Autism/giftedness and early development

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As I've been questioning whether or not autism might be a possible diagnosis for me, I started probing my mom's memory for information about what I was like as an infant/toddler. And my development was apparently...odd. My mom says that I was completely silent as a baby - no babbling, or mimicking mom and dad's prompts, or vocalizing of any kind. My parents describe it by saying that I was always "lost in my own little world." This continued until I was one and a half, when I woke up one day and started speaking in full sentences. I went from completely nonverbal to displaying the vocabulary and sentence structure of a four-year-old, overnight. And - this was the biggest shock of all - the principal of the local Catholic school, who knew me through my parents, thought I was gifted and wanted to place me in preschool before I'd turned two. This came as a revelation because I've read that giftedness and autism are often mistaken for each other. But giftedness wouldn't be marked by an early delay, would it? And I very much doubt that I'm gifted. But besides that, could the early delay be counted as a sign of autism if I seemed to recover from it? I have an assessment coming up, and I want to know if I should even bother to mention the slight speech delay since it seems so trivial, plus the mistaken giftedness.

The thing that jumped out at me when reading your post was that you went from nonverbal to speaking in full sentences overnight, which is exactly the same as Charles Wallace from A Wrinkle in Time. If you google it, there's a lot of speculation that Charles Wallace is probably on the spectrum.

Of course, that's not exactly any kind of real evidence since Charles Wallace is a fictional character and the novel was in fact written years before Asperger's was even really known, but I found it very interesting to note.

On the more serious side, have you tried any of the online tests such as the Autism Quotient (AQ) test? None of these tests are true diagnoses; they check whether you have traits typically associated with the spectrum, but it's entirely possible to have these traits and still not be on the spectrum. That said, they are still useful tools to get a feel for the likelihood of it.

You can find the AQ test here:
https://psychology-tools.com/autism-spectrum-quotient/

Oh, you're right. I forgot about Charles Wallace. I assumed that he had Aspergers when I was reading that book, too. (I'm looking forward to seeing how Disney depicts those traits in the movie.)

I've taken this version of the AQ test and scored 32, indicating traits, and another version that focused more on sensory problems, where I scored 45. I think I'm pretty able when it comes to socializing, which accounts for the lower score on the former test. It's the only thing that makes me hesitant to believe that I have autism, but then most of the other signs are present. I don't think I'll find any peace in the matter until I'm assessed.

It remind me of this post on a blog.
https://my-little-poppies.com/profoundly-gifted-guilt/

By the way, it is possible to be both gifted and asperger/autistic; it is something you should consider.
A strong case to be on the spectrum is the difficulty to understand social rules, it's like NT just know how to behave in various social situations, while those of us who are on the spectrum frequently don't. A gifted kid not on the spectrum, however, can have difficulties to relate other kids his age, but know the hidden rules and how to handle social situations.

I was nonverbal until age 5.5.

Spoke like a "normal" 6-year-old six months later.

I would bet this is more common than what people think.

Wow. That article - I had the same conversation with my mom about potty-training when I was almost two. She told me I couldn't go to preschool because I wasn't trained yet, so I insisted on training myself. Thanks for linking it; it's interesting.

I do know how to behave in social settings - most of the time. I tend towards comically pedantic speech when I'm nervous or excited, but that's the extent of my social awkwardness, at least as far as I can pinpoint. I did end up being unable to relate to or interact with my peers in high school. All the rules seemed to change overnight, and it took me a while to catch up. But from what I've heard, that's a pretty common experience for anyone on or off the spectrum. I will say that when I engage with someone, they tend to know that something is "off" about me. The interpretations vary, but I'm invariably "different," though I'm also told that I present myself very well. It's quite a tangle. If I had social difficulties, I wouldn't hesitate at all. As it is, I don't seem to be a clear-cut case, whatever I am.

The delay just seems so minor compared to the experiences of others here, like your own. I don't know that it's even worth mentioning at the assessment. On the one hand, it could make me seem like I'm blowing my issues out of proportion, but I don't want to leave out anything important, either. Considering my family's situation, I think I'm only going to get one shot at this, so I want to do it well.

You seemed like you were something of a "savant," but not a "classic" one.

It's quite possible that you were "hyperlexic." Hyperlexia is frequently seen in Aspergers/Autism.

It means, narrowly, that you read early and read well. But I believe this can be applied to verbal ability as well.