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The way I think of ASD,” she said, “is this: Most people, as they grow up, assimilate the norms of social behavior naturally, through osmosis, if you will. That was not the case for me or for many with ASD. It was as though I’d been dropped into a complex video game but without a manual. I still am unclear on how neurotypicals pick up on those norms. My brain is wired differently, and fortunately, my parents picked up on it very early. They remember the day they read through a list of Asperger’s symptoms, saying, ‘Yes!’ to each. They took me to a psychologist right away. That early diagnosis gave me a tremendous advantage.
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