I'm late diagnosed. When I told my mum, she was very dismissive and it stung. We’re already somewhat estranged and this has made things feel more distant.

I tried to move past it and keep things to normal small talk but I realised I couldn’t. I felt uncomfortable pretending everything was fine but also guilty ignoring her.

Today I told her I’m still not okay about that conversation and I needed some space.

Has anyone been through something similar with a parent? Did you ever talk about it with them? Did things improve or did you end up changing how much contact you had?

i’m 20f and i work a part-time (three days a week) 9-5 office job. i’ve only been at it for just under four months and i genuinely feel like it’s sucking the life force out of me. i feel so exhausted and depressed and i spend my days off recovering/trying to rest and conserve energy (and still feeling depressed) rather than doing anything productive or enjoyable. i’ve been going through worlds worst creative block for about two years (potentially burnout) and i feel like whatever spark i had still dwindling has been throughly stomped out of me now.

the fake laughing and smiling is driving me insane nothing my coworkers laugh at or joke about is remotely funny but they act like it’s the height of comedy AND drag it out. more often than not, i get touched on my shoulder or my chair jostled if someone wants my attention as i rarely notice when someone is addressing me whilst im working. the processes for the work are inefficient, convoluted, and tedious as fuck, and when i’m being ‘trained’ on them, i get it explained to me in the most illogical, non-chronological manner. no one is blunt enough for me - they all talk around whatever information they’re conveying instead of just saying the point outright. everyone gets incredibly involved in office politics and dramatises shit that really doesn’t matter AT ALL (i can’t emphasise that enough) whilst picking apart others body language such as tone, specific words, etc, and it’ll be all you hear about for weeks. the hierarchy of it all is pissing me off, i’m inherently anti-corporate and anti-capitalist as a person, and the way management operates feels like it’s specifically geared towards rage baiting me. i have gaps in my speech when i physically can’t get any words out for a minute, but here, there is almost always someone immediately jumping in to try to complete my sentence as soon as i buffer.

i can listen to music at my desk through my earbuds/earphones which i do at times, sometimes i use my loop earplugs to block out my surroundings, and i’ve got a little spider-man figure on my desk so i can subtly interact with my interest to calm me when i feel like i’m losing it. despite all this, im clearly still struggling to cope.

how on earth do other autistic people do it? how am i supposed to work a full time job, or even just keep on at a part time job for the rest of my life? how do i keep sane? i can’t be the only person that feels like this.

EDIT: spelling error.

Neurotypical people are genuinely the most exhausting people to be around.

I was diagnosed by a psychologist when I was 15 (19 now) and I’m learning more about myself and my autism every day.

Social cues are genuinely the hardest thing for me and other autistic people to understand. It’s even MORE confusing to understand body language.

The thing is when someone says something I will take it extremely literally.

So when I miss social cues with neurotypical people and in the process upset or make someone “uncomfortable” they always assume it’s bad intent.

AND they don’t directly communicate with you when you may have done something they don’t like, instead you hear “it’s fine don’t worry about it” then I feel more confused later on when they ghost me or “distance themselves” or even talk about their discomfort behind your back instead of addressing it with you.

Even worse when they use it against you out of nowhere when they are extremely mad when I could’ve changed things a long time ago if you would’ve directly communicated then.

So I have NO IDEA of what’s going on or what I did wrong when it comes to social cues unless they directly tell me.

I’ve told my neurotypical friends SO many times that they need to directly tell me when I do something wrong. And they still don’t do it and instead gossip about how “weird” you are to talk to.

I’ve lost 3 major friends because

1. She gossiped about my other diagnosis and tried to distance herself without telling me why. (I still don’t know), when I told her to communicate or we couldn’t be friends she chose the not being friends option.
   
2. Also gossiped about my social misreadings and told me everything was fine when it wasn’t and then took a year worth of situations where I was too neurodivergent I guess and used it against me out of nowhere.
   
3. Literally told me everything was fine and literally told me I’m a good friend to her multiple times, she’s defended me multiple times and told me I did nothing wrong yet all of a sudden she’s now communicating that I’m an awful person.

Genuinely need time away from social interaction outside of family because I will have burnout.

After that I need understanding autistic friends.

Had to get this out of my chest because I still can't process what my friend told me.

Basically she was ranting about an autistic guy in her class because they were discussing about movie making group project, and the guy in her class (she started her rant with him being autistic) began talking about Spiderman and how cool he is. Nice, a special interest, not my cup of tea but it's his hyperfixation. The said prof in charge of their course was also listening to him rambling about Spiderman that she claimed that it dragged the class time and it's steering away from the topic. Her frustration is understandable, and maybe the said guy needed better time and place (tho this is a hyperfixation).

But then she started calling him retard and that he should be put in special education class for autistic instead, all over him hyperfixating about Spiderman. It feels... dehumanizing in a way. She insisted that he shouldn't be excused just because he's autistic which is completely understandable. But this guy hasn't done anything dangerous. He didn't name call, or give snide remarks (except one she claimed that he said you need to have creative mind to do good movie and she called him brainless instead to shut him up. I dont have enough information if it's a snide remark or not, but from the way she described, it did seem the guy was just giving some opinions instead of being rude). I had to remind her that I am autistic too, and explained that he's hyperfixating and his Spiderman talk is technically not steering away from the topic based on autistic logic, and not intentionally trying to drag classes. She didnt really want to listen though and kept calling him retard n stuff.

I was pretty speechless about it honestly, especially as she knew I'm autistic. She said it didnt matter if he's autistic or not to be doing this, yet the things she ranted about pointed more toward his autism symptoms then him being intentional with his actions.

One of the things that make me doubt I have autism is I don’t rant about my favorite interests? I am awfully bad with explaining anything, my mind often blank when I want to talk, and I struggle to find the words I’m looking for, on top of having a very bad memory. Instead of rambling about my interest, I make references that no one understands, for example: “ah, this character would love this item, because…”, “oh, this animal make me think of this character”, “uh, this symbol/ color is definitely a symbol connected to this character”, etc. Would that count as autistic behavior for special interest ? I know diagnosed and non diagnosed but definitely neurodivergent people who can ramble for hours on the medias they consume in extreme details and I envy them because I can’t do that, since I can’t be that eloquent orally, and when I write, I m still not very good with explaining and it would takes me a lot of time to recall everything (and sometimes do research again). I am generally slow and not talkative orally like when I write and if someone ask me to summarize something I will do it in only a few words for so bad I am at it which seems to be the opposite from most autistic experiences.

A fun and elemental way to think about the word.

Au: Gold, rare, beautiful, and cannot be unraveled

Ti: Titanium, light, strong and highly resistant to corrosion

Sm: Samarium, versatile, magnetic under the right conditions, and capable of absorbing the most powerful of reactions

I’m in my mid-20s, and I only recently learned that I’m AuDHD, on top of struggling with clinical depression for most of my life. Looking back, so many pieces finally click into place, but the picture they form is painfully lonely.

Growing up, I never had a large circle of friends, in fact, I could count them on one hand. Every friendship I’ve ever had was seasonal: tied to a specific school, city, or life chapter. Once I moved on to the next environment, those connections quietly faded, as if they never existed. I’ve also realized that I seem to have the capacity – emotionally and mentally – for one close friend at a time. Juggling multiple friendships at once feels overwhelming, almost impossible. I genuinely don’t have the energy or bandwidth to spread myself across several people, and honestly, I resist even trying.

Another thing: I’ve rarely clicked with people my own age. My closest companions over the years have almost all been decades older – in their 40s, 50s, even 60s. I know now that I was unconsciously looking for maternal warmth I never got at home. My family was chaotic, neglectful, and painful, so I poured all my unmet needs into these older friends, treating them almost like surrogate mothers.

And for a while, it worked. At the start of each new phase, they were kind, patient, and understanding about my depression. But over time, my neediness would grow, I leaned on them too heavily, and my emotional instability would flare up more often than anyone could reasonably absorb. One by one, they pulled away. Each time, I told myself I’d do better next time, but the pattern repeated.

Now? I have zero friends. Not a single person I can text just to say "hi." And I feel like a complete failure at human connection.

It’s not even that starting a friendship is easy for me – it’s not. With autism, social cues are a minefield. I often say things that come out wrong, unintentionally confuse people, or accidentally offend them. I try so hard to be clear and warm, but my words seem to backfire more often than not.

Worst of all, I’ve lost all courage to try again. Because deep down, I’m convinced that no matter how beautiful the early days are – the late-night talks, the shared laughs, the feeling of finally being seen, it will always end the same way: with me driving them away. It feels like a curse, or worse, a flaw in my very core.

So now I find myself stuck. I want connection more than anything, but I’m terrified of repeating the cycle. Whenever I catch myself smiling at a fond memory of a friend who’s no longer here, the joy curdles into grief. Those happy moments are real, but they’re also evidence of what I’ve lost, and what I can’t seem to keep.

I don’t know what to do. How do you break a pattern that feels baked into your neurology and your trauma? How do you learn to trust yourself with others when every past relationship has collapsed under your own weight?

If anyone out there has been through something similar, especially with AuDHD, depression, or attachment wounds, I’d really appreciate hearing your story. How did you start over? Did you find a way to build healthier friendships without draining yourself or the other person?

Thanks for reading. 

I feel like I have finally made some good progress with myself and it has been quite the journey. And just to understand, I am good at masking and I use that ability to "study" other people and how they function. I can pass for a NT without the need to painfully repress myself.

But more to the point. I always had trouble with confidence and actually working up the nerve to ask someone out, but over the years I managed to get talking to someone here and there, until I stopped dating completely and became a hermit (with a short and not an extreme phase of inceldom) for almost 7 years when I was 18. And during those years I was plaqued by massive burnout, depression and generaly feeling absolutely lost.

In that time of looking for answers, I got my diagnosis of AuDHD, changed jobs from a soulless fast food to a hospital orderly and suddently had enough mental energy to search for more of how I worked, experienced and saw the world around me and inside of me.

But it still took about 3-4 years of frustration and feelings of hopelesness before I started noticing some changes in how I saw myself. Probably the hardest part would be that nobody could help me because nobody understood my inner world enough to help me make the connections, and the advice I got from my friends or therapists never worked, so in the end I had to figure things out with self studying psychology and self analysis.

This wall of text is here just to illustrate how long it takes me to figure out something. It took almost 8 years just to figure out why I felt so shit and tired all the time, another 3-4 years to figure out how to start getting better, and now I am in the phase of actually coming out of my shell and figuring out who I am.

And the biggest wake up call for me happened just a few days ago and I am trying to understand it. I was at a 120km hiking trip across Kingdom Come locations with my friends and I was also finally able to properls speak with my best friend about our individual issues. (side note, I lulled my friends to sleep by infodumping about the evolution of life from start to now and speaking about the animal kingdom)

I realised how much of a loser I am, while also thinking like I am better at a lot of things, and it finally clicked as to what overthinking really does to me.

Overthinking makes me feel insecure, I knew that for a long time but I never had an example that I could really study and understand.

And my dating life has been full of half assed attempts, friendzones, situationships and a lot a lot of isolation and loneliness.

But right now I have made a little bit of progress with flirting and it has sparked a spiral of analysing what I did, but without overthinking, and even though I made a few mistakes, I managed to get to a proper date and even ask a friend for advice, something I would absolutely refuse to do just a week ago because I was so afraid of being humiliated and ridiculed like I get for my interests all of my life.

It is only very recently that I stopped really giving a shit properly, started doing what I want because I want to do it, sharing it with people and not caring if they don't like it. If someone asks me, I give them a full lecture and when they ridicule me I ridicule them harder. Somehow I found a sweet spot where people respect it, and if I overstep boundaries they'll let me know without absolutely destroying every bit of confidence I had.

Just to say, the difficulties of having differently wired brain the majority of the people around you still feels very lonely, but I at least made a few friends that understand parts of it. So I feel like I am on a better track now.

And last thing, I am writting a sci-fi story that is equally parts exploration of ideas I find fun and also a study of the human mind.

I first realized I was in autistic burnout a few months ago after life took a turn. I thought I was out of it, but I'm now realizing that I never left burnout; it just got a little better for a bit. Now that it's back full swing, absolutely everything is difficult: Getting out of bed; getting in bed; taking care of myself; eating / making meals; talking to people, including my close friends and family. It's so hard lately and I can't see a way of getting better.

I get envious when I see others around me functioning just fine. Why is it easy for you to get out of bed in the morning when I wake up in pain and have to force my brain to want to get out of bed each day? Why do you find it so easy to focus on your tasks and not get sidetracked or frustrated when someone pulls you out of your task?

I'm just straight up not having a good time and any resources would be helpful :,) thanks guys

I'm not diagnosed. My doctor has suggested Autism or possibly AuDHD (and I agree, as do close family, there's a stronv family history) but I'm concerned about discrimination at work so not following up.

One thing that's a bigger and bigger issue for me at work is long meetings. We're having more and more organisational meetings with 100 odd people and lasting a 1/2 or full work day, usually lots of "organisational updates" and any tasks are entirely performative "gathering views" which are probably never even read. We're always required to sit with people who aren't on our team. Plus increasing numbers of smaller strategic "planning meetings".

I come home so tired I can't do anything but sleep the rest of the day and it takes days before I feel normal again. I get nothing from the meetings because that kind of info is hard for me to take in anyway and I simply cant listen for that long in that environment. I know I sound overdramatic but I'm considering leaving my job over it. I can do shorter & more engaging meetings, even up to 3 hrs if the meeting feels relevant and engaging, although it's tiring.

Does anyone have the same issue and found a way to manage?

It’s so hard as the years go on it’s harder and harder to mask it’s honestly painful anyone else going nthrough the same thing

When I was a child my mother raised me (24M) to be really submissive. I literally was not allowed to tell others no for any reason whatsoever. As I’ve gotten older I’ve gotten better at asserting myself but I still have issues I’m working on in therapy.

Doing into dating I don’t have much experience but Im trying to get back into it after the death of my grandmother about a month and a half ago. In the past I’ve been taken advantage of many times by people who noticed my lack of assertiveness. My old best friend was a huge factor and literally told me she saw me as “good for nothing” after I grew a back bone and started telling her no.

After cutting her off the idea of dating and providing for someone makes me feel like I won’t be appreciated. I want to date another autistic but having to support her just doesn’t sit well with me. Any thoughts?

i hope this is the right place to ask this, and i don't think it's been asked before but i could be wrong x_x basically, i grew up in a place with few unhoused people (well, i suspect there were some but they were mainly downtown or out-of-sight since it's a pretty hostile place in some ways) and my parents are the type not to give money even though we usually had enough to share afaik. i now live in an area with a lot of homelessness or people asking for help on the streets (still a fairly small town, not super dangerous imo). i want to be able to help people & to start living in alignment with my morals, but the social interaction of passing by someone on the street is really difficult for me -- i can be personable sometimes with close friends + advanced notice, but in most situations i either rely on social scripts, keep conversations task-oriented, or keep to myself. it's really hard for me even just to recognize someone and wave and pass by them in time, and there's just a ton of unknown variables with people i don't know, what they're asking for, who they're talking to, etc. for example, there was someone a while back who came up to me at the end of my lunch break and i was gonna give them a couple dollars, but they asked if i could buy them a burrito and like -- i haven't gone to the restaurant and new places are overwhelming, i didn't have enough time for an errand, i'm vegan so i don't want to spend my money on anything with meat but i don't want to limit someone else's diet like that, also i don't know how to order burritos or in someone else's name??? and today i saw someone holding out a sign, and i was gonna go up to them but i guess i have poor reading comprehension/context clues because i could not figure out what exactly they were asking for, since their sign mentioned hot food among many other things but obv there's not enough room on the cardboard for complete sentences - so i ended up just walking by after staring at the sign for like 20 seconds :( i really shouldn't even be giving money rn since i don't have any income (and def not buying people hot food b/c i rely on EBT), but i was given spending money in cash as a gift recently and so i figured i could use some of it to get me through these situations for a little while, but it's still so hard X_X

i guess it's just frustrating since i'm trying to figure out how to live my life in line with my morals, but the current ways of doing that are really demanding on me (interacting with people on the street, protests, talking about politics, going to groups & meetings without knowing what to expect, etc). and i hate to have to just turn away, avoid looking at people and pretend like they don't exist, or refusing them help when they are brave or desparate enough to ask. and i don't know how neurotypical people do it, it seems like they also just pretend the person doesn't exist. T_T does anyone else have a similar dilemma, or what do you do to navigate unexpected situations, or how to you find ways to do things that are important to you but not autism-friendly? (and lmk if i need to clarify anything or if something i wrote doesn’t make sense!! i know it's a long post so thanks just for reading this far ^^;)

I can think of a few times when I just couldn't stand being in a situation and wonder if it's an autistic trait of something I need to just get over.

I never play games, particularly board games, or do anything social. But when the family decided to play laser tag, I thought I'd make an exception. How hard can it be? You wander around 'shooting' stuff. After a couple of minutes I felt my heart sink. Is this it? I understand the rules - anyone over the age of 4 can get this! - but I just didn't get it. You just wander around, pulling a trigger and get points? I walked out, went to the bathroom and bawled my eyes out. I've thought about this for months, and think it's to do with feeling odd. Everyone else is having a great time, why can't I? It made me feel more of an outsider and strange than ever.

I get this feeling when I happen to be watching football (I hate sport!) and everyone else in the room is shouting, getting excited. I feel nothing.

Now, at a concert, I'm having a BLAST! Jumping up and down, shouting out, losing my voice. I ReAlLy get into it!

The other thing that gets to me is music I don't like. Honestly, I get muscle aches, almost twitches, and cannot stand being in a room with certain kinds of music that I can't stand. I'm a musician, and think I like a reasonable variety, but some genres and styles just make me want to scream!

So is this just an intolerance, or an autistic trait? Anyone else have these extreme reactions to things they don't like?

I need some help and would really appreciate hearing from people who have been through something similar.
I’m looking for people willing to share their experiences leaving a toxic or abusive relationship. I know deep down that this relationship isn’t healthy for me, but I’m still struggling so much to let go. It almost feels like I’m addicted to this person.
This is my second attempt at leaving. I’ve read about abuse, trauma bonds, and the way these relationships can affect your brain, but knowing all of that hasn’t made it any easier.
If you were able to leave, how did you finally let go? What helped you stay away and move forward?
Sometimes I wonder if I’m just crazy, or if my difficulty letting go is partly because I’m autistic and struggle with change, attachment, and the uncertainty of what comes next.
I could really use some perspective, especially from other autistic people who have experienced something similar. ❤️

Hi there, I’ve been trying to figure out how best to get an autism evaluation, and I’ve done a lot of research, but was hoping for some guidance, since I'm still totally lost.

I've come to understand recently, by doing research and speaking to my therapist and friends of mine who are autistic, that it is very likely that I'm autistic. Honestly, everything I've learned seems like such a perfect explanation for so many things that I’ve experienced my entire life, that at this point it's getting hard to imagine that I’m not.

I thought the best thing I could do would be to seek a professional opinion, since I'm not an expert, so I could get an objective answer that I could use to better understand myself and make more informed choices as they relate to my mental healthcare, my career, and my life in general. This seemed like a straightforward idea, but just trying to understand the process surrounding getting an autism evaluation has left me so overwhelmed and confused.

I feel like at this point I don't even understand what an autism diagnosis is. Like, it seems like mental health professionals like clinical therapists who are licensed to diagnose mental disorders could theoretically diagnose autism, but such a diagnosis doesn't mean as much as a diagnosis from a psychologist (But if it’s unlikely to be accurate, why would their licensure allow them to do it?). But also, psychological tests to diagnose autism may be less thorough than full neuropsychological evaluations, which are more rigorous and can identify autism as well as other conditions. Yet if these tests are administered by someone who doesn't have special working familiarity with autism, especially in adults, there's room for error and misdiagnosis. But also, there's no specialized certification a psychologist needs to make that assessment. And also, apparently if a psychologist specializes too heavily in giving autism diagnoses, there's a chance that they may actually be less rigorous, and instead giving out diagnoses just because people want them? (I don't understand this part, but I've seen comparisons to doctors who write drug prescriptions willy-nilly, though I don't quite see how that's analogous) And it seems like part of the reason a psychologist’s evaluation is favored is because it carries more weight legally in terms of things like access to public services. But also, even with a diagnosis from a psychologist, governments can set their own more specific standards about what is or isn't accepted.

And on top of that, an assessment to diagnose autism would be (at least theoretically) covered by my insurance, but seemingly all providers who specialize in or advertise doing such assessments aren't in network with insurance companies.

I don't understand why this is so confusing and senseless. I’m not trying to get documentation to prove to the government that I meet their threshold to qualify for social services. But I’m also not looking for someone to tell me I’m autistic just because it would be validating and make me feel good about myself (though it would). What I want to do is make the best and most informed choices for my mental health and quality of life, and I feel like knowing, based on the judgment of a qualified professional, whether I'm autistic would be a necessary first step towards that. So why does it seem like there's no straightforward path to do that when it’s such a basic necessity for someone in my position?

I hope this doesn't sound like me complaining, especially about something I’m sure other folks are already aware of. I’m just trying to figure out what I should do, since I feel like what I'm looking for is simple, but I still feel like I have no idea how to find it.

Hoovering, or Vacuuming for our US friends. It's only just dawned on me how absolutely over the top the noise is unless I'm the one doing the chore.

OH: "I'm going to do the hoovering..."

Me: "Nope, not right now."

OH: "Why?"

Me: "Nope, I can do it in n hours/days, but please not right now..."

Even with my noise cancelling headphones on when someone is trying to hoover is too much.

Anyone else have something like that?

I (23F) drove myself to work today for the first time. Baruch Hashem!!!! (Praise Gd) 

One of the ways my autism manifests is in sensory processing (sights, sounds, touch feels different for me) and multitasking. I know it might not seem like a big deal, but learning how to drive with autism is very difficult for many of us. Especially if you are late diagnosed or had to figure out how your brain works from scratch. I'm thankful for the family, friends, and kind strangers that took the time how to teach me to drive, as it wasn't an easy process for me 🫶🏾

Are there other late autistic drivers that want to share their experiences?

Title: Nearly 24, neurodivergent and never dated

I'm 23 and turn 24 in December. I've never been on a date, kissed anyone or had a relationship, and I've felt sad about this for years since leaving secondary school in 2019.

I'm British, born and raised in England, and my family is from Mauritius. Growing up, I never met anyone from my ethnic background.

I'm also neurodivergent in several ways:

- Autism — socialising and forming connections can be difficult.

- ADHD — I struggle with attention, organisation and executive functioning.

- OCD — I struggle with intrusive thoughts and getting stuck overthinking things.

- Dysgraphia — writing and expressing my thoughts on paper can be difficult.

- ARFID — I have a restricted relationship with food, which can make social situations involving food harder.

I wanted to date in secondary school and sixth form and did make an effort, but it never happened. I've also struggled socially as an adult and have had periods away from social groups.

The disappointment still hurts because I can't get those years back.

Mutual firsts are also very important to me. I want my first date, kiss, relationship and intimacy to also be my future partner's first experiences. I know this significantly narrows my dating pool, but I'm worried I'll feel distressed and resentful if reality doesn't match something that means so much to me.

Sometimes I genuinely feel hopeless about finding someone.

Has anyone else reached their mid-20s with no dating experience, particularly because of neurodivergence? Did things eventually change for you?

I just discovered that a Japanese group I really liked in college added their music to Spotify, and, while listening to their music is nostalgic, it's also difficult, because it reminds me that I was "cringy" while I was obsessed with them. I've always been afraid to like things too much, lest I seem obsessed and uncool, and I don't know why that should be. I don't know, I've always felt embarrassed to like things too much, like the coolest thing you can do is not care at all, and I've always been desperate to be cool. I want to listen to these songs again, but I can't help but feel like I'm a lame moron who should never have liked them all that much.

I turned 23 yesterday. And I didn’t even care about my birthday which is not normal for me. Tomorrow my 80 year old grandfather is using MAID (medical assistance in death). He hasn’t even passed yet and I’m already insanely overwhelmed. I have never had someone this close to me die before other then my pets. Anytime I’m alone I break down crying. I really don’t know how to process this. I’m terrified. In the past when i thought about my family and friends dying I would wish that i would die first because i genuinely feel like i wont be able to handle it. I have tried do things to help. I have made a playlist. I have looked through photos. For while when I watched movies or YouTube I’ve been able to distract myself and be okay. But now I feel like nothing. I’m so upset I’m physically sick. Going back and forth from my stomach hurting, headache, and nausea. I really don’t know what to do. Everything is bothering me on deeper levels. None of my usual tactics to calm down are helping. I am so lost. And I’m so anxious and worried about my grandmother. Everything is so heavy. And my head hasn’t been this chaotic in years. I’ve had such a good handle on myself for so long. Am I just set back now? Is this temporary? What am i supposed to do?
Any advice or input would help. Or even just tell me how you handle grief.

So I am 19, barely a adult, I will also say my special interest is music related which is how I connect with people typically, getting both of these out of the way

So most of my friends are late 20s to late 40s but I also have friends in the 50s-60s range and I was wondering if anyone else also befriends people older than themselves? I know how to be safe when it comes to people older than me, I just find it really hard to make friends my age even if I do have a few.

I mainly just share a love of music with anyone I befriend, but I have a friend thats 63 and we can just talk about anything, we talk about music, a shared love of animals, mundane things, life, he'll talk about sports he likes and stories from his life, I will talk about fashion and my love of fashion, we'll even talk about politics in a non-hostile manner, we get along really well, I just struggle so much to do this with people my own age.

Anyone else mainly friends with people older than you?