Hi all

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Hi everybody,

I recently became aware that I'm autistic in addition to the ADHD and OCD that I've known about for many years. I knew that what was under the DSM 4 was too close to call is now under the DSM 5 more or less an easy case to diagnose, but it didn't really click with me until I had a bunch of autism-related videos pop up on my YouTube feed.

It's kind of nice to know, but I'm on the fence about whether or not I wish it had been caught sooner. On the one hand, I'm in a bad marriage because I didn't expect that she'd be a complete fake. But, on the other hand, I did learn a ton about perseverance and had many of the opportunities that came from not knowing as well. And seeing the lack of enthusiasm my parents had for special ed when it was just for reading and speech therapy, I don't know how much support I really would have gotten for this as well.

(BTW, I eventually figured out that picking two words that strike my fancy from a passphrase generator greatly reduces the effort to create accounts on new fora)
Have a nice day.

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

Thanks. Is it just me or is it oddly ironic than one of the few places I go to on the net that could use a like button hasn't got one?

Welcome to WP! I hope you like it here even if there is no button to declare that with.

I was 64 when I learned I was on the Autism Spectrum. It felt great to finally understand why the world seemed so strange. My revelation began in 2018 when my then 88-year old Dad saw a young boy thought to be Autistic and commented on similarities with me. By 2020 that revelation would've been impossible due to the Pandemic and later due to Dad's death so my revelation waited until it was almost too late to happen.

On the other hand, I would not have wanted the revelation to occur when I was young. I didn't really need any accommodations or treatment for my Autism from people (other than patience and eye-rolling). But if I had had that label before I had earned some credibility then I suspect many people would not have looked past that label to see "me". I think some of the most important opportunities in my life might've been denied to me.

You are 42. You've had time to build some credentials and credibility. I suspect you are old enough that the label "Autism" will be more helpful and amusing for you than it would've been if you had gotten it earlier. Good luck with it!

welcome, late diagnosis leaves us with lots to sort. I benefitted from the new perspective, suddenly a lot of the worst parts of my life made sense (finally!) what a relief! Glad you are with us. One of the best things about finding my diagnosis was also learning I was not the "only one". It has been great to find others who understand!

Welcome to WP!

Yep, I think the other things not being sorted out like my trouble with sleep and reading were probably more problematic. I probably wouldn't have been able to get a work visa if I had this on my medical chart. And, I suspect that the schizo diagnosis may have been a misinterpretation of my migraines, Alice in Wonderland Syndrome and just flat out not being like other people due to the autism.

It's nice to actually get to come in contact with people that get why I insist on my clothing come from a very narrow range of options and I get far more amusement than I probably should from moving my hands in specific ways. Hopefully, I'll finally be able to ween myself off the body focused repetitive behaviors that have plagued me since I was a small child towards less harmful stims.

It's kind of funny because in a sense, it doesn't fundamentally change anything, I'm still me. But, in another sense it changes absolutely everything. Conceptually the idea that there are others out there that get at least some of this, even if they don't have all the same quirks is going to take some getting used to. But, in the long term probably a lot better. It gets tiresome having to continually reinvent the wheel because I don't know the other people that have been there and done that.