Are autistic women as common as men but widely underdiagnosed?

[Vesuvius87]

I've recently seen a video about a Spanish woman narrating how her daughter was diagnosed with autism but here is the twist: Both the mother herself and her child's psychologist were within the spectrum too. The psychologist was able to easily detect it in the mother and child because she also has it herself.

For many years, autism was more seen in boys and men because they're different from us. We're not going to show the same exact characteristics as them. Secondly, I think most women within the spectrum seem to be more within the middle curve when it comes to level of intelligence; neither a genius with the highest IQ nor the other extreme of a severe mentally challenged individual.

When I finished watching the video, I actually identified some traits within myself too. I was emotionally bullied during my younger school years, had a hard time engaging in long conversations (not knowing what to talk about), was labelled as weird by some classmates, sometimes would laugh at random things (odd sense of humor), had a hard time controlling the random laughter and make funny sounds whenever I'm entertaining my baby boy. I still like popping bubble bags even at this age. When I was much younger, I couldn't read cues if someone was getting bored with my conservation.

I still went to college, got married and I'm a mother of a nearly 14 month-old boy. But yeah it's likely I'm within the spectrum too; though mild. Is it likely autistic women are just as common as men but we're underdiagnosed, not reported too much?

[usernameobvious]

It wouldn't amaze me too much - I've seen many oddball women out there on here etc Reddit hell lol 😂

[Vesuvius87]

We've always existed but weren't as frequently diagnosed as males. The problem was they kept focusing on obvious signs of male autism such as flapping hands, making disruptive sounds in class, having fixation on planets and building structures, being socially withdrawn, head banging, polar extreme of either very high or very low IQ score, etc.
So yeah lol off course we're going to be invisible. Most of us aren't going to be interested on planets nor lego blocks.

[usernameobvious]

@Vesuvius87 and the female equivalents please? Fascinating - bob or masculine hair cuts maybe? Wearing tomboy clothing or overalls blending into butch culture or opposite extreme beauty fanatic - the dreaded spray tanned obsessive or real tan obsessor? Shrug

[Vesuvius87]

Probably but typical female signs are rehearse conversations and jokes during her private moments before talking about it with others (aka masking or camouflaging; kind of like practicing from a script and then imitating), being fixated on celebrites and TV shows, micmiking social behaviors to fit in, feeling burnout after a social event that expects us to continue talking for hours about different new topics and then getting confused for being shy or introvert, having a hard time interpreting jokes, hidden messages in a conversation or even poems (taking things literal)... or it can also be eating the same meals and repeating the same TV show, same music.

[Vesuvius87]

I have an intense interest on a common topic such as child psychology and then gentle parenting for several years. I also have a hard time managing time and getting things done faster; which my mom would confused it for being slow at times. I can't function well if someone rushes me.

[FrodoSkywalker007]

I think women tend to be more connected to disorders, or at the very least go through the process of being diagnosed. It seems to me women are more likely to suffer from general too like depression and anxiety. Even in terms of sexuality, women are far more likely to label themselves as something.

[Veronika_p]

I'll even say they're more autistic women than men

[usernameobvious]

Most likely my guess too - guess

[usernameobvious]

Guessing only me

[Veronika_p]

Lol 😆

[Agape93]

Probably. Most medical shit is like that for us

[jahaims]

Google is free

[In_Trance]

nope