All Conditions

Autism Spectrum Disorder.

A neurodevelopmental difference shaping how a person relates, communicates and experiences the world.

Autism spectrum disorder is a complex neurodevelopmental condition that can present distinct challenges at every stage of life. While it can look very different in different people, ASD broadly affects the way that a person relates to other people, causing communication challenges. Autistic people also tend to have restricted interests that can look obsessive to other people. As a spectrum disorder, autism can range from mild to profound symptomatology. This means that with some children, autistic traits may be highly noticeable, leading to early diagnosis and intervention. However, some autistic children on the low-support needs end of the spectrum may be able to learn strategies to mask any symptom that would make them appear different to their peers. These children grow into adults who may be alienated from their internal experience after a lifetime of masking to fit into society. Growing research and awareness of high-masking autism is leading many adults to seek diagnosis, so they can begin to unmask and relearn how to live life on their own terms.

When to seek help

When it comes to autism spectrum disorder, professional help is not a one-size-fits-all approach. For children who have higher-support needs, the focus has historically been on behavioral therapy that helps teach adaptive skills and occupational or speech therapy alongside. However, the tide is changing for autistics who have reached adulthood without getting diagnosed. Depending on individual preferences, it may be more important to know how being autistic has shaped them, to unlearn shame around being different and begin to attend to their own unique sensory and social needs.

How we can help

Self-assessment scales

These are the same validated scales clinicians use. Your answers stay on your device and take a few minutes.

Common questions

I think I might be autistic but was never diagnosed as a child. Is it worth pursuing diagnosis as an adult?
Many adults find the process worthwhile. A formal diagnosis can give you a framework for things that have often been confusing, including sensory overwhelm, social exhaustion, lifelong masking, and special interests that others have called obsessive. It can also open access to workplace accommodations, suitable therapy, and the personal work of unmasking. The downsides are real. Assessments are expensive, and not every clinician is trained to recognise adult presentations, especially in women. Self-identification is also a valid route, and many adults find the framework useful without ever obtaining a paper diagnosis.
What is "masking" and why does it matter?
Masking is the conscious or unconscious effort to hide autistic traits and produce neurotypical-looking behaviour. It can include forcing eye contact, scripting small talk, suppressing stims, and mirroring other people's expressions. Sustained masking is exhausting and is associated with burnout, anxiety, depression, and a damaged sense of self [1]. People who were diagnosed late, especially women and gender-diverse people, have often masked so heavily for so long that they have lost track of their own preferences and needs. Unmasking, which means learning what your nervous system actually wants when you stop performing, is often a major part of post-diagnosis therapy.
Is ABA the right therapy for autistic kids?
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is contested ground in autism care. Traditional ABA aims to reduce autistic behaviours and increase neurotypical-looking behaviour, which many adult autistics describe as harmful because it teaches masking from childhood. Newer neurodiversity-affirming approaches focus on supporting the child's communication, sensory regulation, and self-advocacy rather than suppressing autistic traits. Speech and occupational therapy tend to be less controversial. When evaluating any provider, a useful test is whether their goal is to make the child appear less autistic, or to help the child function and thrive as themselves.
I've been told I'm "too social" or "make too much eye contact" to be autistic. Is that real?
Older diagnostic criteria assumed that autistic people could not make eye contact or hold conversations. We now know that many autistic people, particularly those who have masked since childhood, manage both, often at significant internal cost. Higher-masking presentations have historically been missed in girls, women, and late-diagnosed adults [2]. Internal experience tells you more than outward behaviour. Things like sensory sensitivities, social exhaustion, restricted interests, and differences in information processing carry more diagnostic weight than how comfortable someone looks in conversation. A clinician who regularly works with adult autism will know to look past first impressions.

References

  1. Putting on My Best Normal: Social Camouflaging in Adults with Autism Spectrum Conditions — Hull et al., Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2017
  2. Autistic women and girls — National Autistic Society (UK)

Written by

Marium Nasir · MS Clinical Psychology (NUST), C-DBT certified

Clinically reviewed

Dr. Zuhaib Ali · MBBS, FCPS (Psych)

Last reviewed 29 April 2026