Social Masking: Why is autism missed in girls?

Is autism really more common in males or is there another reason girls may be missed?

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Check out our webpage on social masking for more info:

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▼▼▼ ABOUT ME ▼▼▼
Hi, my name is Loren Snow, and I'm an autistic public speaker and trainer.
I've taught tens of thousands of people about autism, ADHD, and mental health, and I regularly teach courses to parents, NHS staff, and autistic people.

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▼▼▼ COPYRIGHT ▼▼▼
Copyright: (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
BASICALLY: If you want to LINK TO this video or include a link to it on your website, article, or course, please go ahead: that's free :)

[LorenSnow]

If you’d like to get updates on all my videos, events I’m at, and courses I run - sign up to my mailing list here :)

[Devotchka]

This is why I'm 'myself' at home and with very close friends, yet can put on an act to comfortably interact and blend in with people in most social situations. It is beneficial and kind of fun, but can be tiring in large amounts.

[shortycareface]

I remember telling my mum that "Well, everyone has two personalities" when I was a teenager. This was years before realizing I'm autistic. She thought I meant I had schizophrenia. Uhm.

[StephyPaige]

The thing about being undiagnosed and really good at masking is that you can trick yourself. I am going through that at the moment. Eye contact, I don’t generally feel uncomfortable with it so I thought I never had that problem. I was always told “you have to look people in the eye so they know you are listening, it is respectful” though I didn’t realise that when other people maintain eye contact they focus on what the person is saying not on how long I am supposed to look directly into their eye and is it weird now? Should I look at the other eye? Wait what did they say? Just nod and smile. So… yep. And then thinking about it now I was a very shy child. Always hiding behind mum and when adults got down to my level I always looked at the floor. You can forget these things when you trick yourself into thinking your mask was always you.

[lizzieraugh]

This is so me. I got misdiagnosis for 28 years.

[Autistamatic]

I found your channel via Twitter. Good, concise videos. Masking is a difficult concept to convey to allistic people, but this does it well :)

[luisalbertorivero]

Wow this deep issues are not spoken to daily ... but it should be.

[Catlily]

I just got diagnosed with Autism at age 45. Before this I was diagnosed with 15 different mental illnesses since age 14 (not all at the same time). They couldn't figure me out. Unfortunately my case manager and I can find no Autism services in my area for adults like me.

[enitjuh]

I'm so sad I'm definitely misdiagnosedz and I got to know my biological father who is definitely autistic, and when I realised that, all puzzle pieces fell into place. Ive been previously diagnosed with dysthymia, PTSD, social anxiety and ADD. Ive had my foster mom get me into therapy when I was 11 because there was something wrong with me. I never got to know the details but apparently I was just fine and creative. Thats when the dysthymia started and I went to therapy from age 15 to 18. I know for a fact this was just autism. I still cannot make eye contact, just like I couldnt when I was a child. People always have said I'm weird, sometimes flat out to my face, I feel like I'm fucking emberassing when I "unmask", my mind is racing too fast, I like childish stuff " still the same games and hobbies I used to have when I was younger", I struggle if not its almost impossible for me to maintain social contacts and I am quite awkward myself. Social battery is very low. I have a weird speech pattern if I say so myself, quite remarkable. I do have a very strong detailed memory like my father. Sometimes people think I'm a stalker because I remembered everything they said or what happened. And lots more due to extreme self hate I used to have in the past. And I'm really self aware which is fucking tiring and I indeed put on a social friwndly act and everytime I accidentally "become myself" I can really overthink myself to the point of mental breakdown. Anyways, I wish my psychologist took me swriously when I wanted to find out about it. I only took a test and never heard about it again. FUCK THEM.

[OoMASEoO]

Not making eye contact, not being able to make lasting relationships, intense hermit behavior, no friends, strong urge to not want to repeat outfits, being looked at like I'm speaking in some alien language, intense burn-out from overcommunication, constantly on the verge of tears... damn I was today years old when I learned I am autistic. 🤯

[AHippieFrom]

One of my friends has autism and his mom has said that there is a possibility that I'm on the spectrum. I plan to see a doctor about it once I get my insurance back. I have another friend who has autism and she says it seems very likely that I may have it too.

[ungenbunyon]

Masking does sound really painful and tiring =[ i can only imagine how exhausting it must be, quick question, is it heard of for someone to be autistic and not know they are? What are the signs that a psychologist will look for?

[corydestein]

As a male, I masked and presented very similar to the ASD female stereotype. I wasn’t diagnosed till the age of 35. I was diagnosed with bipolar, borderline, major depressive and more despite being remarkably stable. It wasn’t till I opened up enough about stimming that I received the ASD diagnosis. Even ADHD took 33 years.

[rosennyvelasquez]

la educacion es la esencia de la vida debe ser dada gratuitamentes y es aquella que nos forma como ciudadanos

[milagrosramos]

video social con caracteristicas chevere

[jorgerojasmundotropicaltra]

autism is a very importan cause great vlog good job

[geraldineobrienbolivia]

the sound is too high-pitched and has static...