Is She Asperger's Or On The Spectrum? 15 Clues. According to the CDC, 1 in 59 children are on the autistic spectrum. Researchers used to think that more males than females had Asperger’s/autism. (Autism level 1 is the official diagnosis for Asperger’s these days.) The estimate from 2013 and before had been that there was a 4:1 ratio in men outnumbering women. Now some researchers think that among those who have higher intelligence and verbal skills, the ratio may be 1 : 1.8. Why are women so under-diagnosed? I get letters from women all over the US who think they are on the spectrum, but they are laughed away by professionals.
The answer is fairly obvious. Girls tend to be acute observers and are better at imitating social skills they observe in others. Why do professionals miss her? Also, clinicians expect that parents or teachers would have reported autistic behavior in childhood. So what does an autistic girl or woman who has learned to cover up autistic behaviors look like? Is She Asperger’s Or On The Spectrum? What Does Anorexia Have to Do with Autism? A Lot, Actually. By A. Stout When you think of devastating eating disorders like anorexia, you might think about strict societal standards of beauty and young women and girls who are unsatisfied with their bodies. But do you ever think of autism? Probably not, I’d venture to guess. Yet autism and anorexia are more closely related than you might think. In any case, it’s important that we investigate those ties—not just for people with autism, but also people with anorexia, who may have fallen under detection for autism.
Similarities Between Anorexia and Autism People with autism are more likely to develop anorexia, and people with anorexia often have traits of autism. This may seem strange at first, but look a little closer and you’ll see the connection between the two disorders. Sound familiar? What Drives Anorexia in People with Autism? For many people with anorexia, the driving factor behind their disorder is a fear of being fat. Anxiety Social Struggles Sensory Sensitivities Did you guess this one already? Asperger Profiles: Women and Girls – The Asperger / Autism Network (AANE) Common Experiences Women with Asperger profiles are less likely to be diagnosed and more likely to be misdiagnosed for a number of reasons. Additionally, many professionals have been trained to recognize typical Asperger/autism spectrum expression more easily in males than in females.
While many professionals and advocates are working hard to change this reality, there is still a long way to go in terms of universal understanding and recognition of the unique gifts and challenges of Asperger women. While the core characteristics of an Asperger profile does not differ between genders, girls and women might demonstrate different outward reactions to the profile. While every girl and women with an Asperger profile is unique, many share certain experiences. As a young girl, she may know that she is different, noticing that her interests veer away from those of her peers.
Specific Interests Stigma Other Related Mental Health Concerns Safety Concerns Sexuality Motherhood First Person Account. "Ask Dr. Tony" on Girls with Aspergers - An Autism Hangout Feature Program. What’s it like to be a Girl with AS? By Professor Tony Attwood Girls who have Asperger’s syndrome are primarily different, not in terms of the core characteristics of an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), but in terms of their reaction to being different. Girls typically use constructive coping and adjustment strategies to effectively camouflage or mask their confusion in social situations, and may achieve superficial social success by imitation or avoiding being engaged in interpersonal situations by escaping into an alternative world of fantasy or nature.
A girl with ASD can become an avid observer of other children and intellectually determine what to do in social situations; learning to copy or imitate other girls, adopting an alternative persona and ‘acting’ someone who can succeed in social situations; becoming a social ‘chameleon’. Alternatively, some girls escape into imagination and create an alternative world. Early signs Friendships Social mistakes Imitation and Imagination Kim Tucker’s book is remarkable.
Melatonin side effects: What are the risks? Girls and women who have Asperger's. Foreword for Safety Skills for Asperger Women by Liane Holliday Willey. This was not an easy book for Liane to write. As I read the manuscript for Safety Skills for Asperger Women I could hear Liane's voice and feel compassion for my friend, as she described her experiences as a girl, woman, and mother that included moments of vulnerability, despair, confusion and self-doubt.
Clinicians tend to focus on the positive attributes of having Asperger's syndrome, and there are many, but there are also aspects that need to be known, described by Liane as "the scary stuff" in order to, in Liane's subtitle for this book, save a perfectly good female life. Her personal explanations and advice will resonate with the reader and transform and save lives. Why is this book needed and so valuable? Primarily, because our understanding of Asperger's syndrome is based on the profile of abilities and developmental history of boys and men. Some girls may not seek integration but escape into imagination. Tony Attwood 5/7: Asperger in the feminine and comorbidities. Micro-aggressions and autism part 2.