Hey errbody I'm new here! I decided I'll go through a quick history of my "illness." From about 2 years old I was fascinated with patterns & designs, and my parents almost suspected I was autistic because it runs strong in the fam. In early childhood I was nearly mute and pretty much scared of everything. I was really pitiful. :/ After we moved(about 8 years old) I made my first true friend & started fitting in at school and talking more. In 4th grade true social anxiety started developing and it became really bad the next year. I became one of the weirdos that got picked on frequently. 7th grade I ended up becoming suicidal and went to a mental hospital. That visit literally saved my life. Since then, my illness has only gotten better for the most part. Now it doesn't seem like I have autism at all sometimes! Overall, I say it's both a curse & a blessing.