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I'm just being diagnosed after being weird for 70 yrs. Weird to the NT's not weird at all to me. Where do I go to find 1 older person to talk with me about this? Would someone here help me or do I go somewhere else? So far I'm just alone. I'm not even sure how to see this post or anything else. Yikes!

I'm 57 years old. Do I qualify?

You surely do!

I'm 57 years old. I was literally "speechless" until I was 5 1/2 years old. Somehow, I "got out" of my autism, and became more like an "Asperger's" person.

I do some weird things sometimes in the street and at work. I howl and meow on the subways, and at my desk. People sometimes think I'm funny; other times, they don't like it, though.

Welcome to WrongPlanet.

I've been weird for nearly half a century and diagnosed for just a few years. There's a good mix of people of all ages here, so I'm sure you'll find some people that you can relate to - and some of the youngsters are wise beyond their years and have taught this old dog a few new tricks, too!

Sixty-one and just diagnosed two years ago.

Can't see my last post. How did you get diagnosed finally? Thanks to you all for writing w/me. What strange things do you do? I get 170 on the Cambridge Test does that even mean anything?

What kind of help can I get? Can I have this and Bipolar?

I'm funny in that I was diagnosed when I was very young.

I howl and meow in the NYC subways. I used to try to sing opera in the subways.

Even when there's a "new moon."

Do you like Elk, Elkwoman?

KraftieKortie I have 2 different herds of elk that visit my home on a river in Nr. CA. The small herd comes in Nov, the bigger herd of about 24 comes in Feb and stays until April 1st. Yes I like them!

Kraftie Kortie Is the Sturgeon shop still there? I miss it!

This is possible; it's not uncommon for autistic people to have other developmental or mental health conditions. At the same time, autism itself can lead to cycles of being more or less able to cope. The strain of trying to bluff our way through in a slightly alien world can lead to periods of extreme mental fatigue which are easily mistaken for depression ("autistic burnout"), followed by picking up again once our 'mental batteries' have recharged. It's not unusual for autistic people to have limited awareness of this because, as you said in your first post, we don't seem weird to ourselves - it's all we've ever known. These cycles can be mistaken for bipolar sometimes, even by professionals if they have little experience with autistic patients.

Trog Now that is just what I experience but folks don't understand. I get exhausted at church, down and wiped out Mon, Tues early I'm supposed to be at church 4 hrs for 2 grps and wens n Thurs I'm wiped out. I have no one close just out here 150 folks no cell towers or modern stuff. Elk n Eagles. The UK looks like somewhere I'd love to see.

Never heard of the Sturgeon Shop....but I looked it up.

Yes, it's still there.

You must live in a beautiful area, Elkwoman.

Yes, that's a very common experience for those autistic people who are able to mask their autism to a degree. It makes socialising much more tiring to be doing this all of the time, and having lived our entire lives this way, we may not always be aware that we're doing it. From the outside, our behaviours might look similar, if a little odd sometimes, but internally we may be achieving this in a very different way to most other people. We accept this as our version of "normal", so all that stands out to us is the fatigue and the social consequences of our apparent oddness. All that other people can see is the external behaviour, so it's hard for them to comprehend the additional effort that we have to make.

I consider myself lucky that I live in part of the UK where I find the scenery and wildlife absolutely charming - though I'm rather jealous of your elk and eagles!

I'm 57 too. I've just pretended to be a teenager so that I'd seem smarter and more mature.