Do I Have Autism? | Self-Assessment

If you’ve found yourself wondering “Do I have autism?”, you’re embarking on an important journey of self-understanding. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) encompasses a diverse range of experiences, and recognizing its patterns can provide valuable insights into your cognitive style and life experiences. Let’s explore what autism is, how it manifests, and what steps you might consider on your path to self-discovery.

Autism Self-Test

Before we explore autism in depth, you may find it helpful to take the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ10) screening below. This brief 10-question assessment was developed by researchers to help identify traits associated with autism spectrum disorder. While not diagnostic, it can provide initial insights that may guide your journey of self-discovery.

Please note: This screening tool is for informational purposes only and cannot provide a diagnosis. Only a comprehensive professional assessment can determine if you meet the criteria for autism spectrum disorder.

What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?

Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition that affects how people perceive, process, and respond to the world around them. The term “spectrum” is significant—it acknowledges that autism presents uniquely in each individual, with varying strengths, challenges, and needs.

Many individuals with autism and advocates have shifted toward understanding autism not as a disorder that requires fixing, but as a neurological difference that represents human diversity. This perspective, often called the neurodiversity paradigm, recognizes that neurological differences like autism are natural variations in the human experience.

How Autism Manifests Across the Lifespan

Childhood Indicators

Autism often becomes noticeable in early childhood, though some children’s traits may be subtle. Common early signs include differences in:

• Social engagement: A child might show less interest in social games like peek-a-boo, have reduced eye contact, or respond differently to their name being called.
  
• Communication development: Speech might develop later, differently, or sometimes not at all. Some autistic children may have advanced vocabulary but struggle with back-and-forth conversation.
  
• Play patterns: Autistic children might engage with toys differently—perhaps lining them up, focusing on specific parts, or preferring predictable play patterns rather than imaginative scenarios.
  
• Sensory responses: Many autistic children show heightened or reduced sensitivity to sensory input like sounds, textures, lights, or tastes.
  

For parents concerned about their child’s development, our pediatric neuropsychology services provide comprehensive evaluations specifically designed for young children.

Adolescent Experiences

The teenage years can present unique challenges for autistic individuals as social demands become more complex:

• Social dynamics: The unwritten rules of teen social life can be particularly challenging to navigate, potentially leading to feelings of confusion or isolation.
  
• Identity development: Many autistic teens start to recognize their differences more acutely during this period, sometimes leading to masking behaviors (hiding autistic traits).
  
• Executive functioning: Managing increased academic demands, schedules, and responsibilities can highlight executive functioning differences.
  
• Emotional regulation: The emotional intensity of adolescence can be particularly challenging for some autistic teens, who may experience emotions deeply but struggle to express them in conventional ways.
  

Our teen neuropsychological testing services are specifically designed to address the unique challenges faced during this critical developmental period.

Adult Manifestations

Many adults discover their autism later in life, particularly those who have developed effective compensatory strategies. Common adult experiences include:

• Social relationships: Building and maintaining relationships may require more conscious effort, with challenges in reading between the lines of social communication.
  
• Work environments: Workplace social dynamics, sensory aspects of work environments, and unpredictable changes can create unique challenges.
  
• Identity understanding: Many adults diagnosed later in life report a sense of revelation when learning about autism, often describing it as finally finding an explanation for lifelong experiences of feeling different.
  
• Burnout risk: The cumulative effect of navigating a world not designed for individuals with autism can lead to burnout—a state of physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion resulting from prolonged masking and adaptation efforts.
  

Related: Can You Develop Autism Later in Life?

Core Aspects of the Autistic Experience

Social Communication Differences

Individuals with autism often experience social communication differently from their neurotypical peers. This might manifest as:

• Conversation dynamics: Finding small talk challenging or draining while excelling in deeper, interest-based discussions. Many individuals with autism prefer direct, clear communication and may miss or misinterpret implied meanings.
  
• Nonverbal communication: Differences in using or interpreting facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice. Some people with autism may have expressions that don’t match their internal emotional states in neurotypical-expected ways.
  
• Social energy management: Social interactions often require more conscious processing and energy, leading to social fatigue even when the interaction is enjoyable.
  
• Connection styles: Many individuals with autism form deep, loyal connections but may need different patterns of socializing, such as clear boundaries around social time or connections based on shared interests rather than casual interaction.
  

Sensory Processing Differences

Sensory differences are a core part of autism that significantly impact daily life:

• Sensory sensitivity: Many individuals with autism experience heightened sensitivity to sensory input like bright lights, loud or background noises, certain textures, tastes, or smells. This can range from mild discomfort to overwhelming distress.
  
• Sensory seeking: Some people with autism actively seek certain sensory experiences, finding them regulating or pleasurable—like specific textures, visual patterns, or movements.
  
• Sensory fluctuation: Sensory thresholds can change based on overall stress levels, energy, and environmental factors. Something tolerable one day might be overwhelming the next.
  
• Interoception differences: Some individuals with autism experience differences in sensing internal bodily states like hunger, pain, temperature, or emotional physical sensations.
  

Thinking and Information Processing Styles

Autism often involves distinctive cognitive patterns:

• Detail-focused processing: Many individuals with autism notice and remember details that others might miss, sometimes seeing patterns that aren’t immediately obvious to others.
  
• Systematic thinking: A tendency toward logical, rule-based thinking and organization of information. This can lead to deep understanding of systems but sometimes challenges with ambiguity.
  
• Monotropic attention: A tendency to focus deeply on one thing at a time, which can enable intense concentration and learning but make multitasking or transitions more difficult.
  
• Concrete thinking: Some people with autism are more literal in their language processing, which can lead to misunderstandings with figurative language or abstract concepts.
  

Routines, Repetition, and Special Interests

These core autism traits can be sources of both strength and challenge:

• Need for predictability: Many individuals with autism thrive with routine and find unexpected changes particularly stressful. This isn’t rigidity but often a way of managing executive functioning and sensory processing demands.
  
• Special interests: People with autism often develop deep, focused interests in specific subjects, leading to extensive knowledge and skills. These special interests can significantly contribute to joy, self-regulation, and potentially career or educational opportunities.
  
• Repetitive movements: Also known as self-stimulatory behavior, these repetitive movements or sounds help with emotional regulation, concentration, and sensory processing. Common examples include rocking, hand movements, or fidgeting.
  
• Systematic organization: Creating systems and orders can help make the world more predictable and manageable, whether through physical organization, schedules, or mental frameworks.
  

Common Pathways to Autism Discovery in Adulthood

Many adults come to question whether they might be autistic through various paths:

Life Transitions as Catalysts

Major life changes often prompt self-exploration:

• Career challenges: Workplace difficulties, particularly in socially demanding roles or environments with sensory challenges, might highlight autistic traits.
  
• Relationship patterns: Recurrent relationship challenges or feedback about social communication can lead to questioning neurotypical assumptions.
  
• Parenting: Having children, especially if they are diagnosed as autistic, can highlight similar traits in parents that may have gone unrecognized.
  
• Pandemic insights: The COVID-19 pandemic provided many people insight into their sensory and social needs when typical demands were temporarily altered.
  

Expanding Understanding of Autism

The public and professional understanding of autism has evolved significantly:

• Beyond stereotypes: As understanding moves beyond stereotypical presentations (primarily based on research on boys with autism), more people recognize themselves in more diverse descriptions of autism.
  
• Female presentations: Research on how autism presents in women and girls has revealed more subtle or different manifestations, including greater mimicry of social behaviors (masking), and more internalization of struggles through anxiety or depression.
  
• Lived experience insights: The growing presence of adults with autism sharing their experiences online has helped many people recognize their own unexplained experiences in these firsthand accounts.
  

Autism Across Demographics

Gender Differences in Autism Presentation

Research increasingly recognizes that autism may present differently across genders:

• Female autism characteristics: Women and girls may show more socially acceptable special interests, stronger mimicry of social behaviors (masking), and more internalization of struggles through anxiety or depression rather than externalized behaviors.
  
• Diagnostic disparities: These differences have contributed to underdiagnosis in women and girls, with many receiving diagnoses later in life after years of misdiagnoses or unexplained challenges.
  
• Non-binary and transgender experiences: Research suggests a higher co-occurrence of autism and gender diversity, though the relationship is still being explored.
  

For adults wondering if they may have undiagnosed autism, our neuropsychological testing for adults provides comprehensive evaluations that take into account these gender differences in presentation.

Cultural Considerations in Autism Recognition

Cultural background significantly influences how autism is expressed and recognized:

• Cultural norms: Different cultures have varying expectations around eye contact, direct communication, emotional expression, and social etiquette—all areas where autistic differences might be more or less apparent.
  
• Diagnostic access: Access to autism-knowledgeable professionals varies widely across communities, with many marginalized communities facing additional barriers to evaluation and support.
  
• Interpretive frameworks: How behaviors and traits are interpreted can vary significantly across cultures, affecting whether developmental differences are recognized as potentially being autism.
  

Self-Advocacy and Support Strategies

Whether or not you pursue formal diagnosis, understanding your neurological style can inform effective self-advocacy:

Understanding Your Needs

Self-knowledge is a powerful tool:

• Sensory inventory: Identifying your specific sensory sensitivities and preferences can help you create more comfortable environments.
  
• Energy management: Recognizing activities that drain or energize you enables better planning and pacing to prevent burnout.
  
• Executive functioning supports: Identifying which aspects of organization, time management, or task initiation challenge you most can help you develop targeted supports.
  
• Communication preferences: Understanding your communication style allows you to advocate for clearer communication in relationships and workplaces.
  

Finding Community Connection

Many people find tremendous value in connecting with others who share similar neurological experiences:

• Online communities: Forums, social media groups, and content created by autistic people can provide validation, understanding, and practical strategies.
  
• Support groups: In-person or virtual support groups for autistic adults offer opportunities to share experiences and resources.
  
• Neurodiversity advocacy: Some find meaning in connecting with broader neurodiversity advocacy movements that promote acceptance and accommodation of neurological differences.
  

Common Misconceptions About Autism

When discussing autism, it’s important to address some widespread misconceptions:

• Myth: All individuals with autism struggle with empathy.
  Reality: Many people with autism experience deep empathy but may express it differently or struggle with identifying emotions in others due to what researchers call the double empathy problem—not a lack of caring.
  
• Myth: Autism always involves intellectual disability.
  Reality: Autism occurs across all intellectual abilities, from learning challenges to exceptional giftedness. Intellectual ability is independent of autism diagnosis.
  
• Myth: Individuals with autism can’t form meaningful relationships.
  Reality: Many people with autism form deep, meaningful relationships and connections, though they may navigate social situations differently.
  
• Myth: All individuals with autism are savants or have special abilities in math or technology.
  Reality: While some people with autism have exceptional abilities in specific areas, most have ordinary talents and challenges like anyone else.
  

Professional Assessment for Autism

While online screening tests can provide initial insights, comprehensive professional evaluation offers a more complete understanding:

What Professional Assessment Involves

A thorough autism evaluation at KMN Psych typically includes:

• Clinical interviews: Detailed discussions about developmental history, current functioning, and specific concerns.
  
• Standardized assessments: Validated tools designed to evaluate autism-related characteristics.
  
• Observational components: Professional observations of communication, social interaction, and behavioral patterns.
  
• Cognitive and adaptive functioning: Evaluation of intellectual abilities and everyday life skills.
  

If you’re interested in the cost of autism assessment, our article How Much Does an Autism Test Cost? provides helpful information about what to expect.

Benefits of Professional Diagnosis

For many adults, professional assessment can provide:

• Clarity and understanding: Formal evaluation can confirm or rule out autism and help identify the specific pattern of strengths and challenges.
  
• Access to accommodations: A diagnosis can qualify individuals for workplace accommodations, educational supports, or other services.
  
• Community connection: Formal diagnosis can validate membership in the autistic community for those who value that connection.
  
• Treatment guidance: Understanding your neurological profile can guide more effective therapy approaches for co-occurring conditions like anxiety or depression.
  

Related: How to Get Your Child Tested for Autism

Embracing Your Neurological Identity

Whether you ultimately identify as having autism or not, the journey of self-discovery is valuable:

• Self-acceptance: Understanding your neurological style can reduce self-criticism and increase self-compassion.
  
• Strengths recognition: Identifying your unique cognitive strengths enables you to leverage them more effectively.
  
• Needs accommodation: Recognizing your legitimate needs allows you to create environments and relationships that support your neurological style.
  
• Authentic living: Many people report that understanding their neurology allows them to live more authentically, reducing the exhaustion of masking or trying to fit neurotypical expectations.
  

Related: Is it Worth Getting an Autism Diagnosis?

Your Next Steps

If you’ve been wondering about autism in your own life, consider these next steps:

• Learn from individuals with autism: Seek out books, blogs, podcasts, and other content created by individuals with lived experience to gain firsthand perspectives.
  
• Practice self-observation without judgment: Notice your patterns, preferences, and challenges with curiosity rather than criticism.
  
• Consider professional evaluation: If clarity would help you access needed supports or better understand yourself, comprehensive neuropsychological testing can provide valuable insights.
  

Ready for answers? Contact KMN Psych at (858) 224-2906 to schedule your autism evaluation today.

References

Grove, R., Hoekstra, R. A., Wierda, M., & Begeer, S. (2018). Special interests and subjective wellbeing in autistic adults. Autism Research, 11(5), 766-775. https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.1931

Hull, L., Petrides, K. V., & Mandy, W. (2020). The female autism phenotype and camouflaging: A narrative review. Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 7(4), 306-317. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40489-020-00197-9

Lai, M. C., & Baron-Cohen, S. (2015). Identifying the lost generation of adults with autism spectrum conditions. The Lancet Psychiatry, 2(11), 1013-1027. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(15)00277-1

Milton, D. E. (2012). On the ontological status of autism: The ‘double empathy problem’. Disability & Society, 27(6), 883-887. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2012.710008

Robertson, C. E., & Baron-Cohen, S. (2017). Sensory perception in autism. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 18(11), 671-684. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn.2017.112