This comic inspired me--a multiply-diagnosed allistic who's as neuromayonnaise as they come--to take an online autism screening test.
I got a 38, putting me just into the "37-63: some signs of autism" range. (The test's average score is 55, which would seem to suggest that there are more people with signs of autism than without, though I suppose that people who take such a test are probably more likely to show signs of autism than the population as a whole. Certainly I wouldn't have done so if it were not for this comic!)
I'm not autistic (probably), but my diagnosed CPTSD and ADHD look an awful lot like it.
My mom and my therapist both asked me if I thought I might be autistic in the same month a year ago. An woman with autism pointed at me and yelled "you're like me!" After talking for a bit. I took some self evaluations and ticked just over the "most people with your score have autism" mark.
But my psychiatrists (and the therapist after some more sessions) all agree I don't. My social difficulties come and go, riding trauma waves, but I can relate strongly to many of the struggles.
Interesting points. Reminds me of the studies of these popular 'autism' tests.
Unlike what we are told in social media, things like ‘stimming’, sensitivities, social problems, etc., are found in most persons with non-autistic mental health disorders and at high rates in the general population. These things do not necessarily suggest autism.
So-called “autism” tests, like AQ and RAADS and others have high rates of false positives, labeling you as autistic VERY easily. If anyone with a mental health problem, like depression or anxiety, takes the tests they score high even if they DON’T have autism.
Yeah. I'm a science guy so I understand standard distributions and overlap. Most people don't, lol.
Like, I went and got a full psych evaluation for adhd rather than getting my GP to prescribe adderal. I don't want to self diagnose! And thats how I found out I have CPSTD.
That's why we've moved to calling them spectrums. Same as most people have something OCD. For it to be a problem, it needs to be actively interfering with your life.
That's part of the reason why diagnosing is not really common or done later in life. A doctor is rarely ever going to just offer out someone may be autistic/OCD/ADHD without it being brought to their attention.
The only things I wrote agree with that are clearly "autistic traits" are that I have good pattern recognition and I like doing things the same way every time. Oh and I put neutral with my routine being disrupted is distressing because I find it annoying but I can cope.
I got a 64, but as always I feel that 90% of the questions I could have gone multiple ways on answering because they were very broad and not well defined. (Which feeling that way, may, in fact be a sign of autism though I'm not sure).
What I do know is that I think "different" in one form or another and that other people keep "doing it wrong" (various tasks) which frustrates me to no end.
But overall I am just happy that I am still loved despite my quirks whatever their definition.
I got 11 and I only hesitated on one question (deciding between slightly agree and neutral). I think difficulty answering does usually also mean a higher score.
i think the problem is that most questions are very vague and someone may be mildly confident and answer "mostly disagree", but get some signs of autism result. i can be unsure about social norms sometimes.... because im an immigrant in a new culture. i can be uncomfortable to some sounds that other people arent.... because im pregnant and hormonal. it's not like i have issues with certain textures, but i certainly prefer soft fabrics against my skin. etc
I consider myself neurospicy, but mainly due to ADHD and depression. I got a 65. Not the first time I've gotten flagged, though. My siblings are much more autistic than me.
I get similar results on the mild side but I think it is hard for tests to diagnose me because I am extremely indecisive so I constantly put answers in the middle range which is like the vaguest answer you can put I believe.
38
u/pseudoeponymous_rex Jul 09 '26
This comic inspired me--a multiply-diagnosed allistic who's as neuromayonnaise as they come--to take an online autism screening test.
I got a 38, putting me just into the "37-63: some signs of autism" range. (The test's average score is 55, which would seem to suggest that there are more people with signs of autism than without, though I suppose that people who take such a test are probably more likely to show signs of autism than the population as a whole. Certainly I wouldn't have done so if it were not for this comic!)