“I Think I’m Autistic”— 4 Reasons It Was Missed Until Adulthood
If you’re wondering “Am I autistic?” this may explain why it was missed.
Many late-identified autistic adults aren’t overthinking it — they were never given the language for what’s been there all along. In this video, Dr. James Thatcher (licensed clinical psychologist at Forest Psychological Clinic in Portland, Oregon) walks through why autism gets overlooked in adults, including masking/camouflaging, outdated stereotypes, missing language in the 90s, and the ADHD–autism overlap (AuDHD).
You’ll also hear what Dr. Thatcher commonly sees when adults come in for an evaluation — burnout, anxiety, sleep issues, work stress, relationship conflict, and “social hangovers” — plus how clinicians sort autism from OCD, trauma, social anxiety, and ADHD.
If this video is landing for you, the goal isn’t to label you — it’s to help you make sense of your experience and find a path forward with neurodiversity-affirming support.
Learn more or connect with Forest Psychological Clinic (Portland, Oregon): forestpsychologicalclinic.com
Chapters
00:00 Late-Diagnosed Autism: “I Might Be Autistic” (Why It Was Missed)
01:10 Masking & Camouflaging Autism in Adults (How People Get Missed)
02:10 Autistic Burnout: Anxiety, Depression, and “Social Hangovers” After Masking
02:28 Autism Stereotypes That Block Diagnosis (Rain Man + “You’re Too Smart”)
03:14 High-Masking Autism: Strong on Paper, Struggling With Daily Life Skills
04:09 We Didn’t Have the Language: Burnout, Shutdowns, and Shame (90s Context)
05:04 Autism and ADHD Overlap (AuDHD): Why DSM Rules Missed People Until 2013
05:55 Adult Autism Evaluation: What I See Clinically (Work, Sleep, Relationships)
06:53 How Clinicians Diagnose Adult Autism: Lifelong Signs + Developmental History
08:28 Autism vs OCD vs Trauma vs Social Anxiety (How Clinicians Tell the Difference)
08:56 Neurodiversity-Affirming Support: Why Diagnosis Is a Roadmap (Next Steps)
#autism #LateDiagnosedAutism #AutisticMasking