Relationships / Bullies / Friendships, Substack
A photo of Lyric in Nov 2016, early in their post-Autism diagnosis journey. They have a short-red bob haircut and grey Inspector Gadget coat.

A Radical Gift I Never Expected: What The NeuroDivergent Rebel Community Taught Me.

Lyric Holmans

I Started a Blog to Find Myself. I Accidentally Built a Community Instead.
Continue reading A Radical Gift I Never Expected: What The NeuroDivergent Rebel Community Taught Me.

Substack
A Happy Lyric in a teal “refusing assimilation into NeuroTypical Society tank top, that has pale pink and teal and lavender graphics.

The Box of Shame Almost Crushed Me but Autistic Pride Was My Escape – The Dangerous Trap of “Battling Autism” (And How It Nearly Killed Me)

Lyric Holmans

For me, (now) growth is learning to work with my Autistic (and multiply NeuroDivergent) mind (instead of against it) and treating my brain like a friend and partner (instead of an adversary). This (radical self-acceptance for even my struggles) has been key to my success, but parents who get stuck “battling Autism” (battling their kid’s minds like I was locked in battle with my own mind for years) are on a very different path than I am on now (battling against Autism instead of collaborating with it). Continue reading The Box of Shame Almost Crushed Me but Autistic Pride Was My Escape – The Dangerous Trap of “Battling Autism” (And How It Nearly Killed Me)

Substack
Young Lyric, sitting under a tree at a birthday party.

Assimilate or Be Punished: My Multiply NeuroDivergent School Years – They Called it Bad Behavior; It Was Unmet Needs

Lyric Holmans

Sometimes, Autism that is outwardly disruptive can be “beaten into submission” until it is “less disruptive” to the outside viewer (as mine was).

However, this can lead to increased internal disruptions—and, in my case, more meltdowns, other kinds of overload and trauma responses, as well as isolation (due to not projecting my authentic self to the world) and a lost sense of self and identity (due to being forced to separate from and be ashamed of “undesirable” parts of myself by a society that wouldn’t allow me to bring my whole self to most spaces). Continue reading Assimilate or Be Punished: My Multiply NeuroDivergent School Years – They Called it Bad Behavior; It Was Unmet Needs

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#ActuallyAutistic #AskingAutistics - with RFK Jr.’s recent comments about Autistic People, what’s something that you want the world to know about your experience as an Autistic Person/about Autism?

Productivity ≠ Humanity: Autism Isn’t the Problem—Ignorance Is – How RFK Jr. Got It Dangerously Wrong

Lyric Holmans

Our Lives Have Value Even if We Can’t Work

It was telling that paying taxes and holding a job were the top two priorities in RFK’s speech.

This dangerous way of thinking (human value based on productivity) holds that we (people) are only worthy if we have exploitable capitalistic value and can support the system (but not if we need the system to support us) – which ignores the fact that needing support is part of the human experience.

We all start our lives needing support and (if we live long enough) will also end our lives needing support.

Placing value upon lives based on how much they earn hurts people with disabilities. It also harms humanity as a whole (because it enforces social hierarchies based on monetary value, productivity, and output).

When we devalue others, we are also devaluing ourselves.

When we devalue people who cannot work (or are limited in their ability to work, or who make less), we also normalize the idea that those with higher-paying jobs and people who make more money are “more valuable” than those who make less (doing everyone who’s not ultra-wealthy a considerable disservice). Continue reading Productivity ≠ Humanity: Autism Isn’t the Problem—Ignorance Is – How RFK Jr. Got It Dangerously Wrong