Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects the way you communicate and interact with others.
autism not a disease or illnessbeing autistic simply means that your brain works in a different way than most people.
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One in 100 people is on the autism spectrum according to the British Autistic Society.
Although autism is born, some people are not diagnosed until they are adults.
If you have autism, you will be autistic throughout your life.
Disability is something you are born with and normally it becomes evident when you are very young, but it is not always so.
Autism is a spectrum and some people have the disability in a very mild way and is more discreet, so it is possible that these people are not diagnosed until later in life.
Do you relate to the symptoms of autism? Here is everything you need to know if you are autistic or not.
Signs of autism in adults
Autism in general means that you communicate differently from others and it may be difficult for you to understand how other people think or feel.
Being autistic can make it hard to understand information, you can get angry about unfamiliar situations and social events, or you don’t like change.
Autism is different in children and adults, in adults the main symptoms are:
- have difficulty understanding what others are thinking or feeling
- becoming very anxious about social situations
- find it hard to make friends or prefer to be alone
- unintentionally appearing blunt, rude, or uninterested in others
- it’s hard to say how you feel
- take things very literally; for example, he may not understand sarcasm or double meanings.
- having the same routine every day and being very anxious if it changes
- likes to plan things carefully before doing them
autistic adults too they may have difficulty understanding social rules, such as not talking to people.
It is possible that avoid eye contact, or misunderstand personal space or get angry if someone gets too close or touches them.
These people often they are excellent at noticing small details, patterns, smells, or sounds that others miss, and they tend to have a keen interest in certain topics or activities.
Autism can be different in men and women, and is considered that women are better at «masking» disability.
The NHS website notes that autistic women they may be calmer, they may hide their feelings, and they may seem to cope better with social situations.
This means that It can be more difficult to get a diagnosis of autism if you are a woman.
According to National Autistic Societyseveral autistic studies suggest that there is three times more autistic men than women.
However, this could be because many autistic women receive a late or no diagnosis and have had a hard time getting the support they need.
There is ‘female autism phenotype‘, in other words, autistic women have characteristics that do not fit the profile and therefore often go undiagnosed.
Because female autism is often camouflaged, teachers often underreport the traits in girls, so fewer girls are diagnosed.
Alternatively, it could be the case that a series of Biological and environmental factors simply mean that men and boys have a higher prevalence of autism.
If you are concerned about any of the above symptoms, make an appointment with a doctor to discuss possible tests.