this post was submitted on 30 Jun 2026
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Autism
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Being allowed to do things my way, even if it makes no sense to others. I do lots of things differently to everyone else, because they work for me, and the people I live with are respectful of that. I've had to make lots of changes recently due to being in Autistic burnout, and that has resulted in me doing even more things "my way". Sometimes, when I'm struggling with speaking, it means saying things very briefly - one or two words, like "tea?" instead of "do you want a cup of tea?" or "out" when I need to leave a shop because it's overwhelming me. Other times, it's just being allowed to do my grounding routines, like getting my breakfast in peace, because I get muddled or distracted if someone is hovering round me in the kitchen while I do it.
This comment resonates with me big time.
As far as doing things my own way, I have intentionally taken on some big projects in my hobbies over the past couple years, and I have intentionally avoided getting help on them even if it's offered freely, and even if that means it takes me 5x longer to get it done. The outcome is not only better, but more importantly the process itself is much more rewarding and therapeutic because I did it my way. I redid what I wanted to, I focused on what I wanted to, I took breaks and recharged according to my own body, and I have detailed first principles knowledge of how the entire thing came together.
I haven't really thought about the difficulty speaking and shortening it to single words, but the difficulty getting out those simple phrases sounds like some of my past experiences. Especially as somebody with a very verbose internal dialogue.
Same with sometimes just not wanting another person there while I'm getting shit done, even if they are a loved one with a friendly demeanor.
So, Hi, I stumbled here from
all, and now I think I might be autistic.Like, feeling stressed out and overwhelmed because of a break in routine or not being able to do things my way (because any other way is inferior and this is why...I took the time to find the best way to do it, through repetition and trial and error. Like loading groceries on the conveyor belt at the supermarket...frozen stuff goes on first, then cold stuff, then shelf-stables, then medicine, chemicals, and breads...exceptions for large heavy things like cases of water or soda...those stay in the cart and become the foundation for the packed bags, obviously. That way frozen stuff gets bagged first, and usually has polygonal packaging so it makes a good base at the bottom of the bag. Then the refrigerated stuff is kept cool from the frozen stuff on the bottom of the bag, and now when I go to unload everything, all the stuff that goes in the fridge is in the same bags. Naturally all the stuff that goes in the pantry, medicine cabinet, and under the sink/laundryroom are all together, too. Though sometimes I just don't bag and put all the stuff right back into my cart and load it up into a tote or a hamper in my trunk. Bagging groceries is ultimately a waste of time when you're just gonna unbag them in 10 minutes anyway)
There are some self evaluation tests you can take if you're interested (not hard to find on google), though none are perfect, high scores are a pretty good indication. That whole explanation definitely sounds like something an autistic person would do.