What about autistic women and girls?

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Historically, autism in women and girls has been poorly understood. Autism was thought to be more common in men and boys, and diagnostic criteria (along with assessment tools) have been developed in line with this particular presentation. In recent years, our understanding of autistic women and girls has made significant progress. Several famous women have shared that they are autistic, and public awareness and acceptance seems to be growing. 

Autistic women and girls have been missed for generations, partially due to the previous assumptions about what autism looks like. We now know that autistic women and girls present in different ways. Many have learned to mask and camouflage their difficulties by learning social strategies to cope. This might mean that they seem to be doing fine in a social situation, but could end up feeling overwhelmed, overstimulated and exhausted. Autistic women and girls have also been missed due to misconceptions about autism, such as a lack of empathy or eye contact. Some of the "repetitive behaviours" commonly seen in autistic people might be more "socially acceptable" or subtle.

This often means that a lot of women come forwards in adulthood for a later diagnosis. This might be after a lifetime of feeling different, or perhaps being labelled with other things such as anxiety, OCD, or personality disorder. Even today, our clients tell us that the historic misconceptions still persist, with others telling them they don't "look" autistic, or that they can't be autistic because they have friends and show empathy. 

We also see lots of women starting their discovery journey a bit later in life, when they find that they are struggling with the demands of parenting, or perimenopause. Knowing that they are autistic can help them to manage difficulties such as sensory challenges, or unpredictability, and reduce self-blame.

We have assessed many autistic women, and have lots of experience in treading that fine line between using the "gold-standard" assessment tools in order to ensure that your diagnosis is accepted by others, but also knowing when to go beyond the tools and look deeper to see what is really going on for you. Ultimately our aim is to provide you with a greater understanding of yourself, whether this is autism, another form of neurodivergence, or some other explanation for your experiences.