Hello it's me. So I got diagnosed with autism as a kid, around 15 years old, but my parents didn't seem to like the diagnosis so I never got any treatment or anything. So I go about my adult life with the background assumption I have autism.

Flash forward to today, my employer changes healthcare plans and suddenly I have psychiatric care coverage for the first time ever as an adult. I've been dealing with some stuff so I book a few appointments with the assumption I have autism. We'll long story short, over a few sessions the doctors have me screened and determine it's very unlikely I'm autistic in a medical sesne, which was kinda shocking to me.

But they tell me stuff like autism diagnoses have become better since I was a kid, so that calms me down. They tell me it's far more likely I exhibit what's called schizoid personality disorder (SPD) , which often seems like autism on the surface. I guess it explains a lot.

Anyone have experience with this?

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[–] 4 points 4 days ago

I'm not an autism scientist (yet) but I guess one thing you can look at is if you have any weird persistant sensory issues. Do you have strong negative reactions to certain textures, sounds, smells, bright colors? How do you handle loud and crowded rooms? Do you have some weird problems with your hearing? Do you avoid certain foods due to how they feel? Sensory issues is one of the core pillars of autism.

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