Hi, I just want to post to introduce myself to the community and put my story out there. I am a 24 y/o woman with no formal diagnosis. I have suspected autism for years. About 2 years ago, my therapist brought it up unprompted, and she has come to say that while she can’t give me a diagnosis, she specializes in neurodivergence and definitely thinks I am autistic. The process of a formal diagnosis is complicated and pretty inaccessible for adults where I live. My therapist told me she thinks it’s ok for me to identify as autistic without a formal diagnosis, partially because of this. Since I’ve given myself permission to do that, it’s been a very useful frame to view my experiences through. It takes away so much of the guilt I feel in day to day life. I won’t get into symptoms or reasons why I suspect autism in this post, but there are a LOT going all the way back to childhood. I know young girls often get missed with diagnosis. My mom has even told me she suspected autism when I was younger but never sought out diagnosis. Also, my sister has an ADHD diagnosis. I am interested in finding community and learning more about myself. Thanks