Reading: Drama Queen: One Autistic Woman and a Lifetime of Labels

[white_hart]

Sara Gibbs was diagnosed with autism at the age of 30, after spending her whole life never quite fitting in. Her memoir, Drama Queen: One Autistic Woman and a Lifetime of Labels, reflects on the various labels other people applied to her - crybaby, chatterbox, show-off, and many more - as she tried to make her way through life while constantly feeling that everyone else had been given a manual and she hadn't.

I bought this because, as someone who's currently (and finally) on the waiting list for an autism assessment, I'm extremely interested in the accounts of (other) autistic AFAB people, especially those diagnosed in adulthood. I expected to find Gibbs' story relatable, and I absolutely did; I wasn't quite prepared for the flood of often intensely uncomfortable memories it released. Despite this, I enjoyed the book; Gibbs' background as a comedy writer is evident in the book's humour, and even when she's describing very difficult times in her life the book never feels miserable or self-pitying. Highly recommended, especially for anyone who thinks they may be autistic, or knows someone who is.

Comments

[white_hart]

Well, that was the 80s for you. Bright, well-behaved children didn't get diagnosed with things. And if you were having trouble fitting in, you probably just weren't trying hard enough.

[cmcmck]

That might be why I left school at 15, unqualified then!

Still fetched up with six quals from four unis however...........

[jinty]

Being female presumably didn't help either, given there are boatloads of women now being diagnosed in adulthood. (Sorry, I say female, should I say 'perceived as female' given you are she/they? i have forgotten, apologies.)

[white_hart]

Perceived/read as female is better, but I'm OK with just female too. And no, I'm sure it didn't help - insofar as autism was on anyone's radar back then, it was something that affected boys, and not girls. (Though my middle brother is probably more obviously autistic than I am, and that was never picked up either.)

[jinty]

Yes, the past is a different country, eh.