Autism

Apologies for my intrusion. I saw this topic from the ALL listing on Lemmy.

How different would my childhood have been if I had been evaluated when I was younger?

Irrespective of a childhood evaluation or not, we are all the product of thousands of decisions we made and were made for us growing up. Its interesting to think about alternate realities that could have exists had specific events occurred that didn't or not occurred that did. In the end, we are a product of all these decisions and experiences. Were you evaluated when you were a child, you may have grown into an adult that didn't become the amazing person you are today.

However, one benefit of getting diagnosed yourself is that you'll have firsthand confirmation that the experiences your son is going to encounter may match or resemble your own when you were younger. You'll have context in understanding where he is and how he is experiencing the world because you yourself likely were the same. You could also give guidance with your years of experience as an adult which may help explain to him the world and his difficulties in processing it. In short, perhaps don't seek it for yourself and you're clearly managing well as a functional person in society, but perhaps do it for him to know you're offering valid guidance.