Kristen Hovet is a science writer and research communications specialist, covering health research and innovation. After being diagnosed with autism at the age of 38, she set out to create a platform, ‘The Other Autism’ to speak about late diagnosis in females and on the positive sides of being autistic.
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
KrASIA (Kr): Could you share more about your platform ‘The Other Autism’?
Kristen Hovet (KH): I was diagnosed at the age of 38, about a year after a therapist mentioned that some of my traits reminded her of her autistic child. The therapist was just talking to me and listening to some of my sensory issues. I’m sensitive to really bright light and loud noises, and she assumed that I was autistic and that I had already been diagnosed. I said, “No, I had never thought in a million years that I was autistic.” That started the process for me of looking into it more, and eventually, I had a formal autism assessment and was diagnosed with level one autism — formerly known as Asperger’s syndrome or high functioning autism.
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