Advantages of Being an Autistic Woman

Finding the silver lining

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

I recently found out I am on the autism spectrum. I’m very high functioning, which is one reason it took me a while to figure it out. I’ve always felt like a misfit though, like I didn’t belong. I didn’t pick up on social cues and would laugh at inappropriate times.

Because I was a girl and this was back in the 1970s, no one diagnosed me.

I wish I had known when I was a child, because my parents and the school I was attending would have provided me help. Unfortunately, I went through a lot of emotional pain trying helplessly to fit in and never quite being able to, and this often led to depression and anger. One of the great things about knowing — I feel better about myself and can share with those close to me so that they understand I’m not intentionally doing certain things.

Now, I could waste time regretting that I wasn’t diagnosed as a child. I don’t see this as a good use of my time, however.

Instead, I am going to focus on the many positive aspects of this condition. Because every cloud has a silver lining. After all, many remarkable people such as Temple Grandin, as well as quite likely, famous people like Isaac Newton, Nikola Tesla, Emily Dickenson, and Paul Dirac were probably on the spectrum. I know I have been called…