Church of Jeff
#autism #autistic #neurodivergent
I’ve always been called a sensitive kid growing up. I’ve always been smart and brainy and always have felt like an alien visiting Earth.
I grew up and went out in the world and found people who wear the label of “autistic” with pride and I started learning about “neurodivergence.”
After my suicide attempt, I started looking at my behaviors and tendencies and realized that I may have been “masking” my whole life.
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Church of Jeff
#autism #autistic #neurodivergent
Most of my friends in adulthood exhibit lots of autistic traits and many have official diagnoses.
I have been building boundaries after my suicide attempt and that means unmasking and not flatly let things happen to me without saying a word as to not make any disruptions to the people around me.
This has pushed my behavior more into the realm of recognized autistic behaviors.
All my friends seem to recognize me as autistic.
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Church of Jeff
#autism #autistic #neurodivergent
I don’t believe in self-diagnosis in general and especially in mental/psychological realms, as the tool being used for diagnosis may be compromised.
My friends said something profound when he mentioned how he was happier once he was diagnosed as autistic and he was normal and didn’t need the antidepressants to fix the anxiety and depression of masking and not fitting in.
My big question is…
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Church of Jeff
#autism #autistic #neurodivergent
My question is, is self-diagnosis of autism a truly valid conclusion/diagnosis or a new-age internet phenomena to allow people to act entitled with disregard for others?
I certainly still do mask my emotions and remain in torturous situations I am forced to endure, but isn’t that being an adult and focusing on the wellbeing and comfort of others?
Of course, there is no binary answer and everything is situational, but these are the things I think about.
Church of Jeff
@Complexiteit — I think the kids call it “based”. 😜
Complexiteit
@jeffowski what a brave post. Thank you. Fitting in with the rest is something lots of people find difficult, neurodivergent or not. Find your tribe, where you can be yourself regardless. The rest of the world is do-able then is my personal experience.
g0xmkamovz
@jeffowski
Caring for the feelings of other people is a bi-directional social contract, not an obligation on you only as if you were a slave. If they don't make allowances for your well-being then you have no obligation to consider theirs.
Church of Jeff
@murdoc @giflian — this is my issue. “In the old days,” I could walk into any place I wanted to work and get hired. I can’t get past the algorithm to even be seen by an actual human being anymore. This is literally the thing that is finally convincing me that I’m autistic because my frustration got me to researching and it seems I’m categorized and find comradeship with autistics describing the same frustrations and difficulties.
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Gilly Gunson
@jeffowski autism assessments at best have long wait times (especially for adults) and at worst have long wait times and cost a lot of money. Mine was thousands of dollars. Most people can't afford it, so the options are self-diagnosis or nothing.
Murdoc Addams 🧛🏻:ri: 🇨🇦
@giflian
I'd say that the worst is worse than that. Medical diagnosis focuses on problem traits, not necessarily autistic ones, and the two don't overlap a lot, even if they may coincide a lot. I've heard of people getting misdiagnosed with things like just depression, and then put on antidepressants and left wondering why they don't work. How often this happens I don't know, but it's a real possibility.
But even with an accurate diagnosis, that can come with negative effects too, like employers not considering you.
@jeffowski
Here's an article that may be helpful:
https://www.autismbc.ca/blog/autistic-adults/reasons-autism-self-diagnosis-is-valid/
There's another I know of but can't find right now. I'll post it if I can find it.
Church of Jeff
@murdoc @giflian —
Comparing work histories and experiences, a single point of congruence (and other congruent points) turned into parallel paths with many people that identify and /or carry a diagnosis of #Autism
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