5 Signs of Autism That I Missed During Childhood

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Since April is Autism Acceptance Month, I have been thinking about my own neurodivergence. I am an autistic psychologist who specializes in identifying autism. For years, I assessed other people without realizing I was part of the community I was trying to support. It was not until I found a community with other autistics through social media that I began to realize there was a reason why I felt so connected to these clients—because we had something in common!

After learning I was autistic, I began looking back and noticing things that seemed obvious in hindsight but had been overlooked for years. Many autistic adults I know have shared similar “aha” moments after realizing their neurotype.

Unfortunately, many autistic people are not identified until later in life. There are documented disparities in autism diagnoses, with BIPOC autistic people less likely to receive an accurate diagnosis at a young age. Women, trans, and nonbinary autistics also go undiagnosed compared to cisgender men and boys.

I was misdiagnosed the first time I was evaluated for autism because of my evaluator's perception of what autism is “supposed to” look like. I also made it into my 30s before anyone realized I was autistic. This includes the supervisors and experts who trained me in diagnosing autism in my clients.