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Autism is the reason for the symptoms. The symptoms can also be reduced by masking.

I wouldn't characterize masking as a reduction of symptoms.

Masking is putting on a face to _hide_ symptoms from others to appear more 'normal'. It's f-ing exhausting. The symptoms never go away.

I guess it depends how you look at it. I’d say hiding symptoms is the same as reducing symptoms.

In this case when you reduce symptoms with masking then you get different symptoms, like exhaustion.

And yes, this doesn’t seem healthy for the person who is masking, especially when taken to the extreme levels.