What Dating After an Autism Diagnosis Feels Like

Can I Introduce You To My Therapist?

Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash

Someone commented on one of my photos that I don't look autistic.

I'm sorry, but what do you think autism looks like?

Could you explain it to me like I'm a five-year-old?

I struggle to write about my autism because I don't always feel autistic enough.

I wrote back to one person who asked if I was "high functioning" if they meant to ask if I lived independently and maintained employment because if they did, that is an incredibly invasive question.

Since so many people think a person's life ends when they are diagnosed with autism, I realized the most radical thing I can do is live my everyday life like nothing has changed and write about it.

They don't write a lot of articles about how to date after an autism diagnosis, so I decided to write one.

What My Autism Looks Like

I can choose not to disclose my autism at work or to strangers on the internet, but I don't have the choice of revealing my autism while dating.

Eventually, my date will see the autistic traits that I mask from everyone else on subsequent dates, so it's better for me to just be upfront with…