Celebrating Amazing Creativity, True Originality, and a Passion for Special Interests: Late-Identified Autism Interview
This is the 43rd interview in my series Interviewing Late-Identified Autistics. Jim is a late-identified autistic. My questions are in bold and Jim’s responses follow in regular typeface.
What name do you use and, if you want to share it, what pronouns do you use?
Jim R. Irion
How old were you when you learned you were autistic?
I was 37 years old. Two months after the official diagnosis, I turned 38.
How did you learn you are autistic?
I learned I was autistic in a most unexpected way. Thanks to my care provider’s case management service, I was able to afford and begin regular sessions with my first modern counselor in October 2018. This was through another provider. Early the following year, she had me try dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) sessions for a couple months. All they did was confuse me. I could not understand how DBT would be helpful with what I felt I needed in my life. My main problem was indecisiveness when choosing employment. At one point, I got verbally frustrated with the DBT therapist, and I actually talked back to him in a moment of defiance.
