Original post, by he-fucked-a-tiger, can be found here. A few people found it difficult to read, so I sorted the traits into categories!
Patterns and Details
- Tends to analyze everything constantly
- Often has slower reaction times due to need for mental processing.
- May obsessively collect, organize, count, categorize, or rearrange objects.
- May find math and numbers easier to deal with due to logic and lack of objective answers.
- May notice patterns frequently.
- May be fascinated by words or song lyrics.
- Tends to best remember/learn things in visual pictures (visual thinkers).
- May have a remarkable memory for certain details, i.e., may find it surprisingly easy to remembers exact details about someone’s life.
Literalism
- Often straightforward and practical in nature.
- Tend to say what they mean. Are often brutally honest, coming off as rude when they do not mean to be.
- Sense of humor sometimes seems quirky, odd, or different from others.
- Often speaks frankly and literally.
- Certain kinds of humor, such as sarcasm and metaphors, may be difficult to understand.
Escapism
- Often gets lost in own thoughts and zones out (may display a blank stare)
- May appear naive or innocent (despite not being so)
- Finds comfort in escaping through imagination, fantasy, and daydreaming.
- May have had imaginary friends as a child.
- Escapism frequently used to relax or avoid overwhelming situations.
Straightforwardness
- Prone to honesty, has difficulty lying
- May struggle to understand manipulation, disloyalty, vindictive behavior and retaliation.
- May be gullible and easily taken advantage of, misled, or conned.
- May try to help, offer unsolicited advice, or formalize plans of action.
- Can be confused when others ostracize, shun, belittle, trick, and betray.
- May frequently second-guess oneself and ask a lot of questions before engaging a task or situation
Emotional Understanding
- The emotions of oneself and others may seem confusing, illogical, and unpredictable.
- Expects that by acting a certain way certain results can be achieved, but realizes in dealing with emotions, those results don’t always manifest.
- Often has trouble identifying feelings in others unless they are extreme.
- Trouble with the emotions of hate and dislike.
- May have feelings of pity for someone who has persecuted/hurt her.
- Situations and conversations sometimes perceived as black or white.
- The middle spectrum of outcomes, events, and emotions is sometimes overlooked or misunderstood. (All or nothing mentality).
Socializing - General
- May have feelings of confusion and isolation in relation to others
- May observe and question the actions and behaviors of self and others continually.
- Trained self in social interactions through readings and studying of other people.
- Visualizes and practices how she will act around others and before entering various social situations.
- Has a continuous dialogue in mind that tells her what to say and how to act when in a social situations.
- May frequently reject or question social norms.
Socializing - Conversation and Communication
- May use various noises to express herself rather than using words.
- May have little impulse control when speaking
- May accidently dominate conversation at times.
- Often relates discussion back to self (sharing as a means of reaching out)
- May feels as if she is attempting to communicate “correctly.”
- Often struggles with and is confused by the unwritten social rules of accurate eye contact, tone of voice, proximity of body, stance, and posture in conversation.
- Eye contact often takes extreme focus, which may lead an individual’s eye contact to be darting and insufficient, or over-the-top staring/glaring.
- May have difficulty regulating voice volume to different situations. Is frequently observed as being either too loud or too quiet.
- Conversation, specifically small talk, can be exhausting.
- May have trouble focusing on/engaging in conversation that is not centered on one’s primary interests.
- May have difficulty with back-and-forth conversation
- As a child, it may have been hard to know when it was her turn to talk, may still be true as an adult.
- Often finds the norms of conversation confusing.
- May feel misunderstood and tend to over-explain/ramble in an attempt to compensate for possible miscommunication.
Perseveration
- Often holds fixations, obsessions, and extreme interest in specific topics.
- May have a tendency to over-share with friends and sometimes strangers
- Often sounds eager or over-zealous at times.
Mimcry
- Frequently imitates (takes social cues from) people on television or in movies.
- Often highly adapted to social imitation.
- May take criticism and judgement very personally
- May frequently adapt her viewpoints or actions based on others’ opinions
- Imitates others without realizing.
- Chameleon-like in social situations. Often switches preferences and behaviours based on environment and other people.
Comorbidity
- Often has comorbid conditions, such as OCD, anxiety, ADD or ADHD, depression, bipolar disorder, etc.
- Often has sensory processing disorder (sight, sound, texture, smells, taste)
- May have dyspraxia (Poor muscle tone, lack of coordination and depth perception)
- May have dyslexia
- May have an eating disorder or food obsessions
- May have been misdiagnosed or diagnosed with other mental illness or possibly labeled a hypochondriac.
- May be incorrectly seen as narcissistic
- May exhibit codependent behaviors.
- May have trouble recognizing what she looks like and/or has slight prosopagnosia (difficulty recognizing or remembering faces).
Executive Dysfunction
- Executive function is often a challenge
- Learning to ride a bike or drive a car may be rather difficult.
- Anything that requires a reasonable amount of steps, dexterity, or know-how can rouse a sense of panic.
- The thought of repairing, fixing, or locating something can cause anxiety.
- May have a hard time finding certain objects in the house, but remembers with exact clarity where other objects are.
Sensory Processing
- Tends to drop small objects
- May frequently engage in “stimming” (self-stimulation) i.e., flicks fingernails, flaps hands, drums fingers, rubs hands/fingers, tucks hands under or between legs, clenches fists, twirls hair, taps foot/shakes leg, sways side to side, spins in circles, bouncing up and down, rocking, etc.
- Difficulty filtering out background noise when talking to others.
- Difficulty sleeping due to sensitivity to environment
- May struggle to relax or rest due to many racing thoughts.
- May outwardly appear to have little investment in hygiene, clothes, or appearance, often prefers fast and easy methods of style.
- Clothing style is likely more focused on comfort and practicality, especially in the case of sensory issues.
- May possess a youthful appearance and/or voice.
Performing for the Public
- Feels extreme relief when she doesn’t have to go anywhere, talk to anyone, answer calls, or leave the house.
- Feelings of dread about upcoming events and appointments on the calendar.
- Knowing she has to leave the house causes anxiety from the moment she wakes up.
- The steps involved in leaving the house are overwhelming and exhausting to think about.
- Must prepare herself mentally for outings, excursions, meetings, and appointments.
- Question next steps and movements continually.
- Often needs a large amount of down time or alone time.
- May feel extremely self-conscious and uncomfortable in public locker rooms, bathrooms, or dressing rooms.
- Tends to dislike being in crowded areas.
Sympathy and Empathy
- May be highly intuitive to others’ feelings, although may not appear to react to them ‘correctly’ in social situations
- Dislikes words and events that hurt animals and people.
- May have had a desire to collect or rescue animals, usually in childhood.
- Often holds great compassion for suffering.
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