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The False Binary Between Autistic Adults and Children
Late diagnosed adults had the same experiences as children but learned to hide them well into adulthood
There are still sizable chunks of the population that believe autism is a childhood condition. And it’s hard to blame them when media coverage and public discourse about health policy and funding focuses on children.
Autism is framed as an issue for families and the only adults in the equation are parents who are assumed to be neurotypical.
Early intervention programs for Autistic kids are aimed at making them more like their neurotypical peers. The term itself implies the need to get in as soon as possible to nip autism in the bud. The panic generated around delays in diagnosis fuels the urgency.
The expectation is that by the time you’re an adult, you should have autism well under control. You’ve had enough time to catch up with everyone else; to learn to fit in and be normal.
As a late-identified Autistic adult, it’s hard to situate yourself in this narrative. You’re made to feel like an imposter; on the back foot trying to legitimise your claim to being Autistic.
It creates a false binary between Autistic children defined by a medical model that…
