Is this a thing? I feel like other people are robots

General Discussion/Question

I'm 45F and I don't know if this is something that is a result of me getting older, a sort of "get off my lawn"-esque symptom of aging, or if it's an ASD thing or maybe just how society is changing...or something else entirely. The reason I'm asking here is because of the lack of connection I generally feel with people and because it seems like my ASD "symptoms" are getting more extreme and I'm less able to mask as I get older.

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Over the past couple of years, I've noticed that people seem very detached when I'm interacting with them. It's mainly when I'm interacting with employees of some kind, but also acquaintances and to a lesser extent, people I'm fairly close with. What prompted me posting this today is that I'm scheduling a bunch of neuropsych tests and over the past 2 days I've spoken with 3 separate employees who just feel like...robots. It's not a question of whether they're being "professional," but more that they're just not "hearing" me. Like, as they're asking me whether I want virtual or in person, I'm trying to explain to them that I don't necessarily care, but don't want to sit in a room with a laptop when I can do that at home, but at the same time, if I'm being observed, I'd rather be observed in person. And they're just not absorbing what I'm saying or something, I don't know, and keep asking me if I want virtual or in person. This is just one example of this feeling.

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It just feels like I'm having to keep pushing/poking in order to get a reaction from people. I actually find it ironic since autistic people are supposed to be the ones who don't display "appropriate" emotions and reactions. Lol I've spent such a long time in my life figuring out how to react and respond "appropriately," (even to the point of making sure I have enough - but not too many, of course - exclamation points and emojis in texts), and now it feels like the default is that there's no response or reaction. I'd think maybe it's AI in some of these scenarios, but I've actually done AI scheduling and interviews and somehow they seem to be more human (yeah, scary). I remember reading something where people were complaining about Gen __ (I forget which one) and their lack of customer service skills, attributing it to them hating their jobs and dealing with people. That's why I'm not sure if it's a generational thing or something associated with getting older, instead of ASD.

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I'm sorry, I know this isn't very detailed (despite the length) because it's hard to describe a feeling like this. If anyone needs more examples, I can probably come up with more, just didn't want to make this post too long before it's even posted!

Posted Jun 12, 2026, 8:15 PM UTC

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