Could You Be Autistic? The Signs & Traits Of Undiagnosed Autism

Hi! I'm Orion Kelly and I'm Autistic. On this video I break down what #autism is and explore the signs and traits used to diagnose it. Plus, I share my personal lived experiences as an #actuallyautistic person. #autismdiagnosis #orionkelly #dsm5 #autisticadult #whatautismfeelslike

⏱ Index:
00:00 - Could you be Autistic?
02:16 - What is autism
04:35 - Diagnostic areas
05:45 - Social communication & interaction (signs & traits)
14:14 - Restricted, repetitive behaviours (signs & traits)
23:06 - Adult diagnosis NOTE

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TikTok: @orionkelly_australia

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ABOUT ORION:
Orion Kelly is an #ActuallyAutistic vlogger (YouTuber), podcaster, radio host, actor, keynote speaker and Autistic advocate based in Australia. Orion is all about helping you increase your understanding, acceptance and appreciation of Autistic people.

#AutisticVoices #ActuallyAutistic #Autistic #Autism #OrionKelly #ThatAutisticGuy #ASD

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⛔️*Disclaimer: The videos contained on this channel are for general education and entertainment purposes only and do not constitute professional advice. For professional advice and training seek assistance from a qualified provider. All views are my own and do not represent those of my employers or sponsors. Some images used are stock images.*⛔️

Related: autism, autism diagnosis, Orion Kelly, orionkelly, thatautisticguy, tiktok videos, autistic, autism in adults, autism in women, autism in men, autism spectrum condition, asd, autism spectrum disorder, aspergers, aspergers syndrome, autism in boys, autism in girls, dsm, dsm5, autistic adults, autistic kids, autism mom, autism parent, autism family, autism speaks, autism awareness, autism acceptance, autism at work, am I autistic, adult autism test, autism disclosure, autism therapy, autism prevention, autism meltdown, autistic burnout, autistic behavior, autism symptoms, autism traits, autistic signs, what autism feels like, love on the spectrum, stimming, echolalia, anxiety

[ieatlotsoftoast]

It's amazing how nobody helps you in life, especially family. They just think your some weirdo who's depressed.

[nbctheoffice]

I can’t tell you how validating it feels to hear you explain near the end that autistic traits may not appear until well into adulthood when the external pressures exceed personal capacity. I feel like I’ve really hit this tipping point in my personal life in the last five years. Our stories are similar in that I didn’t consider my own autism until my child was diagnosed! Thank you for this content.

[ivankocienski]

i am not formerly diagnosed or anything but a thing i remember is when i was in school my teachers would always be on my back about "he's so smart if only he focused and applied himself in class". i was forever doing badly in classes and so i would be put in the special ed class because they thought i couldn't hack it but then in special ed class i would be too smart! so they would put me back in the regular class. this happened a bunch of times. it even still happens where people meet me and think i am really clever and then get confused when i do really stupid things.

[GhostCracker]

I love how now that I’m learning about autism, autism and ADHD descriptions are just describing huge chunks of my life and I’m just like, “Oh, so that’s why that happens!” Or, “Wait, that’s NOT normal?!”

[andersh]

The different criteria for autism basically explain my whole upbringing. I always blamed myself for not being able to act "normal" and at 12 I started having constant thoughts of suicide. Those constant thoughts lasted until I seeked help 21 years later, at the age of 33. I can't understand why no one could see it when I was a child. It was so obvious.

[adellajones]

I love these comments. I am over 60 and have so many of the issues you talk about. I always felt overwhelmed with working jobs. I finally got really overwhelmed - couldn't remember anything and thought the work process was stupid. I don't like talking on the phone. I don't want to go anywhere. I hate people. They drain any energy I have. Your channel is so helpful ❤️

[jannettb]

When I was a kid I thought people must be telepathic, because everyone else seemed to know things and exchange ideas in some way I couldn't detect. I even had a theory about how this telepathy developed into adulthood, and I just was missing that part of me. I would be hanging out with a group and all of a sudden they would discuss the same thing or get up and go do the same thing seemingly out of the blue, and I figured there must be a telepathic conversation going on that I couldn't detect

[JD]

The adult diagnosis part was really helpful for me. I'm still un diagnosed but I'm pretty sure I have autism. It would explain so many of the struggles I have had but especially as an adult.

[gaynor_goldcoast]

I’m a volunteer for Riding for the disabled- it’s mostly for autistic children and it’s sponsored by the government. I started because I love horses and knew nothing about autism. I’ve learnt a lot, some of the kids are high functioning and some are not. It’s been very interesting and the horses are a great therapy for the kids as they are large, gentle and don’t care what you’re thinking but how you treat them

[angeljaceherondale]

I've been waiting one month for my diagnosis after the end of the process and I've been so stressed about it. Having a brain that tells you you're faking it to make yourself feel better doesn't help at all. But watching you does, so thank you.

[mizotter]

"My capacity was not meeting my demands!...I started to look a LOT more autistic..."
That's me. Only when the pressures from being targeted for harassment on my job of 25 years added to all the normal pressures of being a high school English teacher did my mask crack, then quickly shatter within 2-3 months. I retired suddenly in 2019, just as the 3rd trimester began. I was profoundly traumatized, and I've been in recovery since.
A big part of recovery has been discovering, at age 57, that I'm AUTISTIC, not suffering from BPD, as I was misdiagnosed when a teen. Behaviors that was interpreted as "depression" were either a meltdown or shutdown related to social trauma (bullying, grooming, dating violence, etc); behaviors deemed "mania" was simply my intense focus on and energy for my interests (and echolalia: blurting or repeating song lyrics--or actually bursting into song!).
It was quite funny to discover that I'm autistic after my retirement. Without knowing of my own autism, I'd built a reputation as the teacher in my department who worked well with autistic students, I'm proud to admit. I even did teacher research and a case study with one of my autistic students so that I could learn more about how to help my autistic students. I'm glad to say that many of my autistic former students are my friends on social media, even decades after graduation, and we've all had a good laugh over my late discovery of my autism! Nobody--especially my students-- has been shocked when I tell them, LOL!
Thanks for making great content! Be well!

[kymholwerda]

Another trait I have. I’m a ‘treasure hunter’. Going into thrift shops or garage sales is just so stimulating for me because I don’t know what I might find that might be worth something. The problem for me, though, is that the satisfaction I get from buying something because I might sell it at a high price eclipses the satisfaction I get from actually selling it. So … before I’ve sold everything I’ve already acquired I’m already out there again treasure hunting for things I might be able to sell. This consequently leads to hoarding and then I get overwhelmed. And the therapy I find most effective in dealing with that overwhelm is … treasure hunting!!! 😒

[laurettayoung-violin]

I wanted to write as I think I might be able to help with the understanding of autistic women and masking. Hearing about masking, is what finally convinced me I might be autistic (although the term hindered my self diagnosis initially). Previously, I thought I was just 'too good' at understanding people (indeed expert at it!). I have spent my whole life, watching people's faces, figuring out what they want and need from me for them to feel happy, figuring out the real meanings and feelings behind people's words and understanding their motivations. I devoured psychology books in my twenties and instead of seeing myself as socially challenged, thought I was way ahead of the social and emotional game and that everyone else was behind! I was regularly told how mature a young lady I was! Over time (through talking to other people and reading about masking), I realized that other women were nowhere near as socially vigilant as I was and that they actually said what they wanted to in conversation with others. I also began to realize that the reason I dread socializing in bigger groups is because I stand no chance of being able to figure out and meet the needs of say, two or more people in conversation at once. To say it came as quite a shock to realize that other women don't think and act like this when with others is an understatement! The word 'masking' implies that the person deliberately puts a mask on, and in my case, it is such a way of life, and is so ingrained a part of my personality that it took time to recognize myself in such a description. Anxiety is also a term where you assume people know they have it, but speaking for myself, it took until my thirties to realize that I had been struggling with anxiety my WHOLE life.
Quirky moments of anxiety are often too easy to write off as funny or unimportant:
1. Offering tea and coffee to visitors is SO stressful for me. When to ask people what they'd like is a problem, as they're usually in conversation with others and I don't know when to interrupt.
2. And this is a biggie for with instructions for milk and sugar, I can only take one order at a time as I can't remember/process any more. Not only that, but if someone then stops to talk to me before I get to the kitchen, I forget what was said by that one person and have to go and ask them again. In the last two years I've read about 'auditory processing disorders' and again, this has been eyeopening and explains the tea and coffee stress and other things! Signs of autism can appear in the strangest parts of your life and not necessarily where a diagnostic manual says they should be!
I think it may help other, older autistic women to understand that the 'masking' can be so good and so thorough that you yourself do not realize you have been doing it!

[mauricebeauchsne]

Hypersensitivity to moving objects in my peripheral has saved my life from deer and moose so many times

[SaltySirenFloriduh]

Oh my goodness, the phone call and conversation aspect is spot on. I always thought that was just my social anxiety...really, just the whole social portion is so relatable.

[zerodadutch]

I'm an undiagnosed female autistic and alot of this is me. I basically my whole life have had what I call an emotional support human or a bridge person. It was my younger brother growing up and now it's my husband. The analogy of there being a screen keeping you from social situations had me screaming yes. I've always felt like I was staring at a fun time but I was stuck behind one of those road block things.... it always made me fel off. It also lead to me being an easy target for bullies.

[davestewart]

Hi, I'm 67 and have realised over the last couple of years that I am autistic... It's been a hard life and my masking skills are quite good. Since I have realised that I have autism I feel relieved... I thought I was crazy, and my meltdowns I put down to depression or the fact that I was crazy. I haven't been diagnosed yet... I don't even know if it's worth it at this point. But any online test I have taken, has come back "you need to seek help".
I now know what my problem is and I'm comfortable with me..

[michaelshawii]

I am sick and tired of being accused of being obsessed with something that I have taken an interest in just because I am focused on it at any point and time. I AM NOT OBSESSED, I just enjoy this, and it has my attention right now. Damn dude.

[saladslug]

Hello, I just wanted to say as many have before me. I find your videos very helpful and kind of reassuring. I'm 23F and I was diagnosed with C-PTSD and ADHD about a year ago. The Psychologist diagnosing me with ADHD added "with a smidge of Asperger's" and of course that got the barrel rolling. My brother has Asperger's and I have at least 2 more cousins who are on the spectrum as well. I have since started questioning if I am in fact on the spectrum but I kept putting it off thinking "well someone would've noticed, because my brother got diagnosed" but I think my mom was very focused on my brother because it was already hard getting a doctor to diagnose him. And the circumstances of my upbringing, demanding me to be able to read my father very well and also raising my brother a lot of the time cause my mom was working 5 jobs at times. All added up to me just learning to mask early on. I have always been the odd one in school. It was hard maintaining friendships, I got bullied a lot, got depression after my dog died, had panic attacks 7 Times a day at times, which only got better after talking to teachers and classmates that I need them to ignore me when I leave the classroom and come back when I'm having a panic attack. Wanted to go into programming, didn't have the degree. Couldn't get the degree cause at the next school I was bullied by teachers and social workers for my panic attacks. Didn't do anything for 2 years except for job experiences. Went to nursing school and the first year was ok but with the second year I just felt like I was in constant burn out. Finished nursing school a year ago which takes 3 years. And now I'm trying to get into a school for programming again. I've been on antidepressants since I was 15yo and they don't really help. Been taking Dopamine for the ADD and they're amazing but now I'm burnt out again and your videos are just giving me the final push to advocate for myself. Just thinking back on my childhood and actually objectively viewing my behavior and challenges in life really astounds me as to how no therapist or psychologist who I've worked with ever suspected this. Sorry for just dumping all of this, I know a lot of people don't like "trauma dumping" but I just felt like I could just let it out here and even if no one reads this or replies I feel a lot better getting it off my shoulders. Again thank you for making these videos and I love the way you just go with your own pace

[dawnlivingston]

Thank you for your explanations and your videos. You're awesome you explain everything so easily understood. I'm 60 years old and realized that I've been neglected my whole life because I feel like I've been autistic all this time. I didn't understand the meltdowns, and it did start when I started having children of realizing that I couldn't cope with it all. I wish I could go back and fix my life back then so my kids didn't have to suffer.