[RisingPhoenix222]

That feel when people tell you that you don't have Autism because you're so high functioning social wise. I mean, to an extent. Let me explain. I have multiple conditions such as Complex PTSD, ADHD, Anxiety, Schizotypal Personality Disorder, OCD, and more (Can't list all of my disorders, too much to remember and don't want to get into it all.)
People think I'm not Autistic, even the Autistics!
Sure, my ADHD makes my thinking and speech jump around.
Sure, my Schizotypal Personality Disorder makes me more prone to Pseudoscience, but I have repetitive speech and thinking at times, I don't think it's my OCD, my OCD is usually counting, checking, cleaning, etc.
In my 22 years of age, I have been rejecting my Autism diagnosis, until now.
I still reject it somewhat, but not as badly as before. I have obsessions that are good and bad. Almost every person I meet I talk about these obsessions to them at least once.
I'm not independent, I still live with my parents, don't have a job or drive, etc. I think that might be my PTSD though, because it gave me bad memory, afraid to move on with my life, my ADHD gives me attention issues but I KNOW my PTSD gave me bad memory because ever since I got traumatized it just got worse.
But I'm going off in a tangent, my point is every time I state I have a diagnosis of Autism, people don't believe me.
And when I say that, I don't mean they think "You don't have an diagnosis, you're lying!"
I don't mean it like that, I mean, "Ok, so you have a diagnosis of Autism, but you're so good with communication and socializing though!"
These people are mostly online. It is easier to socialize on a computer than in real life. They don't get that. They don't get that I think before I type (well, sometimes I do ahaha.)
They don't get that on my YouTube I EDIT my videos so all the stuttering or me trying to say a sentence only to trip over my words, they don't hear that, because I edit it out!
Even one Autistic person once said to me "You are NOT Autistic!"
So I don't know who to believe, these people who don't even know me, or the doctors.
Keep in mind I have had bad doctors almost all my life and misdiagnoses, even one doctor thought most if not ALL of my mental issues was from Autism which Autism is my less affecting disorder that's if I EVEN HAVE IT!
I don't know what to think anymore, no matter how much you people tell me "You're not Autistic", it won't get the diagnosis on the computer changed.
I have sensory issues, I used to lack eye contact as a kid.
Before I got traumatized I was able to memorize things like Star Wars lines.
I had issues "getting" people but got better with understanding people and sarcasm and satire, I sometimes still have issues with sarcasm but not all that much.
I have issues spelling and reading, I have to use spell check and even text to speech, it's that bad.
I consider myself "High functioning" social wise, but not independently. No real life friends, no girlfriend, no job, I'm on disability though so.
Thanks for making me confused internet.
Please let me know if you think I got mislabeled.
Take care.

[Nike007]

Well, to me, I feel that if you feel that you meet the criteria to ASD, and also your doctor(s) do too, then you most likely have it, since doctors wouldn't diagnose you with autism unless you met the criteria. So what if other people say you don't? Many people don't think I do, or at least no one really brings it up. I do tell a few people, like friends or people who do need to know, and no one has ever doubted me before. People talk around me about other people who have autism as if they are dumb, but I'm sitting in the room with them, so it's quite awkward. These people don't know that i have autism. My family doesn't believe i have autism, but I have been professionally diagnosed with autism.
There are many co-morbids with autism, like OCD, AD/HD, and anxiety. Even schizotypal personality disorder seems to be quite common with ASD, though I do believe the actual criteria excludes this diagnosis if you have ASD, I don't really remember.
But I can't tell you if you have been mislabeled, but it seems to me that your doctors believe you have autism, so it's probably likely.

[-jimi-]

I understand a bit. I used to go to a chat where there was another autistic person, I have aspergers. I noticed she got away with being socially clueless while every social mistake I made was because I'm a jerk. I must have seem completely neurotypical on the surface because I was not allowed to make mistakes. I've always understood sarcasm and been able to read between the line, and I can have a proper conversation. That doesn't mean I can read minds like NT:s seem to do. That is one of the problems with being seemingly normal, every mistake you do will be attributed to something else than what is really going on.

I've been told a lot of times that I don't have aspergers. That I simply have character flaws. Eh.. OK.. Nice feedback.

[RisingPhoenix222]

Originally Posted by Nike007

Well, to me, I feel that if you feel that you meet the criteria to ASD, and also your doctor(s) do too, then you most likely have it, since doctors wouldn't diagnose you with autism unless you met the criteria. So what if other people say you don't? Many people don't think I do, or at least no one really brings it up. I do tell a few people, like friends or people who do need to know, and no one has ever doubted me before. People talk around me about other people who have autism as if they are dumb, but I'm sitting in the room with them, so it's quite awkward. These people don't know that i have autism. My family doesn't believe i have autism, but I have been professionally diagnosed with autism.
There are many co-morbids with autism, like OCD, AD/HD, and anxiety. Even schizotypal personality disorder seems to be quite common with ASD, though I do believe the actual criteria excludes this diagnosis if you have ASD, I don't really remember.
But I can't tell you if you have been mislabeled, but it seems to me that your doctors believe you have autism, so it's probably likely.

It's possible to have both Autism & Schizotypal, I've seen it before.
And thanks! Most people don't get it, and are black and white. There are times where I can socialize well, but there are times when I can't, either because I can't think well or don't know what to say or can't think straight, etc.

My son was a heroin addict for about two years and my daughter would always say "he should just quit." She didn't believe in addiction. She believed a person could will themselves out of an addiction. There are many people out there who will classify and judge things without having any knowledge or understanding of something. You may encounter some of those people. Addicts can't just will themselves to quit, if they could do that there would be no need for interventions or rehab clinics.

It's the same with your symptoms. I don't believe a person with autism is an expert on autism. It's a spectrum thing, so each person experiences a spectrum of symptoms. That means not one single person with autism is an expert on autism. And there isn't a single doctor on the planet that is an expert on autism either. No one is.

You know your symptoms the best, so you need to stop caring about defending what you believe to be true or not true. It doesn't matter if it's true for them, it only matters if it's true for you. This empowers you to take what you know and use it to empower yourself.

Whether you have autism or not is not the point though, is it? It seems you are looking to somehow improve your life. Part of that is to stop caring what these other people are trying (intentionally or not) to put in your head. Anyone who is suffering from behaviour that they themselves view as either harmful or holding them back can alter some of those behaviours with mindfulness (a form of behaviour modification). And yes, this also works for autistic people, because they too have minds.