#who don’t know what raads r is because they have no reason to take it because their score on it would be like. 14.

[tiktaalic]

one of my beloved friends (very autism) was in.. not denial but ignorance sounds mean. but that abt themself last time you brought up the raads r test so i sent it to the gc (full of autism) and they were like psh. fake test no one could get below 100. they know now but i think about it so much

The thing is. When you take the autism test. And you see your score is in the 100 to 160 range. You think. Oh this is probably the middle? Middle autism. Tinge of autism. Your relatives calling you bright but shy autism. Just a whiff of autism. And then you see the score ranges. And you go. This test is lying to me there is absolutely no way the majority of people score under 65. The 65 number is such a low cutoff and so many of these experiences are clearly universal a score under 65 is something they made up in a lab. People who score under 65 are obviously scoring just under that mark from 59 to 64 and they’re also obviously lying or purposely misrepresenting their experiences as less severe than they are. And then you find out there are real people who get a 20 or 30 or 7 on it. And you go. Ah

[cobaltsoulsearcher]

Resources for questioning/self-diagnosing autistics

Note: I am a professionally diagnosed autistic. I welcome researched self-diagnosis and also would wish to acknowledge these tools are intended largely for low support needs and mid to high masking folks without major language/intellectual disabilities , who are only one part of the autism community. Likewise, science does not always adequately study POC and AFAB autistic people.

That said, here are some scientifically based resources.

1. Look at what professional psychologists use to diagnose autism in adults. This is intended for professionals so it may be very difficult to understand. That’s okay! You don’t have to understand this! It’s just for reference.

There is one major note I have here, which is that they use the EQ empathy quotient. it is important to know does not measure empathy, but NT responses to empathy; this has been proved by comparing it with other scales of empathy. Toronto Empathy Scale is good if you want to know your actual level of Empathy and is linked later on. Low empathy or high empathy are both possible with autistics.

You can also look at the diagnostic criteria for autism! Here’s a link: https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/hcp-dsm.html

2. The Autism Spectrum Quotient is the most cited number for measuring autistic likeliness, and can be taken as a self-report quiz. You can take it here: https://embrace-autism.com/autism-spectrum-quotient/#test

https://embrace-autism.com/autism-spectrum-quotient/#test

However, do note that some of them are worded weirdly. Embrace autism has this handy list of rephrased items to help with taking it:

3. The RAADS-R autism measure is another often looked at number that can be taken as a self-report quiz, though again, be aware there is bias towards white male typical traits. It is also important to note this tool is only intended to adults and generally useless to teens.

4 . You might see the Aspie quiz (https://rdos.net/eng/Aspie-quiz.php) around as well. However, the reason it isn’t as studied is because in reality, it doesn’t particularly measure autism as opposed to general neurodivergence (ADHD, OCD, and BPD folks in particular also tend to score high). The only area that IS consistently high for autistics only is “Talent”. Don’t depend on this measure.

5. There are some other scales that may be useful to understanding your autistic traits, but that only examine specific traits. Here are a few:

Masking: https://novopsych.com.au/assessments/formulation/camouflaging-autistic-traits-questionnaire-cat-q/

Repetitive behavior: https://cardiffunipsych.eu.qualtrics.com/CP/File.php?F=F_cNmWiefEt9VrJbg

Executive function: https://www.smartbutscatteredkids.com/esq/

Alexithymia: https://embrace-autism.com/toronto-alexithymia-scale/

https://embrace-autism.com/toronto-alexithymia-scale/

Empathy: https://psychology-tools.com/test/toronto-empathy-questionnaire

[hostbusters]

okay sooooo i went to see a psychologist two years ago and she said that i fulfilled the criteria for autism. but then i went to see another psychologist and she said that i wasn’t neurodivergent. it’s kinda confusing but maybe it’s because in the second assessment i was masking my symptoms a lot more because i was a lot more aware of them???because college has been incredibly difficult for me with the disruption in my routine and also i’ve always had an issue with food and sensory issues. my mum thought that i was autistic when i was 15 because of my problems with food. i also have some hyper mobility and when i was younger i saw a speech therapist and i had additional classes for maths because i found it difficult. i also have bad hand eye coordination and find sports difficult.. also idk if this classifies as a special interest or not but when i was 17 i loved gilmore girls.

i watched it once and then during the summertime i watched it four times back to back, also bought all seven seasons on dvd. another thing about me is that this summer i loved stranger things so much that i would spend hours on end analysing it.

do you think that’s similar to anyone else’s experiences on here ??? i’m a little thrown off because of what the second psychologist said😭 but also maybe this is just me but does anyone on here find that people who are loud and bubbly are overwhelming to be around… because they’re always talking and it can be quite overwhelming… and they can just be so bubbly that it’s hard to keep up… they’re so loud that it’s hard to be around them…

i also find the sound of people eating so annoying like the texture and sound is just too much for me also the smells , i find really hard to deal with unless it’s something nice like chocolate or pizza. i just feel like i can get so attached to people really easily and they just aren’t like that and tend to take advantage of me😭😭 but idk if i’m autistic🫠🫠 does anyone find that this relates to them too?obvi you can’t diagnose me, just wondering if anyone relates.

also, i did a couple of tests on here and here are my results.

autism spectrum quotient: 27 out of 50

RAADS-R: 140 out of 227

empathy quotient: 26 out of 80

clinical partners test: 20 out of 30

aspie quiz: 127 of 200

AQ 10: 5 out of 10

AQ: 23

toronto empathy quotient: 60 out of 64

masking test: 131

sounds autistic to me chief! and i mean this in the kindest possible way, but thinking that this is a reasonable thing to send to someone’s ask box is like. double, nay, triple autism ! you should send this to a doctor lol

no but seriously, if you want to get seen again, i would recommend keeping a list or notes of symptoms you have (my psychiatrist had us fill out a form and the interview was jut to clarify some things and get a read of me) and also write down things about masking! one thing about my Syndrome is i am REALLY comfortable speaking to new people when they are medical professionals, therapists or generally people i know who are trying to help me, which is a surprising amount of people. because it’s their job to make me feel safe, it makes me appear far more neurotypical talking to psychiatrists (etc) because i am not afraid of them. mentioning this and how my behaviour differs when talking to strangers or new acquaintances who i don’t know the intentions of was an important footnote, because my social convergence is a part of masking with strangers and even just a few sentences can be exhausting

i don’t know if that helps but honestly i keep notes docs of my symptoms regardless of the issue cos i am bad at remembering symptoms unless i am currently experiencing them! so keep notes!

[autismisaokay]

Some time ago you said you were going to try taking the RAADS R test to see if it's reliable; i dont want to pressure you of course, i just wanted to know if you tried it in the end, and what are your thoughts about it?

Hi yes.

It says on it the test is for Asperger’s syndrom as well as Autism. That needs to change to testing for Autism Spectrum Disoder, period. For me personally to feel more comfortabl taking it. Aspergers in America is no longer a diagnosis and you will be filed under the catagories of ASD1, ASD2, or ASD 3. A doctor might explain to you that you have aspergers but really they should be also telling you that you are filled under ASD1. Personally I don’t think doctors should be legally allowed to tell you that anymore that you have Aspergers or if they do they’ll explain you are close the deffination of the old diagnosis of Aspergers but you are being filled under ASD1 and are autistic no matter what. At least in America because again the DSM doesn’t reckgnoize it but it is what it is.

There’s many reasons why it’s a big deal in general not to do that. The main reason why you should be clear on these thing is because insurance companies, medical health professionals, teachers, and other sevices that can help you will either have the ability or have to deny you services because of the out dated diagnosis. It’s mostly insurance comapnies you have to be worried about which is explained by someone in my post about Autism VS Aspergers differences.

The fact that there was no option for “sometimes” or “I would like to or don’t know how”, “Was previously true” (Instead of just True when I was only sixteen or younger but I still like that option as well)  “I have difficulty with this” or “I have some difficulty with this”  really bothered me.

Specifically when it asked the question of “I feel very comfortable with dating or in social situations with others.” Was another one I had a gripe with. I think those things should be separated entirely.

Some of the questions needed to broader. Like when it asked if you don’t do well in groups. Some autistic people do well in groups if they are the leader or if they are the grunt work. But to have to say I don’t do well in groups at all if you can’t do some of the jobs. Or have to put yes if you can do a signal job. That didn’t sit right with me. I think it should have been separated to two questions.

Are you a person who is flexible to work any part in a group work? I think would have been a better suited question. An you can answer it Yes, It’s so/so, or No.

When it came to the questions of change. I feel like that was another narrow answer. “Are you a person to not deal with changes well or with extream reaction when not properly warned or explained to with no preperation time?” Would have been a better question.

Getting the results themselves were kinda confusing but were managable for me to figure out.

There were questions about special intersts, routines, and changes, and how you handle interacting with people. Fantastic and should always be in one of these things.

I think they did an awesome job with the sensory questions.

Do I think it’s accurate? I mean basically it said I should get tested for autism if I haven’t and I get a higher score behind threshold number. An I did rank higher which means for me it did see that I was autistic which was great since I am diagnosised so it makes me feel like it’s alright.

Over if it says you should be seeking a health professional over getting a diangosis I think you should listen to it. It’s not perfect but it’s something.

Tldr; It’s a flat “okay”.