Yeah, my uncle who passed definitely had Autism, and so does my dad. They’re half-brothers, which means it’s highly likely my grandmother was as well (which my dad also agrees with).

It’s definitely hereditary in my family. I also clearly get my ADHD from my mom.

Not to mention that there are heavy correlations between queer identities and Autism. A lot of neurodivergent Boomers likely died during the AIDS epidemic, unfortunately.

It’s not that there’s a lower threshold. It’s that the definitions and our understanding of Autism changed. People who formerly would have been labeled with Asperger’s are now labeled (correctly) with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Plus we’ve learned how Autism can present differently in other communities that aren’t white male children. Acknowledging that girls can even be Autistic is a relatively recent development (the 90s).

The truth is that there are likely a ton of people out there with undiagnosed Autism, because they wouldn’t have met the criteria to be diagnosed as kids based on our understanding at the time. It’s why there are so many adults now getting late life diagnoses.