Autism in Females: How is it Different?

Autism in Females: How is it Different?

How does an autism spectrum disorder look differently in girls versus boys? In case you weren't aware, autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, affects one in every 68 children and is much more commonly diagnosed in boys. Some studies show that boys are four times more likely than girls to have ASD, but new research suggests that it may appear differently in girls and therefore, go undiagnosed or possibly be misdiagnosed as something entirely different.

The criteria for diagnosing autism spectrum disorder which is a developmental condition that is marked by social and communication difficulties and repetitive inflexible patterns of behavior, just so you kind of know what we're talking about when I reference ASD, but all of these criteria are based on data that are derived almost entirely from studies of boys. This lack of data surrounding how ASD may affect a female has led to years of misunderstanding and misdiagnosis, especially for those girls on the higher functioning end of the spectrum.

Now, research has shown that females who received a diagnosis of ASD at a very young age were much more affected by ASD than their male counterparts. They showed lower IQs and extreme behavioral problems, whereas the boys who were diagnosed didn't have to be so severe to get proper treatment. In a very recent study conducted in 2016, they found that even the way that the brain processes social information is different based on the sex of the child. Boys with ASD use certain portions of the brain to manage social situations and those regions are different than boys without ASD. So, seeing those parts of their brain light up during social interaction was an easy way to diagnose them. However, in girls with ASD, it's not like that at all. In a girl with ASD, her brain will light up in the same way that a non-ASD boy would.

Why is that, you might ask? We don't know yet and they're doing follow-up research on this right now but it has already been supported by a completely different study that was conducted in Australia on 25 boys with ASD and 25 girls with ASD. Now I could hypothesize that it's because ya know, generally speaking, girls do develop socially more quickly and intensely than boys. Therefore, even if they're somewhat held back in the area, it still wouldn't be as severe as boys would. Researchers believe that this occurs because of our sex hormones. We already know that men and women are very different but maybe we don't fully understand just how different we are. All of this is honestly just so fascinating to me. I can't wait to find out more as they complete more studies. They also believe that girls are much better at noticing and mimicking behavior and will work hard to appear completely normal. Therefore, to be properly diagnosed as a girl with ASD, you need to not just observe them, but you also have to talk to them about their personal experience with socializing or managing change in their life. This could be another reason why high-functioning ASD girls tend to be diagnosed much, much later than boys. They also find that boys with autism are not interested in socializing and often when they're asked, they'll report that they just don't care if they have any friends or not. But girls, on the other hand, do care, and they show a much greater desire to connect.

They also found that girls with ASD don't tend to have as much repetitive behavior as boys and many of their times and interests are similar to other girls without ASD. They even find that girls with ASD will still engage in very quote/unquote normal play. But instead of doing role-playing, with let's say their Barbies, for example, they will just set up visually pleasing scenes to them, so it's none of this like, "And then she went in the back "and then she kissed Ken. "Oh, so exciting." They just set it up so it looks nice, which is just yet another reason why ASD in females may go unnoticed for so much longer. But last, they share that girls with ASD tend to be viewed as just too much, meaning they're often too intense about a certain subject or too sensitive or too rigid about their schedule. You can see why that would be now that we know more about autism spectrum disorders as a whole, but I could even guess that you know, due to this issue, many girls with ASD could be accidentally misdiagnosed with BPD or OCD when they're older if they're not properly diagnosed early on with ASD. If you don't know what I'm talking about when I say BPD or OCD, BPD stands for Borderline Personality Disorder. OCD is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, which I'll also link down there if you're just interested. Many girls have been diagnosed with OCD, ADHD, and even anorexia instead of ASD like they should've been. Anorexia in the female ASD population is much, much higher than in the non-ASD girl population and they believe that many of the symptoms in profiles of the two diagnoses work together, meaning that the rigidity, focus, and detail-oriented nature of both ASD and eating disorders can mean that EDs are the way

that ASD can show itself in the female population.

As we know, many people with ASD find certain tastes and textures of foods disgusting and just hate it. This can lead them to have a very restrictive diet. Now, they do not think that all females with an eating disorder also have autism. Instead, they believe that some of the girls who should've been diagnosed with ASD have been diagnosed and treated for an eating disorder. They also see similar issues with the diagnosis of ADHD and OCD in young girls. So if you have a young child or you're around a young female who just got diagnosed with ADHD, OCD, or an eating disorder, it might be worth getting a second opinion. Research also finds that females with ASD, since they tend to take things literally and are direct, can more easily fall victim to sexual exploitation such as assault or getting stuck in an abusive relationship. They say this especially for females because just as we discussed earlier, we strive for connection and we're aware that we can struggle to make friends and build relationships. So, we may choose to be with someone just because they show us a little attention, even if that attention isn't kind or loving. So just be careful and if possible, check in with someone who cares about you and has been in your life for a long time before going on a one-on-one date or to a party with someone that you maybe don't know that well, ya know, just to be safe. When I was doing all of my research and reading all these interesting articles, thank you so much for asking these questions, that's what I love about what I do, it challenges me to learn more.

While I was doing this, I came across some amazing resources, and since it can be hard to talk to our parents if we find ourselves in the female population of those with ASD, it can be hard to talk to people about what we may be struggling with. Luckily, there are many programs around the U.S. to help out, and obviously, add in any you may know from other countries in the comments down below. But these different resources are there to help us socialize, better manage our hygiene, and even talk about dating. So here are two that I found simply by just doing some basic research and the first is in Kansas City and it's a program called Girls Night Out.

It's in Kansas City, Kansas, just FYI. The second one is in New York City and it's called The Felicity House. Those are just two resources that may be helpful if you live in those areas and you just struggle to find someone to talk to about all that you may be, ya know, stressed, anxious, or just worried about. Overall, remember that every diagnosis will be expressed and even feel differently to each person who has it. So while these findings may help us better understand why many girls go undiagnosed or untreated, it doesn't apply to all girls with ASD. Always ask, listen, and seek to understand their experience before jumping to any conclusions. If you're concerned that your child may be on the spectrum, please reach out to a specialist in your area because with proper support and treatment, it can get better.

Autism in Females: How is it Different?