The Impact of a Late Autism Diagnosis

New research has shown that upwards of 37% of individuals with a diagnosed eating disorder present with autistic traits (Tchanturia et al., 2020). Understanding this overlap matters for treatment outcomes. The identification of autistic individuals with eating disorders builds new context into the function of the disorder and emphasizes the necessity of neuro-affirming treatment approaches.

Due to our culture’s increased awareness of neurodivergence, we’ve seen more individuals seeking out autism diagnoses. Among those diagnosed, many are adults who weren’t identified as children. An autism diagnosis can have a big emotional impact. Suddenly, a person gets answers for how their brain works and why certain things are hard for them. These answers can act as crucial pieces of information in eating disorder recovery.

Both personally and professionally, I’ve watched the impact of having an autism diagnosis on a person’s eating disorder recovery. I was diagnosed as autistic at the age of 31, and I have a history of an eating disorder. Through my autism diagnosis, I started to better understand myself. This understanding helped me to edit the shame-based narratives I had been holding onto, like the belief that I was broken. I was also able to better accommodate my needs and build a more sustainable life for my recovery.

I’m not the only one with a story like this. I’ve worked with many folks whose diagnosis became an essential part of their recovery, helping them make sense of their experiences and providing a new framework for the support they need.

An autism diagnosis changes how you understand your history

When someone with an eating disorder receives an autism diagnosis later in life, they have new context for the history of their disorder. After my diagnosis, I remember looking back at my years of symptoms, treatment, and recovery attempts with a new perspective.

I was able to develop a deeper understanding of why the disorder developed, and why traditional treatment approaches weren’t successful in building long-term recovery. Now, as a therapist, I do go through a similar discovery process with my neurodivergent clients.

In a paper published in 2025 by Downs and Adams, two clinicians write about their experiences of being late-diagnosed autistic and having eating disorders. In the paper, they discuss the critical role a lack of social support played in the development of their disorders.

They write, “For both of us, the absence of social support was not merely a backdrop of our experiences; it was a central force that shaped our illness trajectories. The lack of recognition for our neurodivergence created environments in which our struggles were misunderstood or overlooked, in turn compounding our sense of isolation (Downs & Adams, 2025).”

This is just one example of an autism diagnosis changing how you understand your history.

In addition to the social impact autistic individuals face, a diagnosis can contextualize traits like sensory processing differences, literal thinking, rigidity, unique capacity for demands, and burnout. Eating disorder symptoms can overlap with autistic traits (Tchanturia et al., 2020). If autism isn’t identified, then a person’s lived experiences can end up being pathologized, rather than properly understood and supported.

When misunderstood, these traits may compound an illness’s progression over a person’s life. But with a diagnosis, a potentially compassionate context can be built, understanding can deepen, and neuro-affirming treatment approaches can be added.

Grieving the diagnosis and finding self-compassion

Getting diagnosed as autistic late in life can bring up a whole spectrum of emotions and questions. People report feeling a mix of relief, grief, anxiety, confusion, and compassion as they try to make sense of this new information. This makes sense.

I heard someone describe a late autism diagnosis like this: It’s like watching a movie that has a surprise ending, except the movie is your life. So now, when you go back and rewatch the movie of your life, you know the ending and therefore see everything in a new light.

Complicated questions can arise, such as:

• Why didn’t anyone diagnose me sooner?
• How could my life have been different if I had this information growing up?
• Would my experiences with eating disorder treatment have been more successful if my treatment had used neuro-affirming approaches to care from the beginning?
• What does that mean for my life and recovery moving forward?

Questions and big emotions are part of the process. You’re allowed to feel whatever you’re feeling. Receiving a diagnosis is a big piece of information, and it can change how you see yourself and the world.

But even though a diagnosis accompanies a complex range of reactions, emotions, thoughts, and grief, people are beginning to explore the benefits of having answers. A 2024 study by French, Cassidy, & et al., called “Going Through Life on Hard Mode”—The Experience of Late Diagnosis of Autism and/or ADHD, interviewed seven health care professionals and 13 late-diagnosed adults. Through these interviews, it was discovered that a diagnosis was overall beneficial, as it offered a broader understanding and context for relationships and mental and physical well-being.

More research is needed to get a clearer picture from a larger sample, but it shows that getting a diagnosis can be beneficial, even if it comes late in life. However, nuance exists around identification and official diagnoses, and these aspects shouldn’t be overlooked.

Closing thoughts

Many complex factors can influence whether someone pursues a diagnostic process, and this same 2024 study by French, Cassidy, et al. showed the importance of considering timing and readiness before committing. Ethical, financial, and accessibility considerations also matter.

Getting an autism diagnosis late in life is a personal choice. But it can change how a person with an eating disorder understands their illness. A diagnosis can add important context to someone’s history and show why neuro-affirming treatment approaches are necessary.

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