Difficulty socializing. Need for routine. Repetitive motions. Sensory issues. Consuming interests. Meltdowns. She’s describing autism, I realize. It also sounds eerily like she’s describing me, but that’s simply not possible. “I can’t be autistic,” I say, interrupting her. “I hate math. I don’t have a photographic memory. I fit in. I have friends, a boyfriend, even my mom’s friends like me. I’m nothing like Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory or—or—or the brother in Rain Man.” “None of those things are diagnostic criteria. They’re stereotypes and misperceptions. And I believe your fitting in is a
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