How does one woman go undiagnosed for her entire life as an autistic person? Simple: 35-year-old Luna Percey has no special interests. Well, she has some interests, but they are not really “special.” There are a lot of things about Percey that are obviously autistic, but her interests aren't one of them. They never have been.
Starting out in grade school, Percey's teachers couldn't have known she was autistic, because, unlike all of the autistic boys who were into trains and knew every type of dinosaur, Percey was just into reading “Magic Tree House” and playing Polly Pocket. These things were normal — totally not special — interests for a little girl in the '90s!
Percey's diagnosed classmates found solace during high school in reciting lines from their favorite movies after getting in trouble for having too many stress toys and doodling too much. But Percey found peace in completing her schoolwork on time and listening to Hilary Duff's hit album “Metamorphosis” on repeat, like EVERY OTHER teenage girl in the 2000s. Not special enough. She's just like us.
Even today, after a lengthy process of learning about herself to get to her diagnosis, people still sometimes don't believe she's autistic due to her not-so-special interests. Doesn't every millennial woman in her 30s have an obsession with crafting and rearranging her Animal Crossing island? Pretty common, honestly.
Overall, Percey's experience can teach us one major lesson: If you're going to be autistic, be unique. Be special. You can't just CLAIM you're autistic and then not be into identifying trees and bugs in your free time. Give us a break, Luna. You're not special.