He also might not understand what he’s doing wrong in some aspects. I remember having that issue
Rejection sensitive dysphoria is very common. I have it big time
) but the main signs were: 
). I think your best bet is maybe pastoral care/form tutor or your GP?
the fact you’re willing to try and help us all your child could ask for 
I was diagnosed ADHD at 11 (I think! Might have been 10 or 12
- very intelligent without needing to try or do any work in every subject and I couldn’t understand why other people didn’t know this stuff. As I got older (16/17/18) I would only be like this if it was stuff I cared about. If it was science of philosophy then I would zone out and not try. Looking back idk how I passed all my finals and got into uni
- always did everything very quickly and went about my life like a whirlwind or would sit still and not move for hours in end not focusing on anything
- hyperfixating in things for weeks and then dumping them never to be seen again
- big sensory issues with food and people touching me
- stimming, mainly rubbing my feet together ot twiddling my hair, happy hands
I was diagnosed in France/Germany so it’s a wee bit different but I was originally just considered very clever by my primary school (I was bilingual by the age of 6 after moving to France when I was 5). When I moved to a bigger international school at the age of 10/11, I was referred to the school psychologist for ‘bad’ behaviour and demand avoidance by a few of my teachers and they called my parents in and said that it wasn’t behaviour it was most likely adhd. It’s not really recognised in France (they still call people ‘slow’ and we were told to just not talk to the non verbal girl in my primary school class and pretend she wasn’t there
Sorry I feel like I’ve thrown a whole load of information at you there
Not sure this is anything to do with neurodiversity? Neurodiversity isn't a personality disorder. The mental health thread might be better for this, you might get more knowledgeable support
I’m really sorry!
No problem! Neurodiversity is a different way of thinking so dyslexia, dyspraxia, autism, ADHD, hope I haven’t forgotten one. I hope you get support hun but contributors here aren’t necessarily going to know anything
. It's all very present in my mind at the moment for one reason or another. There's loads more I could add and I think I've probably gone off the point you actually asked a bit, sorry.
Ah when were you diagnosed autistic though, as a child or an adult?Hi @soph30,
Jumped over from the I'm a celeb thread to reply. Thanks for the link it was a good idea!
So my story in short... I was an extremely hyperactive child who talked incessantly and was probably fairly socially clueless for the most part. I also had extreme emotional outbursts which I now realise were meltdowns. My parents sought the help of a psychologist at one point and he suggested I may have been brain damaged at birth. Nice. My birth was totally bog standard so nothing to suggest that. My parents never went back! Fast forward to now and three of my children are autistic with co-morbid ADHD. Suddenly it all became clear!
In terms of emotional intelligence, as an adult I've always been able to read a room. To the extent that I would instantly know what any underlying issues were between people, who fancied someone, who wasn't quite right. I can also pick up someone's motives and have a particular wariness of inappropriate over familiarity. I can read even the most subtle facial expressions and mannerisms etc. However, I'm not a fan of small talk and am far more comfortable having open, to the point conversations. I can also see both sides of arguments which I found used to really irritate people. Turns out people don't want reason and logic when they just want to vent. Oops. I've learnt the way to phrase things better now and when it best to say nothing!
It took me a long time to reach that point though and properly attune to it if that makes sense? I used to mask a lot (without realising it) which didn't leave much room for concentrating on the behaviour and motives of others.
I was a frighteningly naive child/teen. I'm quite surprised I'm still alive to be honest because I took so many risks without realising they were risks. I moved out at 16, over a hundred miles away, on a complete whim. There were difficulties at home and I was just so desperate to be free. Now my children are of a similar age that absolutely horrifies me.
The realisation that I masked had to be pointed out to me by someone else. I'd made a comment that I'd always been able to blend with different friendship groups, adapting the way I'd speak etc but that I'd always come away feeling very drained and that I happened to notice the difference with a particular set of friends I made. I could just relax and be me and even better they liked me for me and didn't look at me like I had three heads if I just 'was'. It won't surprise you to know that a large proportion of that friendship group are either ND or have ND children.
Sorry, the world's longest post
I was just coming back to add that because I realised I'd forgotten to say and it's a really important point. I'm not. The closest I've got is a discussion with the Paediatrician who has diagnosed all of my children and who has 'known' me for nearly 20 years and I obviously had to give a detailed family history during their diagnostic process. The upshot was I am ND (I lean more toward ADHD myself but there must be an autistic element due to the meltdowns. I've also got a lot of sensory issues but they are easy to hide from others) but I've never really seen the point in progressing it.Ah when were you diagnosed autistic though, as a child or an adult?
I doubt you'd be able to pick up subtle hints of who fancied someone if you were even moderately autistic. This is from a fellow NDer btw, not someone fed media shite
The meltdowns do sound like autism though- yep get a diagnosis, I'd just add my name to the NHS waitlist as you might get one in like a year
I appreciate your point of view. As I said, there's lots more info, I can't really condense my life into a few posts. If a qualified professional with years of experience is telling me she thinks I am, I should probably take that on board (and it's taken me a long time to admit that). The wait in my area is about two years though and I'm not sure I currently have the energy for the process. Maybe me just quietly accepting it and making sure I use my own personal experiences to improve life for my children is enough.I doubt you'd be able to pick up subtle hints of who fancied someone if you were even moderately autistic. This is from a fellow NDer btw, not someone fed media shite
dyspraxia does not affect your intellect in any way, they probably made it to be approachable for a reason