I can see this very clearly in my own life. My younger brother suffers from an extreme anxiety disorder called Asperger's. This disorder is on the same spectrum as autism; it's just at the extreme end of the spectrum, making it a less extreme case. It was always obvious, even from a young age, that he was different. The only problem is that he doesn't look any different from other kids his age. The strangers he meets expect him to act and react like a normal child would, but he can't. My father's family had a hard time understanding my brother's disorder. They didn't consider it a problem. They thought he would recover, that he was weak. It took a lot of persuasion and research to prove to them that what was affecting my brother was not a thought process or a weakness, but that there was something mentally wrong with him. He does not receive help and attention at school like children with food or physical disorders with physical symptoms like ADHD. It's easy to see that these kids need help, but it wasn't until we had my brother tested in second grade that he started getting help. We had to prove to schools that he was different for him to get the attention he needed. On the other hand, people with brain injuries or illnesses get more help because it's obvious there's something wrong with them..