better health
It used to be believed that autism was the preserve of boys. Now, more women and girls are being recognised as having the developmental disorder
Every six weeks, Lizi Jackson Barrett blocks out her diary with a people-free week. “I don’t see any clients, I just work quietly at home. I reset,” says the 45-year old coach and confidence strategist (Lizijacksonbarrett.com). “I love working with people, but it’s exhausting!”
It’s a surprising admission from a woman who helps entrepreneurs and leaders take on the world. The fact that Lizi, who is friendly, confident and direct, has been diagnosed as autistic, is even more eye-opening.
“I’d suspected I was autistic for years,” she explains. “When I received my diagnosis five years ago, it was a real game changer.”
Autism is a lifelong developmental disability caused by differences in the brain, which affect how people communicate and interact with the outer and inner world. “In my 20s, I’d go to nightclubs and have a sensory nightmare – the noise, the dark, the f lashing lights, the sticky f loors,” she recalls. “I’d struggle with politics and interactions in the world of work. I was signed off with stress.”
Autism diagnoses have risen dramatically – there’s been a 787 per cent increase overall in the past 20 years, the steepest rises being for females and adults.
“It used to be thought that autism rarely affected females. While it’s true boys do outnumber girls – current estimates say by three to one – and we think girls have some protections because of female sex chromosomes, a lot of girls and women are going undiagnosed,” says Dr Giovanni Giaroli (Dr-giaroli.org) a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist specialising in neurodiversity.
Research shows it takes on average six years longer to diagnose autism in girls. “While some girls present in similar ways to boys, others have important differences,” says Dr Giaroli. “Autistic girls can have rich, interior worlds. They may appear to be part of the group at school, but their behaviour is rigid, inf lexibly insisting that others play under their rules. They might appear immature.” While boys might have niche interests, such as train timetables, Dr Giaroli says that girls’ interests seem similar to their peers’ – pop stars or manga: “Dig deeper, and you realise this interest is just one song or specific cartoon.”
Masking & burnout
Girls are also expert at ‘masking’ – suppressing autistic behaviours, such as stimming (repetitive or unusual body movement or noises) or intense interests. “Masking is not something usually done consciously,” explains Dr Giaroli. “They just look at their peers and copy their behaviour, t
