Chanda Scobee’s Reviews > The Autists: Women on the Spectrum > Status Update

“… The signs were there. I mourn not being able to decipher them before. Instead, I repressed everything that was true in me and kept striving towards further defeat. If I had known, many mistakes could have been avoided. There would have been fewer blocks of stone in the road. Having grown up with undiagnosed autism is to have different difficulties that didn’t (need to) exist.“

“Not until there is a proper improvement in the knowledge of autism and an increased awareness that not everyone functions the same way will there be adequate help for people with an autism diagnosis.”

“The autist must find her place in the world, where she can turn her diagnosis into something positive and play to her strengths.”

“For a person with autism, the world is so unmanageable and the experience of a lack of control so overwhelming that they often cling to the minor aspects of their lives that they can control.”

Even if you don’t read the whole book, the chapter called “Lost in Thought” casually discusses a common depiction of autism in women that’s really relatable and eye-opening. There’s a lot of scientific (a bit outdated, ex: conversations about Asperger’s but at least it’s still educational) discussion aside from just anecdotal writing too.

“Autistic traits can be found in about one out of five people. But to be diagnosed with autism, a person has to fulfill all seven criteria. In common parlance, you might sometimes hear the comment ‘everyone is a little autistic.’ But that’s a misconception. If you are an introverted person who doesn’t meet the remaining criteria, you are not autistic- simply withdrawn.”