Do Autistic People Have a Distinct Look and Sound?

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MrMacPhisto
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14 Aug 2018, 12:14 am

This could just well be in my mind but something I have noticed in photo’s videos etc. That most people on the Autistic Spectrum have this distinct look. It is very hard for me to discribe but it is a certain look that I see around the eyes.

Also something I have noticed in how we speak it is like there is a distinct way to how we talk.

Two features that I have noticed in myself from time to time.



Child of the Universe
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14 Aug 2018, 12:19 am

Every autistic person is different. If there was a distinct look and sound, then diagnosis would be much easier.


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MrMacPhisto
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14 Aug 2018, 12:31 am

Child of the Universe wrote:
Every autistic person is different. If there was a distinct look and sound, then diagnosis would be much easier.


What I am trying to say is that nearly if not most Autistic people I have met in person and I have met quite a few. There is this distinct tone in there voice. Trying to describe it is difficult but it is something I hear.

Also with the look again hard to describe but it is almost a blank look almost tired look around the eyes.

I don’t think these are things that psychologist would pick up on a diagnosis but it is something I have seen myself.



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14 Aug 2018, 12:54 am

MrMacPhisto wrote:
Child of the Universe wrote:
Every autistic person is different. If there was a distinct look and sound, then diagnosis would be much easier.


What I am trying to say is that nearly if not most Autistic people I have met in person and I have met quite a few. There is this distinct tone in there voice. Trying to describe it is difficult but it is something I hear.

Also with the look again hard to describe but it is almost a blank look almost tired look around the eyes.

I don’t think these are things that psychologist would pick up on a diagnosis but it is something I have seen myself.

Interesting. I personally haven’t noticed this but I understand what you’re saying with the tired look. I have been told I look tired/sad by people.


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auntblabby
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14 Aug 2018, 1:27 am

i know I've always had an odd "look." I've seen that look in other people who i knew were on the spectrum.



TessSpoon
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14 Aug 2018, 2:52 am

Considering how autism can be in people around the world, and how different those people can look, I believe there is no distinct look for autists. The cases you mentioned were more than likely coincidence; some people just have the same sorts of physical features, regardless of neurology.

It applies to voices, too. Look at the voice actors for Overwatch's Genji. Specifically the ones for the English and LatinAmerican dubs; they look pretty different, but they have the same voice type.



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14 Aug 2018, 4:49 am

MrMacPhisto wrote:
Child of the Universe wrote:
Every autistic person is different. If there was a distinct look and sound, then diagnosis would be much easier.


What I am trying to say is that nearly if not most Autistic people I have met in person and I have met quite a few. There is this distinct tone in there voice. Trying to describe it is difficult but it is something I hear.


You mean a monotone or flat affect, as is often commented upon?



MrMacPhisto
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14 Aug 2018, 5:17 am

Monotone, but also when we don’t speak in a monotone voice there is also this other tone again how to explain.



Babi dwr
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14 Aug 2018, 7:09 am

I agree and have thought that for a long time but didnt think it was an acceptable thing to point out. I think its also down to how much you notice about other people as to whether you would have spotted the features.



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14 Aug 2018, 2:51 pm

Look at Neanderthal theory; they had particularly prominent foreheads, and it's believed (not confirmed) that autism may be an echoing effect of Neanderthal ancestry. So I often notice that people with autism can have particularly prominent foreheads as well, but not all. This would align with what you say about "around the eyes".

As for speaking, I wouldn't know for certain. Some speak slowly and quietly, others speak more audibly and rapidly. I don't think there's any one trait there besides the fact that there is a theme of being either one extreme or the other.



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14 Aug 2018, 4:06 pm

There is what we call the "Aspie stare." That is a real thing. That might be the look you are thinking of. The blank stare that a lot of us get when we are in shut down mode.


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14 Aug 2018, 4:20 pm

Mythos wrote:
Look at Neanderthal theory; they had particularly prominent foreheads, and it's believed (not confirmed) that autism may be an echoing effect of Neanderthal ancestry. So I often notice that people with autism can have particularly prominent foreheads as well, but not all. This would align with what you say about "around the eyes".

As for speaking, I wouldn't know for certain. Some speak slowly and quietly, others speak more audibly and rapidly. I don't think there's any one trait there besides the fact that there is a theme of being either one extreme or the other.

That’s really fascinating that autistic people might be an echoing of Neanderthals. I’ve never heard that before.


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14 Aug 2018, 4:31 pm

It is true that many people with autism do have unusual voices, often tend to position themselves in an awkward way, and may even have distinctive facial features. But these traits aren't exclusive to autism, and you can't tell by looking at or hearing someone that they don't have autism.



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14 Aug 2018, 4:53 pm

skibum wrote:
There is what we call the "Aspie stare." That is a real thing. That might be the look you are thinking of. The blank stare that a lot of us get when we are in shut down mode.

:o that is what I was trying to express but failed. also have a whiny voice that alternates between monotone and sing-song [exaggerated intervals], what has been termed "odd prosody."



Wolfram87
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15 Aug 2018, 3:20 am

No, but we all smell faintly of cinnamon.


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auntblabby
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15 Aug 2018, 4:27 am

that beats the burlap outta what I smell like.