Is it normal to shift on the spectrum?

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Is it normal to shift on the spectrum? I have had aspie traits all my life but it seems that in the last couple of years (turning 22 tomorrow) my symptoms have gotten a lot worse. I'm less able to tolerate sensory stimulation and am overwhelmed much easier. I also stim a lot more. I lost my twin sister traumatically 2 years ago I don't know if that has anything to do with it.

Yes it's all down to things like your living situation, job, life stresses etc.

It's normal for symptoms of ASD to get worse during periods of extreme stress, yes.


About your sister

Everything changes, nothing remains the same. I am sorry to hear about your loss. It can always change your life. These things take time to get over. You never know how much.

its not the autism/place on spectrum changing, its the current circumstances and stressors that are causing the issue,these affect the arrousal system which can appear in many different forms such as less tolerance for everything,self injurous behaviors when dont usualy do it much or at all,paranoia,pyschosis,depression etc.

This. I would find it a little hard to imagine such a complex chemical change occurring, like an actual change in your place on the spectrum. As KOR has mentioned before and on her blog (hopefully I'm not misinterpreting anything), being in different places on the spectrum actually has to do with cognitive capacity. Like a different model computer that has a different total storage or different types of storage. I would compare it to having a different RAM too.

AFAIK most non verbal autistics become verbal when older, so yes there is a 'shift' inherently IMO.

becoming verbal just means we became verbal [and in many cases we are speech impaired once we gained a voice],it isnt the core part of our autism which doesnt change.

perhaps can explain this one warsie or any other WPers as am confused;have never understood the concept of being non verbal automaticaly making someone severely autistic,am on quite a few FB parents of autistic kids groups;some high functioning kids were non verbal until their toddler years/slightly past them;the parents say their children are severely autistic but the actual core of their autism isnt severe,they simply have severe speech impairment.

The lack of speech does make it severe to them. And where ideally we can all celebrate each person's self and individual achievements rather than focus forever on what is and was wrong, some parents stay stuck on what they saw, thought they saw or did not see, or were told years ago.

I even know a parent who will say what great progress in functioning her child has made but talks some really negative stuff about autism and differences in general, it made me out of my mind upset trying to make sense of it, I did not start to recover until someone told me this parent seems possibly ASD herself, then ealized some of it could be her being confused about herself, how the world is. I think this might happen a lot, it is genetic after all.

I'd say yes. Over the years some of my symptoms have got a lot easier yet others such as my limited diet are as stubborn as ever. I suppose I've learned from life's experiences.

It's more like the symptoms switch from less or more. I'm a diagnosed Aspie, but before that, I was considered high-functioning.

I agree that it is mainly symptoms, circumstance, and ability to cope in the given moment that change. Perception is also important, I think. If I were diagnosed in early childhood, classic autism would have seemed obvious (speech delay, lots of typical stims, etc.). However, I was diagnosed after many years of learning to cope and "fit in", so I appeared more on the Asperger's side of things. I still have the same problems I did as a kid, am prone to shut-down, selective mutism, and need at least some assistance to function on a regular basis. And yet, I can fake it well enough and for long enough to often pass as just a very odd NT.

Something as traumatic as losing a sibling could certainly cause a big increase in symptoms. It doesn't even take anything serious for me to see a difference. For instance, I can go to the grocery alone and get out without causing too much trouble.... but if I have the extra responsibility of bringing a child with me, the task will have me overloaded and headed toward a meltdown! This applies on a larger scale, as well. Any big change in "my world" lessens my overall ability to function normally.

I used verbality as an example of a 'shift' in autism change. I remember people mentioning other things such as sensitivity to some stimuli varying.