Hi, my name is claire_bee!

claire_bee

Hi everyone 
I've known my husband is autistic for about 10 years. Our adult daughter, 35, was diagnosed as autistic in 2023. And I believe our son, who died in 2018, was also autistic. It explains so much about their difficulties in life. 

Lou67

@claire_bee
Good morning and welcome to the forum. 

I just wanted to say so sorry for the loss of your son and I hope you have some support.
There is always someone around on here were you can join in chats or with the games.
 It’s a great community with plenty off great people  😊

Jimm_Scope

Hi @claire_bee, welcome to the community We have quite a lot of neurodiverse members of the community! When I found out I had ADHD it really explained a lot about my past struggles. I hope you stick around and share your insight to it all Or feel free to ask any questions!

Has your husband been officially diagnosed or is it something you both figured out? I only ask because having a diagnosis report can help when it comes to accommodations at work for example. I hope you're doing well and had a lovely Christmas.

Mollie_Scope

Good morning! I hope the weather is OK where you are and you have a lovely Thursday. 

claire_bee

I found out my mother had narcissistic personality disorder when I was about 40. And that diagnosis explained so much for me. I know how important it is to be given a piece of information that makes your life experience make more sense to you. It's the same with the autism diagnosis for both my husband and daughter. My husband, Peter, functions so much better at home. When we're out, he changes, as the world muddles his thinking. And he also notices small, insignificant things that no one else notices. He goes into his bubble less now than he used to, but it still happens. For me, it's been a journey of learning how he sees the world differently, how he reacts to the world differently, and how those things make his life more difficult for him. For my daughter, it's different, she's always unhappy about something. One time, when we had lunch in the park, she was angry at the park for not having picnic tables. She was silently angry for about ten minutes due to the lack of picnic tables. So, we ate in silence on a park bench, for ten minutes, before she talked again. I've struggled for so long to understand all of this. Now, there are resources, such as this forum, to help both the autistic and the non-autistic. I'm grateful for that.