Am I autistic?

A new development on my quest to understand myself.

There are a large number of undiagnosed autistic women, and I suspect I am one of them. Julie Bjelland, LMFT offers a quiz for females who suspect they are autistic at www.juliebjelland.com/autism-quiz. My quiz suggests I should pursue this diagnosis. Other factors which suggest, I may be autistic are:

• A friend’s mother was a physician and she commented that some of my arm movements are unusual.

• I have a niece who is autistic and there can be a genetic component.

I believe I am ok with being autistic but want to be formally diagnosed. Finding a provider who I believe is qualified is proving to be a challenge. I prefer to meet in person with the provider making the assessment.

I am generally disgusted with the medical system whose diagnostic criteria are largely based on how disorders/diseases/etc. are manifested in white males. I believe medications have their place for treating depression, anxiety etc. However, I feel it is too easy to hand these medications out and not pursue the root cause of depression, etc.

I appreciate all the women on Substack sharing their experiences.

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