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This empowering workbook has been designed to help Autistic adults, whether newly diagnosed or self-identifying, to develop a positive understanding of their unique Autistic identity. Continue reading Get Autism, Identity and Me: A Practical Workbook to Empower Adults – ORDER NOW!
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The Weight of Normal is a raw and powerful memoir of survival and awakening. It is an unflinching indictment of the systems of forced assimilation—the NeuroDivergent and Queer conversion “therapies”—that teach self-abandonment as a virtue. Continue reading New Book! NeuroDivergent Rebel’s The Weight of Normal – Preorder NOW (Available 12/16/25)
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Two books, one goal: Supporting Autistic young people in affirming their Autistic Identities and learning about themselves. Continue reading Autism, Identity and Me – A Practical Workbook to Empower Autistic Children and Young People Aged 10+ By Rebecca Duffus & Lyric Rivera
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Do you have a group, team, or organization that is looking for training and educational around Autistic and NeuroDivergent inclusion in your workplace?
Do your organizational policies and procedures unintentionally discriminate against Autistic and/or NeuroDivergent People? Would you know if your policies were harmful to people with invisible differences? Continue reading NeuroDivergent Consulting
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Workplace NeuroDiversity Rising is intended to be a tool that can help ANYONE who wants to make the world, or the spaces around them more inclusive for NeuroDivergent (and all) People, in organizations, communities, schools, and beyond. Continue reading Workplace NeuroDiversity Rising – Start Making Immediate Changes to the World Around You
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Buying one of our art pieces or merch is a great way to get cool stuff and support the work we do. Continue reading NeuroDivergent Rebel Art & More
Something you may or may not know about me is that I used to work at an adult retail store, and it was one of my favorite jobs.
My specialty was helping people find the tools they needed to pleasure themselves and one another (toys, lube, items for safe sex, and media for visual and mental stimulation)… okay, it was a porn store. Still, my focus and specialty was helping people in the adult toy section.
I loved helping people with their intimate needs, finding tools, toys, and solutions that worked for them based on their interests and desires, and, in some cases, offering a little coaching on how they could reach their first “Big-O“ (if that was something they wanted to do).
In those days, sex was one of my main special interests, and even though it’s been a few years, I still am very passionate about sex.
So… Let’s talk about sex, BABY! Continue reading Sex, Stimming, and Safety – Libido, Lube, and Latex: An Autistic Guide to Intimacy, Desire, Sensory Needs, and Consent
I wanted to share my experience of being Autistic and how my neurotype has shaped my relationships with other people. However, I have a problem because, in addition to being Autistic, I have also experienced years of interpersonal trauma (due to not knowing I was Autistic for most of my life), which makes it difficult for me to separate which parts of my experiences with others are tied to “Autism” and which parts are because of interpersonal trauma. Continue reading How Being an Autistic Person (with Interpersonal Trauma) Has Impacted My Relationships Over The Years
If Traditional Meditation Doesn’t work for you, Read This – I Thought I Was Failing at Meditation. Turns Out, I Just Needed a Different Approach. A few years ago, when my grandfather passed away, I started to realize that over … Continue reading Why Some Types of Meditation Didn’t Work for My ADHD Brain (And What Finally Did)
Ten years ago, when I was newly diagnosed as Autistic, I was both mentally and physically unwell.
I had burned out (or had been burned out) by an exploitative employer who treated me and my needs as a problem.
According to my employer at the time, my needs were “unreasonable” because they were things “everyone in the company would like, and it wouldn’t be fair to show me special treatment.”
I wanted to respond that “If everyone wants what I am asking for, then maybe your whole system sucks” (but, being newly identified, I hadn’t found the confidence to do so yet)… so I kept my frustration to myself and quietly started looking for a new job. Continue reading The Autistic Burnout and Facing Backlash When We Step Back from The Traditional Workplace
Asking Neurodivergent People: Have you ever been accused of “faking” your Neurodivergence?
This summer, I was named in a blog post by some random manosphere dude (along with several others) as someone who, in their opinion, has been “responsible for the gentrification of Autism, ADHD, and other disabilities,” and, according to this man, we are “pretending to be Neurodivergent for clout” and as a way to “excuse our own mediocrity,” and “anti-social,” and other so-called “bad behaviors” that this stranger claims to see in us.
When it happened, one month ago today, I mostly ignored it, but I am deciding to speak up now, because recently, I’ve seen multiple similar pieces dragging other Autistic and ADHD adults using very similar language popping up all over the internet… and I am noticing some patterns. Continue reading I Was Named in a Manosphere Hit Piece for “Gentrifying Autism”. The “Gentrification of Autism” Is a Myth. The Policing Is Real.
Growing up, school was one of the worst experiences of my life, for many reasons.
Unfortunately, though some Neurodivergent young people love and enjoy their school years, for many of us who are Neurodivergent, school can be very difficult because it is often the first system we’re pushed into that is not designed in a way that supports our needs (pressuring us to conform to neuro-normative ideals and norms that may be out of reach for us, especially if we don’t have our basic needs met).
That’s why struggling in school, for many of us, can be one of the first signs that we might be Neurodivergent. Continue reading If School Felt Like a Prison, You Might Be Neurodivergent – The Hidden Curriculum That Punishes Neurodivergent Kids
Autistic masking (also known as camouflaging) is when an Autistic person consciously or subconsciously masks their Autistic traits to blend in with non-autistic people. When we do this, it is not to be manipulative or deceptive. It is a survival skill and can also be tied to trauma responses (such as fawning). More on fawning in a moment. Continue reading Fawning + Autistic Masking: When Autistic Masking Becomes Fawning and Why We Hide Ourselves Despite the Cost
When an Autistic person enters a shutdown, we may go completely (or mostly) silent, stare blankly, and not be able to speak (and may struggle to decode and understand spoken words). We may withdraw or become completely (or mostly) still. Continue reading The Terrifying Reality of an Autistic Shutdown (It’s Not the Silent Treatment)
Question for my Autistic readers: Do you have, or have you ever had, a meltdown? If so, how would you describe them to other people? Also, what would you like people to know about them?
What IS an Autistic meltdown?
When an Autistic person has a meltdown, it is an involuntary nervous system response to compounding environmental or internal stressors. Continue reading It’s Not a Tantrum: What Actually Happens During an Autistic Meltdown
I’m running a fundraiser with these super-cute, limited-edition Neurodivergent Rebel hats. What do YOU need to be successful in the workplace? Autistic and other Neurodivergent people are more likely to be underemployed or unemployed. As an Autistic person, something I … Continue reading I Need YOUR help keeping this blog going…
