, when I was visiting relatives one time (when I was 17) one of my distant relatives that I only met for the 2nd or 3rd time in my life thought I was 20 (I don't think I shaved)

But that same year, I was buying myself a new mattress at Jordan's and the employee that was helping me select the right one thought I was 14 or 15.

I'm 21 now and I don't look much different than when I was 17.

I only look considerably younger when I shave. And I shave regularly nomatter how young it makes me look because I look ape-like otherwise and that is my occupational preference.