Differences between Boys and Girls on the Spectrum

[Punchr0ck3r17]

So... Maybe I'm weird, but recently I've become curious about the differences that exist between men and women on the Autism spectrum. As a woman with Autism, I know there are differences that exist because I've observed how people react when I tell them that I have high-functioning Autism. Most people respond with something along the lines of... "Wait, what? YOU have Autism?!" I've also gotten looks that seem to say, "But you're a GIRL." For some reason, society today seems to view Autism as a boy's diagnosis, so to learn more about why this is, I did some research and was intrigued by what I found. If you're curious, I wrote a little about it in a post on my blog.

If you check it out, please leave me some feedback! Also, are there any other women with Autism out there who feel like society views Autism as a male diagnosis? I'd love to hear your experiences

 

[Major Tom]

I think women just can fly under the radar better. My son goes to a special school, and the ratio of boys to girls on the spectrum is about 2 boys to every one girl. I don't know if this is coincidence or not, but this is the second school he's went to, and the ratio was the same.
To think that a disorder of just about any kind (unless it has to do with the reproductive system) is only for females or males is just flawed thought in my opinion.

 

[GrownupGirl]

I wasn't diagnosed with Asperger's until I was around my late 20's. At first I was a bit skeptical about my diagnosis when I was told "boys get it more than girls", but when my mother and I found information about female aspie behavior online, it was almost scary how similar it was to my own.

 

[Yeshuasdaughter]

I actually had my services as a child shut off because I am a female. Things were very different in the mid eighties. I was going to see a great speech therapist who got me to talk in second grade. Then the school cut us off because autism is a "boy's condition", and girls don't get it. I started to get made fun of by other kids, and they said I had "ass boogers". It was awful. I miss her to this day, and the nice games we played. She was the one who got me to speak. And I felt so comfortable with her loving, kind eyes.

 

[Progster]

've observed how people react when I tell them that I have high-functioning Autism. Most people respond with something along the lines of... "Wait, what? YOU have Autism?!" I've also gotten looks that seem to say, "But you're a GIRL." For some reason, society today seems to view Autism as a boy's diagnosis

Yeh, this is ignorance - this was the thinking from about 50 years ago. Girls tend to fly under the radar, certain traits in girls are underplayed or overlooked whereas other traits, crucially the more well-known/pubilcised ones in boys can be more pronounced and are picked up on. There is still a bias amongst clinicians that ASD is found mainly in boys, and girls are more often diagnosed with a different condition such as social anxiety, OCD, bipolar, depression rather than ASD. Diagnosis can be a bit of a crapshoot to hit on the right clinician with the right knowledge and experience of girls on the spectrum.

 

[Pats]

I think the biggest thing is that it's just not as noticeable in women/girls because of masking, and also because with women it's more inward and men it's more outward. We go through the same struggles but tend to be more in control of our outter selves. Men, I'm not picking on you, really. But you see a little boy having a meltdown, it's very obvious. There may be kicking, screaming, hitting, whatever - just very demonstrative. Girls often end up crying (maybe slamming a door) and people think, well, girls cry.

And, actually, the way I was raised, I even learned to control that to a point and keep it unnoticeable. Most the time, waiting until I could hide out in a bathroom before letting myself cry.