I've got one foot on the autism sprectrum, and wasn't diagnosed until I was 26. It manifests as anxiety and generally having difficulty communicating. I do all the same normal things, I just have an extreme difficulty working up the courage to talk to others. For example, there's a pizza place nearby that I like, but I won't order it because I have to call them. I will use the other places online ordering. I can call them, it'll make me mildly uncomfortable, but I choose not to.
When I have friends over, I get anxious. I spend days dreading it, even if I enjoy myself.
In relationships, I overthink, everything. I have been dsescribed as clingy. Sucks, but with practice I got better.
Let me tell you about my first job at McDonald's. I was 18, in college. It was hell. I worked for 4 days before I quit. I was surrounded by people I didn't know, and everything seemed so loud. I didn't know exactly what to do, and I felt horrible asking how guidance. I was basically cleaning, all day every day. The place was disgusting. Inches of grease caked at bottom of the fryer. I didn't yet have the special non-slip shoes that gave to everyone, they were waiting for the oens they ordered me to arrive. On my fourth day, a regional manager was visiting. I slipped on a wet floor, causing all eyes to fall on me, the one thing I ahte more than anything. I stood up said to the guy I was working with (its like ice skating). The visiting manager grabbed me by the arm yelled at me "Does this look like a skating rink to you?!". My supervisor told him I didn't have the shoes yet. The Manager told me to get out and not work until the shoes came in. I felt like crap, on the verge of tears, left. I went home and didn't go to class that day. When the supervisor called me for another shift with my shoes, I told him I couldn't do it. I quit then. My mom was so upset and disappointed in me. I hated myself.
Later, I was on an internship, and had similar social anxieties, but nothing as bad. I toughed it out. That was at a schoolk district working in their IT department. One week I was going classroom by classroom installing new software on teacher's computers. It was awkward sitting in the back of the room working while they taught the class. that was bad lol, but I managed it.
The next company I worked for was a call center. I threw up in the bathroom on my first day. Again, I toughed this one out. Became supervisor. Then moved to the network side of things. 9 years later, I am still here, working from home, and enjoying myself a lot more now that I know what is wrong and how to mitigate it.
tl;dr mild autism sucks, but the $600 test I got done by a medical professional was so much worth it. Its easier to help yourself when you understand yourself. My mom telling me nothing was wrong and I was normal growing up did far more damage than help.