Unmasking Autism: Discovering the New Faces of Neurodiversity

by Devon Price

The more outgoing and sensory seeking among us love anime conventions, house parties, political campaigning, and competitive sports. It’s often very difficult, though, for these kinds of Autistic people to get their disability taken seriously, because they can be so outspoken and charming. When they do have trouble socializing or they fall behind at work, their loved ones accuse them of “faking” that they’re having a hard time, because they found it effortless to go out and party at a burlesque show the evening before. It’s an all-too-common experience for disabled people, being told that your skills in one area are proof that you’re “not trying hard enough” in another. Very few people would guess these outspoken, high-energy folks are Autistic, particularly during their rambunctious childhoods. If anything about them seemed unusual, ADHD was probably what people guessed. Incidentally, Autism and ADHD co-occur at very high rates, and are diagnostically quite difficult to untangle.[69] Psychologists often call them “sister conditions” because both of them impact things like distractibility, sensory seeking, and being deeply pained by social rejection.