Girls / ladies, I'd like to call on your experience

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Hello everyone

I am a 25 year old female with Asperger's Syndrome. My interest for the past year has been reading about everything autism/asperger's. Due to my recent experience with the official diagnostic system, and the fact I love writing and research, I have decided to write a book about the under-representation of females in the diagnostic criteria for autism/asperger's.
There is a lot of recent research out there about the presentation of autism in girls and women, and how our diagnostic systems are potentially allowing females to 'slip through the net', missing out on a vital diagnosis.

I would like to hear your experiences (good or bad), relating to asperger's/autism. You do not have to answer any of the following questions if you don't want to, but as a rough guideline, you could consider any of the following points (and feel free to add absolutely anything else you find relevant). I'm looking to hear from females, or any parents who have daughters with autism/suspected autism. Gents, feel free to comment if you have any input on the subject also If possible, please give as much detail as you can, as I'd really like to get a feel for your experience.

What country do you reside in?
Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
If you are self-diagnosed, are you seeking a formal diagnosis? Why/why not?
What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)
For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)
What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)
Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?
Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)
Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
What would you LIKE the future understanding of female autism to look like?
Do you have a success story you would like to share?

Please note that I may anonymously quote small sections (or generalizations) of responses on this thread. Please state if this is not okay in your reply and I'll make sure I don't include you

Thank you very much!







[b]

Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
Officially diagnosed
If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
At 13
For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
I don't know if I had troubles meeting the criteria.
Two counselors diagnosed me with AS, ADD and anxiety issues and another one said I didn't have AS but that I had social anxiety disorder, ADD, ODD and probably OCD.
Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general?
Nope
What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life?
At first I was sad but then I accepted it. After all, I had been diagnosed with ADD during my childhood and anyway if I actually have AS I have had even before being diagnosed with it.
Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
In my experience, as far as I could see IRL, I think there is.
When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls?
I don't know.
But my parents say that I was a "tomboy" as a child and that I didn't play "girly" games (like the house). It is because the games other girls played were too difficult socially while the games boys played were quite easy and didn't have any or few and simple social rules.
Anyway I also owned and still own my little ponies (typical little girls toys) even though I used them as steeds for my toy soldiers and pokémon.
Did you engage in pretend play as a child?
I did. I usually pretended to be a dictator, or a spy, or a pirate, or a soldier.
Elementary school teachers thought I couldn't pretend play until I started to pretend play with other children around the age of 9-10. My parents knew I could pretend play because they had seen me pretend play on my own.
Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
I can't imitate other people's social skills so nope.
People notice I am different but I don't think they immediately connect that to Asperger's. They probably just think I am weird. Some people have guessed I have ADD before. That's because my ADD is probably more evident than my AS and anyway the two disorders are very similar so that they can be confused and anyway I tell people about ADD and explain my "more autistic" tendencies as side-symptoms of ADD.

1) What country do you reside in?
US
2) Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
Officially diagnosed

3) If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
Adult

4) What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)
My experiance was fairly positive, the women was very sweet, she diagnosed me and talked about AS in a very positive context. I feel she diagnosed me more on instinct rather then anything quantitative.

5) For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
Nope, the women who diagnosed me had a good understanding of female aspergers.

6) Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)
Not directly, although I wasnt diagnosed till I was 18 and I basically went through 10 yrs of practically slipping through the cracks socially. I dont know if this had anything to do with being female, in fact the fact that I was female should have alerted school people. My school didnt really address my issues till I turned myself into the school counseler my senior yr of highschool.

7) What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)
Well I was diagnosed when I was 18, so it made a huge impact on the transition from childhood to adulthood. I went through my childhood clueless about everything and after my aspergers diagnosis and having a myraid of social problems, I went on a journey of self discovery and trying to learn as much as I possibly could about the world. It sort of opened a door.

Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
There has been quite a bit of info disseminating about females with autism lately. Or I always search for it. As for support, yeah but theres a lack of support in general for adults on the spectrum. I feel adults are often on there own. People always tell you to figure out things for yourself.

9) When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?
I'm not quite sure. I was had that fixated interest in a particular person since I was around 10. I also used to obsess about all the stories I made up in my head.

10) Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)
I did with my siblings in the very young years. Starting around 10, I used to make up stories in my head a lot. We can say that is pretend play in my head.

11) Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
No I never did, I never understood it all that well either. I have a hard time trying to mindlessly adapt social mannerisms. Theres some NT like social traits I emmulate when I need to in high stakes situations but it took a long time to master those "acting" skills. As far as I know, people think I am weird, antisocial and kinda rude. But they dont really think that I am "that" different. They still see me as normal.

1) What country do you reside in?
Australia.

2) Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
Self-diagnosed.

3) If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
N/A.

4) If you are self-diagnosed, are you seeking a formal diagnosis? Why/why not?
I am not seeking a formal diagnosis and I am doubtful that I ever will for a few reasons. I don't really feel like it's necessary and I am slightly worried about discrimination or other negative effects that could arise from it. I'm also very doubtful that another person who doesn't know me well and is viewing me from their own personal perspective could obtain an accurate enough picture of me to diagnose or help me with anything. I realize that may sound a bit arrogant but I have seen more than ten counselors in my life (for issues unrelated to AS) and only one of them was the slightest bit helpful to me.

5) What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard).
I think it probably depends on who is doing the diagnosing and the support system of the diagnosed. I know that when I first began to research Aspergers and other autistic disorders I experienced a lot of anger because I felt very cheated that nobody had ever thought to consider it or mention it to me when there was quite a lot of reason to. I also experienced some sadness and confusion as I had to re-evaluate my personal identity to include the autistic parts of me.

6) For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
N/A.

7) Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism).
None that I can directly recall but it may explain why nobody ever thought to consider it as something I may have.

What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust).
I definitely understand myself better and I'm not as arrogant as I used to be. I used to be very convinced that my way of existence was the best way to live and that everybody who wasn't like me was impractical or otherwise defective in some way. I'm much more accepting of mental diversity now and a lot more humble. I'm also trying to improve my social skills and learn how to pass for neurotypical which I never would have considered doing before I discovered autism and its connection to me.

9) Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
Again, I think it probably depends on the area and the support system around the person in question. There will always be people who are incapable of helping those with mental differences for whatever reason but there's just as many people who are already capable or at least willing to learn. I do think that support for people with autism who also identify as being under the LGBTQIA spectrum are lacking.

10) When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?
I've been interested in horses for the majority of my life but I don't really think of that as an interest exclusive to women considering how many men are involved in horses to some capacity. I've heard far more complaints from women than men about horses (they're big, scary, smell bad, wild, etc). Having said that though, my interests have rarely matched up with the stereotypical interests of women. I am not interested in clothes, make-up, hair, shopping, nails, romantic comedies, romance novels, etc and I never have been.

11) Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)
Definitely although I didn't always do it in the traditional sense of acting out a scene with toys or myself (I have done and still do that on occasions though). I've always enjoyed making up stories and I can spend long periods of time just contemplating them in my head and I consider that to be pretend play in a way.

12) Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
I think it's fairly obvious that I am different in some way since I'm pretty ignorant of social rules and expectations (facial expressions, body language, tone of voice, small talk, etc) which makes me somewhat socially awkward and I'm also fairly quiet and contemplative which differentiates me from the neurotypical and stereotypical women who tend to enjoy frivolous conversation. I did go through a short phase of wearing make-up and talking about clothes and other stereotypical stuff to try and fit in better but it grated on my nerves too much and I couldn't keep up the facade for long.

13) What would you LIKE the future understanding of female autism to look like?
I'm not a fan of assigning anything a gender but since gender is so pervasive within society, I have to admit that austistic women experience some things that austistic men don't and vice versa. I would like the future understanding of autism to be focused solely on support and assistance regardless of how the individual identifies or where they are from.

14) Do you have a success story you would like to share?
About what?

What country do you reside in?
USA

Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
a friend who had a child suspected it in me @49 and then after an assault in 2012 I became critical and started to self harm and saw a professional and was diagnosed

If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
as an adult, as a child was just considered a discipline problem, even now contacting my parents they are in denial about it (they had us hide my half-brothers epilepsy back then so denial of this is not surprising)

If you are self-diagnosed, are you seeking a formal diagnosis? Why/why not?
N/A

What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)
I hated that I had to pay for it myself - but that is the system in my nation, only the rich get any kind of care

For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
it took me several tries to see any therapists, I was at private pay therapist and then got referred to a specialist to get tested (and I have insurance)

Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)
yes, and people also don't understand that we have different behavior patterns than men with autism

What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)
some relief that at least there is a reason for the difference

Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
not enough information / virtually NO support

When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?
mixture, very studious - read a whole lot and I devoured libraries - since I read SO fast I had a wide variety of interests, there were not enough books to stay narrow, I mad my main interest books and library actually when smaller, as I got older my stepfather wanted me to learn independence so I picked up stuff from him and learned more masculine things also - interest in cars was added (not so typical)

Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)
yes, and I spent a lot of time alone in my room alone

Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
I make attempts but my differences are noticed - I can keep up the mask short term but it fails if I am around for very long

What would you LIKE the future understanding of female autism to look like?
new to this so not sure, jsut that we are not freaks, I would like people to see we are decent and can be functioning members of society if you get to know us. One thing about me is I am more honest than anyone I have gotten to know who is NT, If the world were like us we would not need locks/passwords/PIN's/safes anything like that :p - (I am pretty tired of being stolen from or having scams run on me)

Do you have a success story you would like to share?

What country do you reside in?

USA

Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?

Officially

If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?

Adult. However was misdiagnosed with ADHD as a child prior to AS being a recognized diagnosis. Friends are autism specialists and they started naming off different symptoms for AS in a conversation with our family's at a function we were visiting as more of a. Catch up conversation and by the end of it. I was rolled up in a ball. Crying and going through a melt down. I was 26. And. A lightbulb came on with them and. They had an OMG moment because they at that instant realized just how severe things had been for me and how mean they had been prior to their education at college

If you are self-diagnosed, are you seeking a formal diagnosis? Why/why not?


What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)

Mine was extremely negitive. Because I spent years trying to get the proper diagnosis. And it took a oh s**t moment by friends to finally realize it wasn't the ADHD I had previously been diagnosed with and medicated for... All medication did was fry my brain and destroy a huge part of my abilities

For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?

Took me 8 drs. The loss of god knows how many "friends" lost count of the number of abilities I've either lost due to improper medication or anxiety or severe depression fogging my mind

Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)

As a Trans female I get misunderstood about everything

What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)

I have a better understanding of myself but a much higher level of frustration because I can't fix my issues the way I want to.

Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
No. Especially when it comes to Trans and the LGBT communities

When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?

I had about 1 interest in my life. And it is now my livelihood. Thanks to my father who started taking me fishing in the boat at a year old..

Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)

I could and did... I could pretend better than most normal people

Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?

People notice I'm different. But they don't see my traits generally as autistic until I tell them I have AS then a 100,000 W light bulb turns on in their head and generally once that happens contact completely disintegrates and generally from that point on it triggers my severe social anxiety. And. Any negative response triggers melt downs

What would you LIKE the future understanding of female autism to look like?

Much more support in general. Especially adult issues and support

Do you have a success story you would like to share?
I'm self employed and I'm growing a larger business. But it's not easy..

What country do you reside in?
United Kingdom
Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
Officially
If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
18
If you are self-diagnosed, are you seeking a formal diagnosis? Why/why not?
N/A
What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)
Not very thorough
For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
No
Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)
No
What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)
Helped me to understand myself much more, gave insight into my problems so I can work on them
Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
I think so
When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?
I liked girls toys (ponies) and boys toys (cars, legos)
Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)
Pretend play involving toys but not other children
Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
Don't really know how to fit in socially, although have copied certain phrases I have heard from others, people have said I am different, weird
What would you LIKE the future understanding of female autism to look like?
A more clear understanding
Do you have a success story you would like to share?

What country do you reside in?
America
Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
I diagnosed myself at age 17 I believe but when I asked my doctor, she agreed that it was likely.
If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
If you are self-diagnosed, are you seeking a formal diagnosis? Why/why not?
I am not seeking a more formal diagnoses because I think it will be difficult to get and I don't think I will gain anything from receiving one.
What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)
From what I've read it is a difficult process and many of the professionals are not knowledgeable enough or too narrow minded to be able to diagnose autism especially in women.
For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)
I personally have not had this happen but I have kept my autism to myself for fear that I would be judged or discriminated against.
What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)
Learning that I was autistic was extremely beneficial to me mentally. My entire childhood I'd felt there was something 'wrong' with me due to my difficulty socializing and the differences between me and the other children I knew. Due to this and my deficits I eventually concluding I was just broken. When I did finally discover autism and Asperger's Syndrome I felt what I can only describe as 'free.' While the term 'syndrome' was intimidating at first, to know that I wasn't alone, that there were other people like me really changed my view of myself. I stopped attempting to emulate 'normal' people and learned to value my strengths and not to punish myself so much for deficits.
Learning about autism as well as the other disorders I have, also changed my view of mental illness and other so called disorders. Before, I think like most people I was ignorant about mental health and didn't think it concerned me. I have since educated myself and have become a proponent of mental health awareness. I'm also currently pursuing a career in neuropsychology in the hopes of being of some use in the mental health field.
Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
From what I've seen, nearly all research on autism is done with males, leaving females with autism extremely underrepresented.
When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?
I was very unlike other girls my own age; there are probably fewer ways in which I was like them then unlike them. I've always been exceedingly unsociable, having few to no friends throughout my childhood. Being less then feminine there were few interests I shared with the 'girly' girls and lacking coordination there were few of the athletic girls with whom I shared interests. For the most part I pursued my own interests alone.
Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)
I don't recall ever enjoying any pretend games but I was a bit of a space cadet; I spent the majority of my time in my head.
Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
Most every experience I have in public or socializing I pretend to be normal usually by following social conventions I don't understand i.e. small talk.
What would you LIKE the future understanding of female autism to look like?
I would like autism to not just be thought of as a male disorder. Females should represent a significant portion of research just as they represent a significant portion of autistic.
Do you have a success story you would like to share?

What country do you reside in?

Scotland

Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?

Officially diagnosed

If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?

I was diagnosed when I was 3ish

What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)

I don't remember my own assesment, but from others I know it can be stressful and take a very long time (especially when you are older).

For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?

Not that I know of. I was told that an educational psychologist saw me, then I was referred to somebody else to assess me.

Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)

Not about my gender, but I did have a CBT who thought that all my psychiatric problems were just symptoms of my aspergers and didn't think I actually had depression. My GP on the other hand has helped me more than anyone else for that as he put me on anti-depressants, which has significantly improved my quality of life.

What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)

I was aware of having autism my whole life, but I didn't know what it meant until I was 10. The only think learning about autism did was that I could properly explain what my disability is.

Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?

I know there is a lot of info on the subject of autism in women, but I'm not sure whether it is too little or too much. I don't think my gender really has any bearing on my Aspergers. In fact, there are a lot of things that are meant to be typical of aspie girls that I honestly don't relate to, such as masking your symptoms by mimicking superficial traits to blend in.

When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?

Nope. I liked dinosaurs and monsters and reading about deadly animals. I also really liked watching shows like Gladiators and WWE (back then it was WWF). I read Goosbumps and utterly loathed girly things. But most of all, I loved animation (which isn't unique to boys, but I never knew anyone that wanted to make an animated film).

Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)

I did. Usually we would do stuff like pretend to be characters from tv shows and we would also create our own ideas. None of it was your typical parental roleplay, though. We took Barbie dolls and would pretend we were mad scientists making them into zombies. We would make our own radio shows on cassette tape and interview characters (not actors) from movies. We did puppet shows (though I would sometimes forget to face the puppets towards my auience). I did a promenade theatre with my family. That was probably tedious for them. I guess it was all about escapism, really. Neither me or my sister had many friends in the s**thole we grew up in, so we had each other.

Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?

To a small degree, but this is usually something I was taught by my speech and language therapist. I had very little idea of how to even begin reading social cues without my therapy. As an adult, I'm more self aware and much more competent at reading cues, but I do still need to get outside my comfort zone

What country do you reside in?
USA

Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
Officially diagnosed with ADHD & LD-NOS, with it being noted that my symptoms were borderline for Aspergers.

If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
Teenage years

If you are self-diagnosed, are you seeking a formal diagnosis? Why/why not?
I don't think I'd qualify as having ASD under the new DSM-V criteria, and I kind of already know most of what I need to do. My treatment plan was always kind of like, "Well, we're going to do everything as if you had AS except for giving you the actual diagnosis. For instance, my parents were instructed to find a social worker who specialized in AS.

What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)
There were two particular reasons that I didn't get an AS diagnosis the first time around, and they're relatively non-essential points by teenage years, according to people I asked. I could read facial expressions, and I didn't have many motor difficulties. This in spite of the fact that AS runs in my family (my uncle has it), and the psychologist had noted a lot of similarities between my symptoms and Aspergers. I suspect there may have been a touch of gender bias there.

For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
See above. Just to get the ADHD diagnosis, I had to go through multiple evaluations. My parents took me to a social worker in first grade but didn't make much progress. In 6th grade, there was an evaluation where my pediatrician conducted it and basically said, "You don't have it; go away." By 8th grade, the situation was getting too ridiculous for anyone to believe I didn't have it anymore, and my parents took me to an actual psychologist who tested me for everything and decided I had ADHD.

Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)
Yeah, people who know guys who have it will sometimes say very quickly that I don't have it on that basis, even though it manifests differently for girls.

What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)
I'm a lot more conscious of my issues with social skills, and I work very consciously to compensate for that. It's caused massive issues for my uncle, and the combination of my experience and his inspired me to go into disability policy.

Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
No.

When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?
I switched interests every year or so (dinosaurs, manatees, drugs, diseases, history) until I got into anime in middle school. I largely stuck with that then, and in high school became interested in Japanese language and American politics. In college, I became interested in dogs. Recently, I've gotten into computer programming.

Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)
A ton. It was one of my favorite things to do with my sister, and she took advantage of it by using it to extort favors out of me.

Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
People always noticed I was different. My mom likes to say that the biggest difference between her and me is that she always tried to blend in, but for whatever reason, I was never interested in that and simply went to the beat of my own drummer. I did try from middle school on to copy classmates and people I particularly admired, but that was less to fit in than to be like someone I thought was cool.

What would you LIKE the future understanding of female autism to look like?
I would first like to understand what this question means.

Do you have a success story you would like to share?
Not interested in giving specifics here, but contact me via PM, and I'll give one.

What country do you reside in?
UK

Are you officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed?
Neither - informally diagnosed by a professional

If formally diagnosed, were you diagnosed as a child or an adult?
Adult

If you are self-diagnosed, are you seeking a formal diagnosis? Why/why not?
our local Diagnostic service is no good - they significantly under diagnose, they will not diagnose anyone in a relationship or with a job (more than one person I know has had this experience) and they are still using tools biased against women. They also interview you as a panel which terrifies me. There is no way I would get diagnosis through them.

What are your opinions on the diagnostic process, positive or negative? (from experience or what you have read/heard)
It varies - the service here is worse than useless because it leaves people traumatised, especially women - but others I know have had much better experiences - the Lorna Wing centre and the Maudsley hospital are both supposed to be excellent.

With my son we went through it twice at primary school having asked for a second opinion when he was not diagnosed the first time round. These were in the same building, in next door offices - the first was appalling and we were told we were putting too much pressure on him, the second just a few months later was stunning - took all of 10 minutes to review the information already on the system, watch him for a few minutes interacting with nobody, and pronounce him autistic (we thought he was AS) but atypical in presentation.

For those who have been through a formal diagnosis, did you face any challenges 'meeting the criteria', or have to seek a second opinion?
See above - my son was given the then very unusual diagnosis of ASD(meeting the criteria for AS) because his consultant recognised he was autistic but he had been speaking before a year old so had to have the AS diagnosis - now DSM only gives ASD!

Have you faced misunderstandings due to being female, either from professionals or society in general? (For example, a GP telling you girls can't have autism)
Lots of misunderstandings but not that one. I worked with children and one Dr said I couldn't have enough empathy to do that if I had AS. I was told by a psychologist that I am too self aware and too lucid to have autism - he didn't take a history, he'd have diagnosed adhd, dyslexia and gender dysmorphia too if he'd spoken to my mother about my childhood, lol!

What impact has the discovery of autism had on your life? (eg helped you to understand yourself, or to adjust)
it gave me a career I love, a world of sensory experience I now revel in rather than worry about, and a sense of difference I am proud of given how long I struggled to be the same as everyone else _ it gave me a sense of equality and a place in the world.

Do you feel like there is enough information / support for females with autism?
Not yet but it's growing
As is the recognition that you don't have to be either male or female at all.

When you were younger, were your interests 'typical' of other girls? (for example, your interest was horses rather than the 'train schedule' stereotype?
Some were, some weren't - horses, animals and plants; fighting, climbing, and sailing; art, books and gym classes

Did you engage in pretend play as a child? (Evidence suggests some females engage in more pretend play than males, potentially masking themselves in a diagnostic setting)
yes - limited topics though and I always played the lead role: teacher, father, doctor, etc
I used to organise my dolls house etc rather than role play with it and when I was getting left out because I was the only girl without a sindy (in the 70s) I asked for an action girl instead because it was more like me - a tomboy.

Did you, or do you, use imitation to 'fit in' socially, masking your traits? Or do others notice you are different?
Both - I masked a lot of things but there were some things I didn't realise were different about me till well into my adulthood such as the way I always went barefoot and honestly couldn't see why other people thought it was odd. Now I don't mask nearly as much but I can if I want to.

What would you LIKE the future understanding of female autism to look like?
broad enough to include us all, whatever our presentation

Do you have a success story you would like to share?
I'm an autism specialist and love what I do more than I ever thought I could love any job