Highly Suspecting I'm Autistic

[Crossbreed]

I have had plenty of positive feedback on my singing voice.
I am pretty meh about my recorded speaking voice, and my reflected image.

 

[Levitator]

I used to hate my recorded singing voice, but, I grew to like that. When I hear my speaking voice, however, I really struggle not to have a repulsion toward it. Recorded that is. It sounds different inside my head than recorded.
Mind you, I had to do many years of singing before I started to appreciate the sound of my singing voice.

Your voice never sounds the same to you out of your own mouth as it does to others because of the way it travels through your head and face to your ears. You really have to record yourself to receive any notion of how other people hear it. I'm surprised at what a narrow range was pleasant, because the rest of it sounds awful.

 

[Chailatte_]

Hello and welcome! I'm typically a very introverted person, but here I've found a welcoming, polite, and understanding environment where I can be myself and freely discuss my thoughts without judgment. It's my safe haven and refuge from a neurotypical world—a place that makes you feel part of the world and no longer 'strange.' I wish you to feel the same !

 

[Greening]

Hello! I'm 35, F, and am exploring the possibility I am autistic, so I decided that joining some forums might help!

I strongly suspect that I am high-functioning autistic from everything I've read, seen, and the quizzes I have taken. Of course, I am not licensed to make any such determination. I've had some people tell me that I can self-diagnose, but that doesn't feel right to me. I have opted not to determine my diagnosis at the moment due to the fact that I am moving cross-country and just can't afford that kind of expense right now. I did see the option on this forum for self-determined, but I selected "Unsure".

I was diagnosed with ADHD a very long time ago. I don't think it paints the whole picture, though. I have a lot of trouble with socializing (back when I was more myself in public, I was always considered "annoying" so I had to tone myself down, now to the point where I feel like interacting with others at all is a burden on them...), I have sensory issues such as light and noise sensitivity and I have really bad sensory issues with eating. I am touch-adverse. I have strict routines I like to keep to and get upset if I get out of them, I like being and working alone, etc.

I could go on and on.

I've gone my whole adult life without thinking any of these things are more than just quirks about me. I didn't even think of autism, as the only example I have had in my life until very recently was a low-functioning male child, of whom manifests very little like me. For me to find out that autism can manifest in these other forms, that it can be high-functioning, and that it also is a little different for women has all been quite a discovery for me. What I thought were "quirks" which have made it quite difficult for me to manage my life at times, could actually be symptoms of autism. I had no clue! It helps me to have this condition to explain why I am the way I am and have always had trouble fitting in.

Anyway, here I go rambling on and on. I'm very bad about that. I'll end this here before I ramble on too much further! lol

My diagnosis also started out with myself suspecting I am on the autism spectrum, before getting it confirmed, officially.

I hope you find this forum to be valuable and interesting further on.

 

[marc_101]

Welcome, and good luck moving to New England. I lived in Boston for many years.

As others said, it's common to be diagnosed (or self-identify) late. Not just women; men too. The DSM-5 recognized Asperger's only in 1994 so there wasn't even a diagnosis category when you were a kid. And at the time it was thought to be a boy's disorder.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Welcome.

I realized I was a high functioning autist at age 64. At this point, I see no reason to go to the trouble of a professional diagnosis. The penny dropped when I accidentally read a couple of articles about successful professional women who were high functioning autists.

My sister may be one of these, I suspect her husband is too.

 

[VictorR]

Welcome.

Regardless of whether you choose to pursue diagnosis or self-identification, I hope you'll continue to find ways of better understanding and supporting yourself and navigating the world we live in.

I'm sure you're already aware, but in case you're not, aane.org is a NE based group with a bunch of in person and virtual support groups.

 

[Harmonie]

Thanks again everyone! And thank you for the resources. I do not know many resources actually. So I did not know of anything in New England before your posts. My state that I'm moving to is Connecticut.

Dress warmly up there.

Thanks! My parents bought me some nice, warm coats for Christmas and my Birthday. I just need to get me some good boots now!

I like the cold, either way! I'm an oddball like that. I have wanted to live in the NE since at least my teens. I cannot stand the climate in the South! It's just too warm/hot for me overall. When so many of your winter days are in the 50s and 60s, what exactly are you looking forward to with Spring? The weather is nicest before you hit Spring down here! How miserable.

Boy those sensory issues can really frustrate me. And trying to explain l don't like tight bands of elastic. I actually will pull elastic waist bands out or cut them up. If l meet someone, and they have a irritating voice, they are immediately on my dislike list. I am sensitive to voices. I was super restless and my hands were jumpy, my legs were bobbing around, l was irritating myself this evening. Welcome to the forum!

I see. Oddly enough, I don't have physical sensory issues. I do, now that I recall, know of another autistic woman kinda in my life that does and has to wear specific fabrics.

This makes me appreciate not having that kind of sensory issue. However, I do have sensory issues in pretty much every other way. The absolute worst for me is food. It's darn well near debilitating. My sensitivity to the sun makes me stay indoors aside from cloudy days. The sensitivity of my ears scared me away from music performance for a while, but I have come back to that after finding out that medically my ears are fine.

 

[ManuelXX]

Hello! I'm 35, F, and am exploring the possibility I am autistic, so I decided that joining some forums might help!

I strongly suspect that I am high-functioning autistic from everything I've read, seen, and the quizzes I have taken. Of course, I am not licensed to make any such determination. I've had some people tell me that I can self-diagnose, but that doesn't feel right to me. I have opted not to determine my diagnosis at the moment due to the fact that I am moving cross-country and just can't afford that kind of expense right now. I did see the option on this forum for self-determined, but I selected "Unsure".

I was diagnosed with ADHD a very long time ago. I don't think it paints the whole picture, though. I have a lot of trouble with socializing (back when I was more myself in public, I was always considered "annoying" so I had to tone myself down, now to the point where I feel like interacting with others at all is a burden on them...), I have sensory issues such as light and noise sensitivity and I have really bad sensory issues with eating. I am touch-adverse. I have strict routines I like to keep to and get upset if I get out of them, I like being and working alone, etc.

I could go on and on.

I've gone my whole adult life without thinking any of these things are more than just quirks about me. I didn't even think of autism, as the only example I have had in my life until very recently was a low-functioning male child, of whom manifests very little like me. For me to find out that autism can manifest in these other forms, that it can be high-functioning, and that it also is a little different for women has all been quite a discovery for me. What I thought were "quirks" which have made it quite difficult for me to manage my life at times, could actually be symptoms of autism. I had no clue! It helps me to have this condition to explain why I am the way I am and have always had trouble fitting in.

Anyway, here I go rambling on and on. I'm very bad about that. I'll end this here before I ramble on too much further! lol

Hi and welcome. I'm sure this forum will help you to find good people and a good space for you

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

One Of my brothers is on the spectrum, special interest is the stock market his advice is the best I have ever seen.
much better than any commercial stuff never diagnosed, We can always tell when his wife is off travelling the world alone, his output increases.