Like many autistic women, my resting face isn’t naturally smiley. I’d call it neutral, but some people make judgements. One morning, I was walking home with a bag full of lovely local produce for lunch and dinner, enjoying the sunshine and in my own little world. I saw a man up a ladder, cleaning windows, and was about to say good morning to him when he shouted, “cheer up love! It can’t possibly be as bad as that!”
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Denotes the fact that autism presents and develops differently in girls than in boys, and may be more difficult to detect, even though autistic women and girls are recognised as different.
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I’ve known for sure that I’m autistic since 2021, shortly before my 70th birthday. I had already spent over three years on reading, research and completing online questionnaires, so confirmation wasn’t a surprise. I was I fortunate to find a team of clinical psychologists who are careful to make the connection with lived reality while still working rigorously within the official diagnostic framework. They’re leaders in the field and many are autistic themselves.
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