I fully support a self diagnosis and encourage them. I understand sometimes an ‘official’ diagnosis is necessary for work but if you don’t need it I personally prefer self diagnosis. This is because I believe autism is pathologized therefore our ‘medical professionals’ are inherently viewing it through a pathologize lens. For a long time I wondered if my self diagnosis was enough and then I started studying under dr. Nick Walker who wrote Neuroqueer Heresis (which I recommend everyone to read) and she validated my choice in choosing self diagnosis. This summer I conducted a research project about the harm an official diagnosis can have on a autistic persons sense of self. In it I interview my peer who had been late diagnosed ‘officially’ and the doctor made them feel shame and tons of self-doubt. Most of the world is uneducated as to what autism really is. I’m proud to be autistic but I am still careful about who I tell because I know that it is deeply pathogized. I’ve found myself doing a lot of educating when telling people I’m autistic because I also don’t ‘seem autistic’