I just don’t understand why people like going out and doing things. When they can just chill and hangout with me instead. Like I understand people have to work but once you’re off work don’t you wanna relax instead of going out and doing more pointless stuff. Like my friends annoy me they like to go to the casino hate it waste of money or they get yelled at by their girlfriends and have to get off and go do stuff. Like I don’t understand how that’s fun. Then they’re gone the entire day then I’m bored just laying in bed all day scrolling on my phone waiting for them to get on so we can play. It’s annoying. And then they get on and start complaining to me about how there day was busy and about there girlfriends like u know u don’t have to go do that stuff you choose to stop complaining to me about it.

Has anyone seen this episode and deeply felt the entire Charlie storyline? I’ve struggled for like…ever to find any representation of my logic and how I think, and this is the closest I’ve ever seen.

Anyone else or am I still the only one?

this was back in 2006: **Axis I: 299.80 – Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS)**, with a note to rule out a Learning Disorder
**•** Axis II: Deferred
**•** Axis III: None
**•** Axis IV: Social problems
**•** Axis V: GAF = 65 (Current)

I’ve noticed if it’s personal or would help at all give any insight but I can give the assessment results of the ADOS and the clinical notes obviously I will blow out personal information and personal identifier and everything

If I shouldn't be asking this here I am very sorry! I just wasn't really sure where to ask this and it has been bothering me.

I would like to start by saying I have never been diagnosed with any mental disorders. I relate to some of the symptoms and have wondered before if I have autism or ADHD, but I have never been tested. This is completely an outside perspective.

Okay, my friends at school, my brother, and a few other kids are all in a friend group. Only one of the girls on this group has self-diagnosed autism. Knowing some of the traits and symptoms I would say she isn't faking or anything like that, but her parents are the type of people who "don't believe in that".

One thing my brother and a few of the people will do is whenever some is acting a little silly, is hyperfixated on something, distracted and talking to someone excitedly, or anything like that they will say "Oh, that's so autistic!", "They're just being autistic", "They're just having an autism moment", or some other crap like that.

It makes me uncomfortable and I don't participate in the jokes. I feel like they're rude and disrespectful and the same category as "I'm so OCD" when someone likes things being neat. I just don't know if I'm allowed(?) to feel that way since I'm not diagnosed. I don't really want to say anything if it's not bothering other people who actually have a say in what's offense and rude. But if it is an issue than I don't want to stand around doing nothing. Thank you for your time.

Hi! So I am quite mentally ill lmao, i take Prozac n Concerta n shit to give you an idea. I'm also autistic and I just moved to uni. All the clubs available do not apply to me (there's a queer club I'm not queer enough for, a Nigerian club I'm too white for, a business major club, yadda yadda. No ttrpg club or linguistics club or music club or whatever, shit I would dig) so thats basically off the table. I can't go up to random people and ask if I can be their friend because that's weird and I'll embarrass myself, my classmates in engineering are all as socially anxious as me so far and I havnt really talked to anyone... idk, I'm starting to feel kinda overwhelmed on this front because idk what to do. I go shopping and my heartrate jumps to 150 cuz I am that socially anxious... idk, some advice would be nice because I feel pretty helpless in regards to all this.

I have a REALLY hard time leaving a job unfinished. I used to have a list of small tasks I wanted to do that probably did not mean much at all, but I treated it like a big deal.

Seven years ago I graduated high school May of 2019. I am 25 now, graduating with my masters soon. A couple weeks before we all went to college, I started sending nice paragraphs to all 113 of my classmates. My English teacher did it so I wanted to as well. That project went longer than I thought. The last one I sent was almost four years ago. Other priorities took over obviously. I have four classmates left.

If I should let it go, how do I convince myself it isn’t a big deal? Or should I send the paragraphs to my four classmates being like “just checking in because I can’t believe our 10 year is coming up soon!” followed by the rest of whatever nice things about them

I don't know if this kind of post is allowed, or where to put it.

I have over six intense eye conditions that make me medically considered blind.

One of the last Optometrists I went to had Autism and was the best of all the probably close to hundred I've seen in my life.

He named and explained each conditions name and symptoms, broke down what he was going to try to do, why he didn't recommendation certain treatments and how each of the tests worked.

Not only that, I told him that people didn't put a prescription in one eye because the vision was so limited and he said, "Well, I'm not going to do that." (Because that eye affects a limited amount of centeral vision).Then spent over fifteen minutes trying different methods to get a prescription for that eye and I got one for the first time in over ten years of of seeing doctors. He gave me a second prescription in case that one for the eye off set my conditions (which he thought might happen).

His measurement to correct my astigmatism was also the best.

That's all I wanted to say. I'm very thankful for this doctor's help everyday.

Throughout my whole life even though I’ve had plenty of friends and even have two bestfriends, none of them have quite been people I can talk to about anything fully and really click with.

I watch it in people around me all the time- They find someone and they hit it off instantly and they’re best buddies in a week, they laugh and they know exactly what to say to one another

With me, close friendships take months to build despite making effort. I talk, I ask questions and try my best to get to know them, I have hobbies and interests- It’s not like I’m an empty person but regardless nothing just seems to click right.

I watch how other people talk to eachother and I try and memorise the formula to it like theres a secret recipe, and I get very obsessive over figuring out how people gel so instantly, but I can’t. I’ve been trying for years now.

Even worse these people I’m talking about that gel instantly with one another, they’re people that also have autism. For whatever reason I struggle to fit in even with other neurodivergent people.

I hate crowds, clubbing, overly long hangouts, going new places every other day. I prefer quiet cosy hangouts like getting coffee or shopping in charity shops, but no one else seems to feel the same way (I’m in my 20’s for context).

I feel like I’m missing out on a huge chunk of life- meant to be spent forming connections and having fun and going on adventures, but I’ve never experienced it and I feel sad

Anyone else feel this?

I just recently got diagnosed with autism, adhd, and ocd. When I first got the diagnosis, I doubted the autistic part 'cause I felt like I didn't really have a special interest that I know a lot about. When I hear other autistic views on special interest, it is typically something they are very knowledgeable about in detail.

For me, I have always been obsessed with the idea of storytelling. I don't know everything about every aspect of storytelling, but I get engrossed with myths, legends, and being detached from the world to control another one. But it also greatly makes doing other things in life that are not related to that very hard due to it grounding me back in reality. So I don’t have any serious hobby outside of writing, even though I am trying to get them; I can never stick to it.

Thanks for reading and would love to hear all thoughts on this👍🏾

As family members and colleagues, how do you deal with folks with Autism? Do you get overwhelmed about their quirks?

I have grown up in a household and worked in an environment with no shortage of people who insist they're right and follow a set routine. Some folks do have a formal Autism diagnosis. They could be lovely people, but could get augmentative if something get into their way. Here are some examples:

• They may not let others to talk in a conversation. They could keep talking about their thoughts and opinions without end.
• They are upset if the gas tank has less than 1/3 of the tank and insisted the driver should head to a gas station immediately as if it's an emergency.
• They get upset if dinner isn't served at 5:30. (Example: If I join a gym class at 5, I'm on my own to buy dinner.)
• They yell when they hear the names of particular politicians on TV.
• They walk past by people who try to say hello as if they're not there.
• Some are eager to connect with others, but others walk away without explanation.
• They think their talent should be appreciated by others that they shouldn't have to apply to jobs.
• They ignored their supervisor's constructive criticism to their work and do not take action to correct the work.
• Most importantly: The folks who got formal diagnosis have been insisting they do not have Autism, so we could not get them to see counsellors or therapist.

I got emotionally drained at times by working around their quirks. For example, I always keep my gas tank full or use a headset to listen to the news. How I coped at home became people-pleasing as an adult. I moved away from parents, set firm boundaries at work and got counselling.

And it made it difficult to find someone with the same interest maybe.

Hi everyone. I’ve long suspected I might be autistic, but I’ve never found a community where I could interact with others on the spectrum and talk about it without feeling ashamed. I don’t have a diagnosis because my parents don’t seem to care about it (at least not when it comes to me, since my 3-year-old brother is already diagnosed). I’ve done a lot of research and strongly identify with various traits on the spectrum, but I don’t want to self-diagnose. I’m just looking for a place to talk about my experiences and read about others'. Am I welcome here?

My twin brother has level 3 autism, he needs constant care, supervision, and can’t speak. Apparently, his IQ is that of a 2 year old but we are very lucky as he is very chill and never acts out or gets violent. He used to have meltdowns, lock himself in a closet by mistake and not make any noise, and would run off a few times but that’s it. He has an iPad with a communication app, but he’s very stubborn and doesn't like to use it. You gotta force him to do so pretty much and when he does it’s very simple. (like I want + French fries, or just “outside” for example) we don't really know what he understands. He barely uses “no” (unless he’s tired and doesn't wanna get up lol) and says yes to everything, sometimes you can ask him to make a specific noise and he’ll try but nothing comes out, do it, or not even listen to you. The thing is, when he was 3, my family heard him speak multiple times. He said the entire alphabet, counted to 10, said “ball”, “up”, my family’s names, and a few other things on multiple occasions. But that was the last time he spoke and now he’s 20. It’s so sad because when I try to get him to say simple words he looks like he’s thinking so hard but can only somewhat mock the mouth movement. Is it possible for him to speak again?

I can't study without understanding the reasoning behind things, and that tires me out a lot. If you simply tell me that "5th = 1," I can't accept it and memorize it without understanding why. My brain can only learn when it understands the logic from the beginning.

I absolutely hate starting to study. Every time I'm watching a class or trying to learn a subject, a question pops into my head that, to be answered, depends on another subject. And then it seems like I need to understand that other subject first, which depends on another, and so on. When I read something, I often feel like a basic piece of information is missing for it to make sense. So I read, read again, and even then, I can't understand something that should be simple.

I also have a lot of difficulty reading. Sometimes I feel like I need to read the same thing about 300 times to finally understand something basic.

Video lessons, for me, are practically hell. I hate having to wait for the teacher to get to the point. I feel like he's dragging things out and taking too long to explain something that could be said much more directly. This irritates me, makes me lose concentration, and makes studying even harder for me.

(I have autism and ADHD)

I had everything perfectly where each thing was meant to be. And it DID look messy from an outside eye, but I knew where everything was and it had been that way for years. But today when I got home from school (first full day of high school, so I was already stressed by the change) I had found that my parents moved everything and put some shelf in my room and completely ruined th whole thing. I've been sobbing and hyperventilating for hours. I relapsed SH. I had a meltdown and threw a bunch of stuff down on the floor. They said they can put everything back to where it was before but I know they can't. And even if they could, it would take so long. I never wanna go back into my room again. Even after I had calmed down, when I saw what they did for a second time, I just had a meltdown all over again. They ruined everything.

I’m a special education teacher, and I work with students with significant support needs, many of whom are autistic and communicate in a variety of ways, including through AAC.

I just got into an argument with someone about vaccines supposedly causing autism, and the conversation bothered me more than I expected it to.

I want to preface this by saying I’m not someone who immediately dismisses a claim simply because it goes against what I’ve previously learned. I’m an educator. Being a good educator means constantly learning, reading research, questioning what you know, and being willing to change your understanding when credible evidence supports it.
But the vaccine/autism conversation really bothers me because autism is so often talked about as if it’s this horrible outcome that happened to someone and that we need to find somebody or something to blame for it.

The argument I was having eventually turned to the Hannah Poling case and mitochondrial disorders. And I think there’s an enormous difference between discussing whether a physiological stressor could contribute to regression or encephalopathy in a child with a rare underlying mitochondrial disorder and taking that case and saying, “See? Vaccines cause autism.”

Those are not the same claim.

I spend my days with students on the spectrum. Some have very significant communication, behavioral, sensory, and adaptive needs. I’m not going to romanticize disability and pretend that there aren’t very real challenges for these kids and their families. There absolutely are.

But I also don’t look at my students and think, What happened to you? Who caused this?

I think: How can I understand you better? How can I help you communicate? How can I make your environment more accessible? How can I teach you skills that give you more independence and autonomy?

Maybe that’s why this subject gets under my skin so much. I’m completely open to research about autism—its genetics, neurobiology, environmental influences, everything. That’s how science works. But there’s a difference between being open to evidence and starting with the conclusion that vaccines caused autism and then trying to make every piece of evidence fit that conclusion.

I’d genuinely be interested in hearing how individuals on the spectrum themselves feel when they see these conversations, especially the constant focus on trying to figure out what or who “caused” them.

So I am dating a autistic woman and her dog that she really cared about die recently and i’ve been sending her how are you doing messages and just like if we were talking usually and she just hasn’t responded back I did go out with her recently to a football game she did apologize for not responding I get it I just wanna make sure I’m not being too clingy or doing something wrong

This is sooo gross and I feel awful about it, but I recently moved into my college dorm and have been having trouble with hygiene. I’m a pretty big germ freak (everything outside of “my stuff” is absolutely awful and impossible to touch), but i live in a quad, though there’s only three of us (my roommate never showed up!!). I thought I would be able to handle it but it’s awful. The bathroom grosses me out so much I can’t even take care of my own hygiene. I’ve thrown away three toothbrushes so far for just touching the counter, all my stuff has to be placed on paper towels and I’m not allowed to touch the counter in general. It isn’t even that dirty, except for the occasional stray hair and speck of dirt/makeup. I bring my own cutlery to the dining hall and only eat off of plastic plates/cups I’ve supplied. Water bottles are a no go because I’d have to wash it in the sink and that terrifies me. I cried the first time I had to wash my clothes. I would walk around with gloves and a full body suit if I could if that wouldn’t also give me sensory issues. It’s awful and I try to use the toilet as little as possible as well but manageable. Except for the shower. I was already extremely particular about my shower back home (I had to have a rug but couldn’t touch it, only able to stand on my clothes, can’t touch the shower tiles, shower must be rinsed with water before and after getting out, etc etc) but it’s just so awful.

Convincing myself to get in is a challenge in itself, then there’s the build up of humidity in the shower which is a sensory nightmare, but worst of all is shower shoes. I hate the feeling of wet feet in the shoes, especially walking the three steps into my dorm before I can put them on my shoe mat, but I hate putting my bare feet on anything close to dirty. Just the thought is enough to put me off showering another day, I could be sick just typing this out. It’s all several degrees of nightmarish and doing it brings me to tears. Does anyone have any tips?

Why is it that every time I have a conversation with my mother about something she did that hurt me or made me upset she says I'm arguing? Like I could be asking genuine questions trying to figure out a solution and trying to better understand the situation but that's seen as being rude for some reason. It's like I'm supposed to not understand and just go along with invalidating my feelings. And I don't even think I'm being rude but she does and everyone else does when I talk to them. I am a shy and quiet person but when my feelings get hurt I like to try to advocate for myself but it always ends as me being labeled an aggressive person and my feelings dismissed. Even if I just go as disagreeing in a topic apparently I'm arguing? But then when I'm not talking at all in a conversation I have people saying they love talking to me... like what??? My brain hurts

Does anyone else feel weird? Like I know that feeling like an alien is common among autistics but let me explain what I mean. So when I'm standing it feels so unnatural. I feel like I'm standing wrong, then when people talk to me I make weird movements like jolting unintentionally. It's also hard to follow conversations because I can notice that my movements are weird. I feel so uncomfortable in my body but I don't mean being insecure, I just mean I feel uncomfortable. Does anyone else feel similar? I think it's probably tied to anxiety but I don't know

This could literally happen to anyone, probably, but speaking from my own development:

Growing up, I was told often how smart I seemed always reading books and my grown up opinions on things, or my weird accent, whatever. Except if I used to read at school it was because there was nothing else I could do because I felt uncomfortable around other kids and I was constantly wishing they died because of how annoying everyone was. Good times /s.

But my dad believed I was going to get a career because I was intelligent, studied a lot and what not. But I failed because who could imagine college is actually really difficult and requires a lot more knowledge and diligence than we knew, and gave up. Also because it costs a lot and we were poor.

Now I'm stuck in a job I hate and do weed all the time to ignore reality as it's the only thing that seems to help.

I guess what I'm getting at is: it would mean a lot to hear the experiences of other autistic folks that have struggled in a similar way (having a promising future and failing) and maybe stories of successfully overcoming those hard times and finding your way in life.

I'm considered high-functioning autistic diagnosed at 15 .I also have co morbidities.I have borderline personality disorder, and bipolar disorder.Recently i've been feeling overwhelmed shamed.I can't hold a job.I'm doing an intensive outpatient program.Therapy seems to be helping a little bit.I feel like I'm unable to function.I can't make friends.I can't have inter personal relationships in the workplace i recently just moved, and it's very overwhelming. I was crying today about it because I was so upset. I said, why do I have this? Why do I have this because II catch myself doing things that would be considered to be of autistic traits like I was getting really excited. Over playdoh flowers and I had to stop myself and say , hey , no , stop it , and it's very exhausting , because I just wish I wasn't such a little kid like my voice is very immature like I feel like I regret a lot.It's very embarrassing it's really embarrassing.

I broke up with my ex-girlfriend almost a year ago, and we decided to stay friends.

The reason we broke up was because I didn't enjoy talking to her. Whenever we talked, we didn't really.. talk about anything.

I have very limited social energy, so small talk makes me feel irrationally angry and uncomfortable, like I'm bleeding energy I could be using on a more interesting conversation. This was EVERY conversation between us, and it really annoyed me.

About a month ago, I asked some friends what to do about this, and we put together a message (it's the one in the image). I figured it would fix the situation, but a few days later, she asked if it was okay to text occasionally. I said yes (despite being a generally irritable and low-patience person, I struggle to say no).

We go to the same college on the same campus, so she would ask me questions about applications and stuff. Then she kept texting me, sending me memes and then good morning/night and asking how I'm doing.

I don’t want to be mean, and I know she's trying to be caring by reaching out to me. But I can't take this. I don't know what to do. I don’t want to talk to her. I could live with never talking to her again.

I've gotten over the guilt of feeling like this, but I don't know how I would deal with the guilt of cutting her off. I'm one of her only friends, and I don’t want to ruin that for her, especially if she takes it hard and it affects her mentally.

TL;DR: I wanted to stay friends with my ex-girlfriend, but I don't enjoy talking to her anymore, and I don’t know how to cut her off because I feel guilty.

any of you relate