Self diagnosis among the autistic community

by Maddie Wardle

For years now, there has been a debate about whether self diagnosis is an effective way of discovering personal health issues. Many believe it is right to do when help is hard to receive and others believe that it is disrespectful to those medically diagnosed as those who wrongly diagnose themselves could face issues in the future.

This is all different, however, in the autistic community where it is widely accepted - but why? Well, a diagnosis for autism has always been hard to achieve. 1 in 54 children are diagnosed and yet many still go undiagnosed due to the lack of awareness of the symptoms. Many research their struggles to find that autism is the most likely cause. Now picture this: a young person finding this out and then reaching out for help and a professional diagnosis, but they can’t due to the stigma related to the diagnosis. This is an issue specifically for autistic women and girls.

Research about autism was always undertaken on young boys as they most often presented the clearest signs and the term ‘masking’ was not yet properly researched. Masking is what many autistic people do to appear ‘neurotypical’ and to fit in with daily life. This action is often exhausting and can result in burnout.

An autism diagnosis can also affect the daily lives of those with the condition. Discrimination is a huge part of why many don’t seek a professional medical diagnosis - the fear of being targeted for being ‘weird’ and ‘unique’ can reduce peoples chances of asking for help.

This is why most turn to self diagnosis as they can have the relief of knowing why they act a certain way without the concerns of having to tell others. Self diagnosis can be effective when the symptoms are present and past instances hint at the condition. Overall, self diagnosis within the autistic community is mostly accepted because those who have the condition are aware of how hard it is to get a diagnosis and know how clear the condition can be to an individual.