AUTISM IN WOMEN AND GIRLS: DETECTION AND DIAGNOSIS

Abstract

When we talk about ASD (autism spectrum disorder), few people may think about Asperger Syndrome. Like autism, it displays differently and not everybody shows the same characteristics. As the American autistic professor Dr. Stephen Mark Shore once said, “When you meet one person with Autism, you’ve met one person with Autism”. The key, then, to a proper diagnosis, which requires understanding and acceptance of the people around us, is not to generalize. All we must do is just listen with no prejudice. Exclamations like “You don’t look autistic at all”, “We are all a bit autistic”, or “You cannot be autistic, you make eye contact!” are detrimental to the health of people seeking help. Usually, these responses are not given exclusively by relatives, friends, and colleagues, but by physicians as well. The main cause is related to a lack of up-to-date clinical tools which do not consider the variety of autistic traits, especially in adults and women. Since it is a developmental disability, and mostly young males were studied, girls and adults fall out of the radar or get a misdiagnosis. Spreading awareness is still needed nowadays, because, even if there are more neurodiverse authors, self-advocacy blogs, and communities, most people do not really grasp the difficulties autistic people have to face in a neurotypical-built society and world. The focus here is primarily on Asperger Syndrome, because it is even more subtle and challenging to detect, especially in females. Throughout this dissertation, the characteristics of AS in females will be addressed, focusing on the differences between the male counterpart, and neurotypicals, alongside some important figures who contributed and are helping to spread recognition.