Gina Rippon: HIDDEN AUTISM IN WOMEN | Life After a Late Diagnosis (Part 2)

Do you think it's 'cause a lot of the traits that autistic women present are more internalized than externalized? Is that what the case is?

I do.

I mean, I think there's a section, I think right at the end of the book, called Born to Be- Born to Be Mild.

[laughs]

[laughs]

The idea is that girls are socialized to behave, not to make a fuss, you know, if, you know, not to complain, um, sit still, be good, whatever.

Um, so that it could be an external pressure.

Yeah.

Um, I wouldn't, um, in, in the face of denying that I'm a sex difference denier, say that there could be some sort of biological factors-

Mm-hmm

... um, which are a part of that.

But the, the two will be entangled.

You-

Mm-hmm

... you know, you've got a, um, a, a substrate if you like, of a, a particular kind of consequences of hormones, et cetera, on which will then be seeded gendered socialization, et cetera.

Yeah.

So I think that's, that's really important because I, I actually think we're now understanding more about how women have masked and camouflaged.

We're doing neuroscientific research showing how the brains process, uh, brains of autistic women are processing social situations differently-

Yeah

... from the brains of autistic men.

Which has led, fortunately, to a better awareness of autism in girls.

Mm.

Again, I, I'm hesitating, you know.

Yeah

... uh, chameleon autism or something.

Do you think it's 'cause a lot of the traits that autistic women present are more internalized than externalized? Is that what the case is?

I do.

I mean, I think there's a section, I think right at the end of the book, called Born to Be- Born to Be Mild.

[laughs]

[laughs]

The idea is that girls are socialized to behave, not to make a fuss, you know, if, you know, not to complain, um, sit still, be good, whatever.

Um, so that it could be an external pressure.

Yeah.

Um, I wouldn't, um, in, in the face of denying that I'm a sex difference denier, say that there could be some sort of biological factors-

Mm-hmm

... um, which are a part of that.

But the, the two will be entangled.

You-

Mm-hmm

... you know, you've got a, um, a, a substrate if you like, of a, a particular kind of consequences of hormones, et cetera, on which will then be seeded gendered socialization, et cetera.

Yeah.

So I think that's, that's really important because I, I actually think we're now understanding more about how women have masked and camouflaged.

We're doing neuroscientific research showing how the brains process, uh, brains of autistic women are processing social situations differently-

Yeah

... from the brains of autistic men.

Which has led, fortunately, to a better awareness of autism in girls.

Mm.

Again, I, I'm hesitating, you know.

Yeah

... uh, chameleon autism or something.