Admitting your needs post diagnosis

I've written about Autistic Permissions in another post, and whilst this one is close, I think it falls under a completely different emotional category. Prior to diagnosis I'd mask, this was 24*7, and for the most part automatic - I wasn't aware it was going on. The form of masking in this case is the denial of needs, and clinging on to a life, a mode of existence where the denial hammers you into…