Step 5 asks us to "Share our current perceptions of our sense of self and self-esteem with the world in some way".  But after years of wondering what is wrong with me, I sometimes wonder whether I really want to talk about my self-esteem again. Sometimes I feel like it's not as important as other areas of my life. And yet in other moments, I have to admit being late-identified is challenging for my self-esteem.

Perhaps one of the reasons I don't know what to do with Step 5 is that I'm not sure what this Step means to me.  What exactly is it that I should share about my sense of self/self-esteem, and how will it help my journey? Another issue is that this Step does not seem as specific to me as other steps. "In some way…" in which way? Do I share once, or more than once? Does another person have to be involved? Other Steps have me researching things, finding things out, making decisions. Step 5 almost strikes me as performative or display-based, and after all the masking I've done, that's a problem for me.

That said, as a high-masking person, I've done an awful lot of hiding my true self concept and self-esteem from others. Sure, there have been times when I admitted I had bad self-esteem, but I held back from describing just how terribly bad. Without knowing about autism, I somehow knew that the reason for my bad self-esteem was different from what my friends were describing. And, although I didn't know what the difference might be, I suspected that trying to describe it would alienate people. Maybe coming out in the open about my sense of self and self-esteem in relation to autism--even in privacy, like my journal--will help me heal somehow. But how do you feel about Step 5? What place has it had in your self-esteem journey?
Share questions:

• What does it mean to you to share your perceptions of your sense of self and self-esteem with the world? 
• What are some ways you've shared on your self-perceptions? Did you write them down in a notebook? Conduct a ritual? Tell a close friend or a therapist? Describe your self-perceptions during group meetings, either occasionally or on a regular basis? Maybe something else?
• What, if anything, happened once you shared your perceptions of yourself with the world in some way?
• If you use our 12 Steps cyclically, has Step 5 helped you keep in touch with how your self-esteem is changing over time? Any other effects?
• Do you have any mixed or negative thoughts about what Step 5 means or how to do it? What the point of it is? The wording and purpose of this Step is still evolving, so your feedback could help it change in the right direction. 
• Any tools, resources, or strategies that helped you? 
• Anything else to share?