An explainer, for those joining our show in-progress

[resolute]

About two years ago I began thinking I might be autistic. As we all learned more about autistic presentation in folks not typically assigned male at birth, I had this dawning sense of realization. It was about as big, as world-changing, as realizing I am queer. And, honestly, the realization made me equal parts angry and ashamed. Angry that no-one had known, that no-one had told me, angry at everything in my younger years that would have gone better if ANYONE had known I am autistic and had been able to provide accommodations*. Ashamed that I had not known, that I had spent my entire life lying to everyone I know.

When I figured it out I couldn't tell anyone. Being autistic was and still is a medical disqualification for my former job. But I retired last year and immediately came out as autistic. (The wait-list for adult official diagnosis for autism in Minnesota is two years, just, fyi.)

Now I have begun the incredibly fraught, difficult, process of learning to undo decades of masking.

Devon Price wrote an essay, How Do I Cope With Anti-Autistic Bias?, that is emotionally devastating. Not because it is depressing, but because it is hopeful. The research shows that NT people like autistic people more when they know we are autistic. (Obviously this is not universal, many people are assholes who prey on what they perceive as weakness.) This is devastating because I, we, all of us, have spent so much fucking time and energy trying to fake being something we are not, and it wasn't necessary. In fact, it might have made things worse for us.

I have no idea who I would be if I hadn't spent so much time and energy constructing the people-suit. I remember being thirteen years old, practicing facial expressions in the mirror, trying over and over again to get them Right, Right Enough to not be bullied. Obviously, it did not work.

I am incredibly grateful to all the people who saw through my efforts to be someone else and who befriended me in spite of my bullshit.


* I did go to a boarding school for geeks and nerds, so, like, that was ALMOST an accommodation. Sort of. But in reality, all the MANY, MANY autistic and ADHD kids at that school just floundered along together, relying on being good at certain kinds of learning to compensate for everything else.

Comments

[house_wren]

Oh! I relate to this so much. I am also retired & about 4 years ago began to suspect that I am autistic. In 2020, I had a private assessment that confirmed it. I already knew I had adhd. I hate what adhd does to me and I like what being autistic does, but I have grief about both.

My ability to 'pass for normal' means the few times I tried to tell someone about my diagnosis, they completely rejected the idea. Huh. Ok then.

The person who did my assessment pointed out many ways that I had not 'passed for normal.' She could see things I could not. It was interesting. Then I thought about how much I have been bullied, even as an adult, and I could see her point.

I have a lot of solitude due to being retired and being a spoonie. This is making it easier to practice living without a 'people-suit.' I want to just not care what anyone thinks of me. When I'm with people now, I'm less chatty, less compliant. It's better.

[grammarwoman]

Hey, friend. :D

There's nothing like raising a kid with ADHD and autism to make a person pick apart their own traits and history, and go "Huh. That explains a lot." I'm pretty sure if I don't actually have ADHD, that I certainly exhibit some executive function troubles.

So yeah. I hear you.

Re: FWIW

[resolute]

Solidarity.

[resolute]

This is me NOT retroactively armchair diagnosing everyone we were in school with.

And, yes, raising an AuDHD kid was interesting. The main thing I found is that I could EXPLAIN what the script was for social things, because I had had to write the script for myself.

[grammarwoman]

Your restraint is duly noted and applauded, because YES.

Kudos for getting at least some use out of your painful self-education in socialization!

My kid got diagnosed early, like first grade or so, and aside from having to weather the initial meetings, testings, and paperwork phase, we appreciated the support we got from the school. The biggest thing, though, was the social skills training he received from his counselor outside the classroom. He'd bring home his Superflex workbook and talk about his lessons, the explicit explanations of social interactions and thoughts that were laid out so clearly, stuff kids are just expected to automagically pick up on their own. It blew our minds that schools couldn't just add that vital instruction as part of the actual curriculum. (I mean, it probably is in schools better funded than public, but anyway.)

[elisem]

There's a thing that happens when too many words are trying to get out of my mouth at the same time and they all get stuck in the door, and that's what's happening with my typing right now.

So, yeah.

Thank you for writing this, and thank you for the link to that essay, which might take several tries to make it through, because the information in there is having a whole lot of what we used to call in apazines "comment hooks" on each piece.