A stereotype is a widely held, but fixed and oversimplified image or idea, of a particular type of person or thing. This week I’m going to be talking more about how stereotypes impact Autistic and NeuroDivergent People. Continue reading Autism StereoTypes and the Damage they Do to Autistic People
“I’m experiencing severe burnout, trying to find a way to change out of a career that doesn’t make me happy in the least. Working has become almost impossible. I’m in technology and feel the pressure to stay because it pays well, and the skills I have honed for many years are focused in this field. I love the idea of working for myself, but I don’t even know how to transition into that, when I’m so tired at the end of my workday. I also can’t just quit and move back to my parents. I don’t have that kind of support. I’m wondering if you could talk about that in future videos or blog posts: navigating careers as an Autistic adult, transitioning into a healthier work environment and starting in a new field. I know there are no easy or straightforward answers to these questions, but at this point, anything helps.” Continue reading Choosing & Changing Careers when You are NeuroDivergent – an Autistic Perspective
Today I’m going to be talking about sensory processing, and the impact that that has on my stomach; because I don’t think a lot of people have spoken about this, and I want to know if anyone else is noticing what I am noticing.
Unfortunately, stomach problems are something that a lot of Autistic People will deal with. I know because I am an Autistic Person who has dealt with stomach issues off and on throughout my entire life.
From personal experience, I can say that I used to use alcohol because I had social anxiety, and had all of these mandatory work networking happy hours and events, where there was always free alcohol; and alcohol made the anxiety numb, and let me tolerate being in these situations that, if I was listening to my gut, and my self, and how I really felt, I would have chosen not to go to anyway. I was putting a bandaid on things.
One or two drinks, and I noticed that the sensory experience, if it is a bit overwhelming, can sometimes become a bit less intense for me, and it is easier for me to go with the flow a little bit, as my inhibitions go down, but it doesn’t take as much alcohol, as it takes other people, to get me tipsy. Continue reading Autism and Alcohol – My Autistic Experience with Drinking
It’s rarely JUST Autism…
I am Autistic and I also have ADHD. There are some mental health issues I have, some diagnosed, some not. I have diagnosed anxiety disorder, in addition to being Autistic. I have a diagnosis of IBS. I have migraines and seizures in addition to being Autistic. I have insomnia in addition to being Autistic.
There’s just many things that Autistic People can have going on in addition to being Autistic. I am also hyperlexic, in addition to being Autistic. I am not just Autistic. I am Autistic and I have more going on in my life, which, I mean, it’s the case with NeuroTypical People. Continue reading I’m Autistic PLUS – Co Occurrence, Multiple NeuroDivergence, & Why Its Rarely JUST Autism
One of the things that I share with organizational leaders, and members of different companies I work with, is the fact that NeuroDivergent pace, often can look different than NeuroTypical pace, and NeuroDivergent workers can have, what I like to call “variable energy reserves” and may need to adjust our schedules accordingly. Continue reading NeuroDiversity in the Workplace – Asking Autistic & NeuroDivergent People to Keep a NeuroTypical Pace
Well, for me, that is when some kind of sensory input light, sound, touch, smell, a sensation on my skin, et cetera, and so forth, becomes so overwhelming to me that I either shut down, meltdown, or run away from it; because I am basically sent into almost a panic or, just this need to stop, or get away from and escape something that is currently agitating me, within the environment around me.
Some of my common triggers for sensory overload would be bright, fluorescent, lighting, certain smells, certain sounds, just really get to me. Continue reading I’m Autistic – This is What I WISH People Understood About Sensory Processing & Sensory Overload
If you would like to know a little bit more about my personal experience with school, and why education, the way it was for me, was a very traumatic experience – please do stay tuned. Continue reading Autism & NeuroDivergent Trauma in Public Education – My Autistic Experience
One of my favorite people on the internet: Asiatu Lawoyin
CW/TW: ABA/Conversation Therapy/Autistic Abuse/ Suicidal ideation/mental health/trauma Continue reading A Conversation with Asiatu Lawoyin
My assignment had been “woman” & it was expected that I would grow into such. This realization hurt. I didn’t want to “become woman” – I wasn’t a girl. Continue reading Sharing My Trans Origin Story for Transgender Awareness Week