I’ve responded to similar articles before about high functioning female autism checklists. About half of the items describe the preferences and behaviors of introverts (I am one) and another 25% describe the characteristics of highly sensitive people (HSP), which has been scientifically researched for over thirty years and the field I’ve worked in for eight years. Being highly sensitive is not a diagnosis, but instead a temperament trait. And some of the items on the list describe an Empath, a person who takes on the emotions or physical pain of others, it makes sense of someone is empathic (I am) being a therapist and trying to serve 8–10 distraught clients in a row, that they would go home exhausted. It’s why as a coach, I only work with 2–3 clients per day.

I don’t mean to be disrespectful to anyone who is seeking to understand themselves at a deep level, however I believe most DSM diagnosis only have about 7–9 characteristics and a person must exhibit those consistently and regularly for months or years.

Checklists of hundreds of attributes are bound to create overlap into many different common personality traits and it seems they would not be very valid or precise. I am a huge supporter of the theory of ‘normal’ neurodiversity, people should self-identify as whatever helps them to be the most healthy, happy versions of themselves. However, I don’t believe it’s a good idea for therapists to be creating these random lists of hundreds of behaviors or tendencies and then diagnosing clients with high functioning autism. Each person is complex and multi-dimensional, there is not one single diagnosis or trait explains all aspects of self.

Recognizing ourselves as complex and honoring our way of being is important though…