I keep seeing people say they identify with things autistic people are saying online so they're thinking it's time to see a doctor and pursue diagnosis and it makes me sad bc they’re usually adult AFABs and that means they’re not going to find what they’re looking for

If you think you might be autistic but you're not sure so you want to know more, the last fucking thing you should be doing is going to a doctor. It is a near certainty that you will leave having learned nothing true about autism or yourself & feeling invalidated or traumatized

If you do really need to pursue a medical autism diagnosis, I would absolutely not walk in there without a rock solid understanding of yourself & your convictions, ready to advocate for yourself and what you need. you have to be ready to counter & withstand misinformation & bias

You need to fully understand the consequences of having an autism diagnosis and decide that the benefits outweigh those consequences for you. Having a diagnosis on your record might prevent you from adopting a kid, moving to a different country, getting lifesaving medical care

A lot of people just want a diagnosis for the validation and so people will believe them and i’d really discourage people from that bc you’re not going to get the validation you’re looking for from an ableist system and some people will disbelieve you no matter what

unfortunately the fantasy that exists in people’s minds where adults can go in, get a fair assessment, find out if they’re really autistic or not, & get diagnosed does not exist. The system is not there to help you. You're gonna have to figure this one out for yourself.