by Claire Browne
Monotropism – an affirming way to explain autistic and ADHD cognition. It is an autistic derived theory initially proposed by researchers Dinah Murray and Wenn Lawson in the early 1990’s. We as autistic people have an interest based nervous system focusing on a single or a few attention tunnels (as opposed to multiple) leading to very immersive experiences.
Double Empathy Problem – proposed by autistic academic and researcher Dr Damian Milton in 2012, a theory which outlines that misunderstandings and miscommunications occur between non autistic people and autistic people because of different experiences of the world. People with very different life experiences will struggle to relate to each other – this is mutual and not the sole responsibility of the autistic person.
Pathology Paradigm – the prevailing lens through which neurodivergent and/or disabled individuals are perceived. It assumes that any divergence from ‘the norm’ is a sign of disorder. The pathology paradigm categorises people into ‘right,’ ‘wrong’ or ‘abnormal’ ways of being.
Neuronormativity – a series of expectations and social norms that centre a ‘right’ way to be human. E.g. speech is the gold standard; eye contact is the only way to show that you are listening
Neurodiversity paradigm – a specific way of thinking about neurodiversity. Neurodiversity is a natural and valuable form of diversity (like biodiversity) and ’normal’ is a social construct. It is revolutionary because it rejects the pathologisation of anyone who diverges from neuronormativity.
Note: This blog is about my personal experience of the benefits of autistic self – identification, both self-identification and formal identification are valid ways of recognising your autistic identity. This blog is just against the pathologisation of autistic experiences. If you are newly identified, welcome to the autistic community.
Being autistic means I am monotropic and detail orientated as a result. In everyday conversations, this looks like using specific, often formal, language to get my point across, rather than synonyms that approximate my intended meaning. My autistic communication style could easily be misunderstood as me being pedantic, when in reality it is a need for clarity and an attempt to avoid miscommunication. Language is ever evolving so there is no such thing as a ‘perfect’ word for my every sentence. Despite these limitations, it’s important to acknowledge the power of words when describing autistic experiences and how they influence self-perception. One aspect of language that I feel passionately about is that of autistic identification as opposed to ‘diagnosis’. In this blog, I will explore the language of identification versus diagnosis in more detail including how it naturally aligns with the neurodiversity paradigm and a crucial principle of the neurodiversity movement. Furthermore, I will discuss why self-identification is so important to me. Finally, I will end with a confirmation that regardless of the route to autistic discovery, we all deserve self-understanding, community and belonging.
When I think of the word ‘diagnosis’, I think of hospitals, doctors, illnesses, – this makes sense because it is medical language. Diagnosis is the identification of illness, medical conditions or injury, so why is this term used so readily when referring to recognising our natural autistic neurotype? There are many reasons for this, particularly the fact that the pathology paradigm is very dominant in society, any deviation from neuronormativity is considered to be a ‘disorder’. This means that many autistic people (at the point of formal identification) may be just beginning to explore what being autistic means and therefore don’t know of the neurodiversity paradigm, autistic community or culture. Alternatively, autistic people may reject exploring autistic identity because being given a ‘diagnosis’ is inherently othering or identification is associated with major life transitions/stressors and therefore the only perception is one of distress. Using medicalised language is so ingrained in society that talking about identification, confirmation, realisation, or discovery instead of ‘diagnosis’ may seem insignificant, however words shape perception and being autistic is a neurological difference so wouldn’t it make sense for the terms we use to reflect that? Moreover ‘diagnosis’ is something that happens to people based on observations, so neurokin using alternatives that affirm experiences can be a way of reclaiming autonomy.
Autonomy for all is one of the guiding principles of the Neurodiversity Movement as outlined by Sonny Jane Wise (also known as Lived Experience Educator) in their brilliant book We’re All Neurodiverse: How to Build A Neurodiversity Affirming Future and Challenge Neuronormativity. My need for autonomy is one of the many reasons why I will never pursue formal identification (an alternative to the term ‘diagnosis’), coming to the conclusion that I am autistic myself (as opposed to a professional informing me) has had such a beneficial impact on my life and enabled me to find community and belonging. The difference between learning about who I am (as an adult) and a professional telling me who I am (or more likely that I have a ‘diagnosis’ of autism) is major in a way that cannot be underestimated. The former was self-initiated, realising that being autistic explained everything about me, whilst the latter would be a result of a professional’s judgement. This distinction is significant and is a key factor as to why I think self-identification can be so liberating. We as autistic people deserve to have autonomy over how we define our experiences and embracing the principle of autonomy for all means recognising that we shouldn’t have to justify our autistic identity with a formal confirmation. Self-identification is valid and we are reliable knowers of our experiences. Of course, there are a multitude of reasons why formal identification may be necessary or desired including being able to access reasonable adjustments at work or other support. However, no one should deem it essential for fear of not being believed.
Another important consideration around autistic self-identification is age. Whilst I feel passionately about the validity and importance of leading the process of autistic discovery, this route towards self-understanding is only possible because I am an adult. Having the freedom to explore my own autistic identity via the neurodiversity paradigm and join community spaces is something which is unfortunately not often afforded to many autistic children and young people. My starting point for understanding being autistic was positive, whereas the opposite is frequently true for younger people (and adults too) who after formal identification may know nothing other than the pathology paradigm or may not feel able to challenge this dominant perspective. However, if embracing the neurodiversity paradigm was the default this could support the development of a positive autistic identity from the very beginning of identification.
I have always felt a magnetic connection to neurokin and had a passion for autistic experiences as a teenager. Long before I discovered my own autistic identity, my perception of fellow autistic people has always been ‘I relate to you, even if I don’t why yet’. Exploring and reframing my own experience from this perspective, one of connection has been hugely positive. In contrast, a formal identification process could have the potential to completely ruin my positive autistic identity, evidenced by a report that describes me as ‘disordered’. This is another reason why I feel so passionately about the importance and liberation of self-identification, whether it’s a first step towards a formal confirmation, or the destination – neurokin you deserve to know, have confidence in and fundamentally affirm who you are.
Self-identification is not a matter of simply deciding that you are autistic. It is the result of researching everything you can about autistic experiences, reflecting on life, relating deeply and recognising yourself. For me, this looked like deep diving into autistic authored content, blogs, memoirs, YouTube videos (over a period of several years) and applying this information to myself. I truly resonated with all of it, from feeling innately different to others at a very young age, to the depth of feeling that shapes every day. Being autistic explains my life in ways that anxiety never did, to clarify anxiety is not part of being autistic, rather I recognised that I experience life at a different intensity to non-autistic people – which can be beautiful.
To list all the ways in which I recognised myself as autistic would be to write an infinite blog, and that is not my intention. Nevertheless, what I aim to highlight is that autistic self-identification is a thorough process with a variety of purposes unique to each and every one of us. A common goal though is to seek understanding of who we are, something which is life changing. Furthermore, given the importance that is often placed on professional opinions as opposed to lived experience, autistic self-identification may be wrongly questioned or dismissed. I would ask why this is because no one should be denied access to self-understanding, community, belonging and a whole host of other benefits that stem from finally knowing the blueprint of your brain.
Prior to autistic discovery, I perceived ‘autism’ to be a topic I wanted to learn all I could about, and reframing my experience using this knowledge meant I no longer viewed ‘autism’ as a subject but instead starting thinking about my identity and experiences. On reflection, this long-term passion was indicative of my autistic experience and I now know that it’s quite common for autistic people to have a dedicated interest in our experiences and culture.
Another pertinent aspect of discovery for me was shifting from discussing ‘autism’ to talking about my autistic experiences. I started this blog by highlighting the power of language in the context of identification and changing from talking about ‘autism’ to autistic experiences is also incredibly meaningful. We as autistic people are not a subject, topic, thing or separate entity as the word ‘autism’ would suggest (this is a further reason why I will not pursue formal identification). We are a diverse population with many intersecting identities. Using the term autistic experience as opposed to ‘autism’ I believe centres identity first language. I think it validates what being autistic actually means and that fundamentally is to think differently. The words experiences and identity place emphasis on someone’s internal world, alternatively ‘autism’ is often thought to be a collection of observable traits. Being autistic is so much more complex than a set of characteristics, – meaning defining autistic experience is never easy. However, we all share similarities in the way that we think, use attention, process the sensory world, communicate and socialise. Learning about monotropism and the Double Empathy Problem in particular via online autistic spaces is what helped me make sense of my internal world.
Whilst the purpose of this blog is to emphasise the importance of autistic self-identification, regardless of the route to realisation we all have a right to know and understand ourselves via the neurodiversity paradigm. Whether this paradigm informs your autistic discovery from the very start (like it did for me) or your introduction is a much needed and welcome reframe of prevailing pathology narratives – neurokin you deserve to affirm and embrace who you are.
References:
Wise S. J. We’re All Neurodiverse (2023) pg. 10-38 Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Wise S. J. Free Resources. The Neurodiversity Movement Guiding Principles. Lived Experience Educator.com
Reframing Autism (2020) Milton’s Double Empathy Problem: A Summary For Non Academics Accessed 23.5.2026
Autistic Village 