Am I autistic?

[Pippatips]

Argh. Not sure where to start, but this has been on my mind for a while.

I've read about the traits linked with autism, and feel like I might have some of them.

I'm too scared to go for a diagnosis though, and have heard that the diagnosis process can take ages.

Honestly? Don't get a diagnosis unless you really need one to access something. It will make your life more difficult in practical ways like getting access to law, getting a job, and being listened to in general. At work, you may find a lot of assumptions being made about your competence and understanding, and particularly things like your intellectual work being stolen by others. I know many autistic people this happens to regularly. The thing is once you've got the label, everything is attributed to that label. Your independence, competence, and understanding is denied. All 'wrongs' are attributed to your autism. It means anyone can do anything to you and get away with it by claiming you don't understand what has happened. It paints a target on your back.
Bollocks. For starters you don't have to tell a soul if you don't want to. Or just a few people you trust. No-one has denied my independence, competence or understanding. People used to treat me like crap & get away with it. Now I've been diagnosed I'm much more aware of myself & therefore less likely to be taken for a ride. It's helped me understand myself better and not feel like I'm crap when I need to find workarounds for areas where I struggle.