How developed are you?

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Autism is a developmental disability, and we all have developments issues of some kind or we have all made progress in one way or another. I have developed a lot over the years , in some area's I am less developed than my "neurotypical" peers and in some areas I am more developed. How developed are you for your age, what areas of development are you lagging behind and in what areas are you doing well in?

I'm more developed than my neurotypical peers. Though I'm a teenager and most of my peers are on drugs, so that's not really saying much.

I start out more developed than my peers, but I think I've stopped developing in my mid-twenties.

On the GAF-scale I score 41-50. And it doesn't include some issues, I am dealing with either (eg. problems of feeding yourself or avoiding supermarkets due to sensory overload etc., which is a basic need one should be able to perform). I was never "ahead" people my age, though I can have a sort of "advanced" or "out of the box" thinking in some areas (but they are not important for "survival") due to a higher than average IQ (WAIS), but it doesn't help me to "function" and taking care of basic needs somehow.

I have always seemed to be ahead and behind in my peers in different areas.

I think the only mature thing about me has been my reading level. I am naive, and struggle to understand the intentions of others. People seem to recognise it, so I try to act like an adult to protect myself.

Intellectually I have always been far ahead of my peers. Physically I have always been behind.

Although now I am in my 30s and am in better physical condition than the VAST majority of others my age.

I'm 25, and sadly (please don't laugh) I just started realizing I am a "grown up". When I was in my early 20's I acted like a belligerent teenager, and I was NOT ready to take on adult responsibilities. Even though I excelled in school throughout my life and scored relatively high on standardized IQ testing and graduated with honors from a great college, in terms of mental maturity and development I was way behind. All of the intelligence in the world doesn't help when you're emotionally underdeveloped.

I am behind in many ways, one example is I still have not figured out how to maintain friendships, it's just too stressful to me. I feel overwhelmed and irritated when too many people call and text me and demand my time. I need to be alone a lot. I know this is probably not healthy, but it's the least of my concerns.

Since I received my diagnosis I have been working on understanding myself, why I am different, and how to deal with these differences so I can be a fully functional and productive adult. I still have a lot of catching up to do, but I'm getting there. I just learned the most important thing I need to do is be patient with myself, know that I am in fact different, and to stop beating myself up over every failure. Just because I am different does not mean I do not deserve patience and kindness.

(Don't know if that answered your question or not)

I feel like I hit a developmental "brick wall" when I was around 13 or 14. It seemed like when I was 12, all of my friends loved all the things I loved, but then when we got to junior high, suddenly they stopped caring about using their imaginations, watching cartoons and having slumber parties and started caring about fashion and how to be popular and get a boyfriend. I didn't get it.

My mom says that back then I was still like a 10 year old; but now she says I act anywhere from 12 to 16. My interests are still very childish and I don't know how to handle my emotions properly (too overly sensitive). I can do chores (laundry, dishes, cleaning my room, feeding the cat) and make my own food (with the microwave, never with the stove or oven), and I'm able to be left by myself for hours at a time.

But these are all milestones that I should have hit years ago. I feel so pathetic for a 21 year old.

^

I have advanced degrees in engineering but I cannot seem to clean my bathroom or select toothpaste at the grocery store! It is infuriating and embarassing for me.

I do almost always remember to put on makeup for work but I sometimes wonder if my tattoos and guaged earrings make my managers nervous. I guess it's a good thing that I get paid to think and not to look a certain way.

When you get old enough, you wouldn't want to be more "developed" than your peers any more. I'm nearly 40 and think I have developed plenty enough already. I look younger and more innocent than people my age, for a woman that's probably a good thing. My emotional maturity is similar to a 25 year old's, which is probably good enough for most things already. They tell older people it's good to be young at heart, isn't it?

Is there some sort of scale to know if you're developed enough or not?

I'm so developed that I gained the ability to shoot fire from my mouth.

In some ways I'm way behind, in others I'm ahead, lately I've been making large strides, doing a lot by myself. Hoping to be moved out of my parents home by the time I'm 21