Tag: autistic pride

SubstackLeave a comment
Lyric, with long black hair and pale skin, dressed as little red riding hood.

The Realities of Autistic & NeuroDivergent Camouflaging (Masking)

Lyric Holmans

Neurodiversity, a normal and natural part of human variation, encompasses the diversity of the brain and nervous system.

The human brain, body, and nervous system can exhibit variety in various ways. Still, these differences may not be readily apparent to outsiders (due to misunderstandings and assumptions because of these differences being hidden within the person’s brain). Continue reading The Realities of Autistic & NeuroDivergent Camouflaging (Masking)

Relationships / Bullies / Friendships, SubstackLeave a comment
Breaking Free from the Critic: Learning to Love Myself and Others More Completely I realized many of the traits I'd "filed away" and deemed as "bad," "shameful," and to "never see the light of day" could be attributed to being Autistic (or other forms of NeuroDivergence I embody).

Breaking Free from the Critic: Learning to Love Myself and Others More Completely

Lyric Holmans

I realized many of the traits I’d “filed away” and deemed as “bad,” “shameful,” and to “never see the light of day” could be attributed to being Autistic (or other forms of NeuroDivergence I embody).
Continue reading Breaking Free from the Critic: Learning to Love Myself and Others More Completely

Masking / Passing, SubstackLeave a comment

Breaking Free from the Need for Control: My Journey Towards Embracing Uncertainty

Lyric Holmans

My adult Autism diagnosis marked a pivotal moment in my life, altering my understanding of myself (and my path to personal growth).

Making sharp turns occasionally when faced with new information is necessary.
One of the traits that I find most attractive in people is their ability to adjust to new information (even if it takes them a while).

While some may need to slow down to navigate these ‘sharp turns,’ our ability to adapt and ‘swerve’ occasionally is crucial.

Our ability to change directions prevents us from crashing, enabling us to navigate life’s ever-changing circumstances.
Continue reading Breaking Free from the Need for Control: My Journey Towards Embracing Uncertainty

Masking / Passing, Substack, VideosLeave a comment

Autistic Empathy – Autism and the Double Empathy Problem

Lyric Holmans

It has been years since Damian Milton rocked the world with the paper: On the ontological status of autism: the ‘double empathy problem.’

In Damian’s paper, the double empathy problem was defined as:

A disjuncture in reciprocity between two differently disposed social actors which becomes more marked the wider the disjuncture in dispositional perceptions of the lifeworld – perceived as a breach in the ‘natural attitude’ of what constitutes ‘social reality’ for ‘neuro-typical’ people and yet an everyday and often traumatic experience for ‘autistic people.’

What does that mean in more simple language? I will explain in this month’s video. Continue reading Autistic Empathy – Autism and the Double Empathy Problem

Relationships / Bullies / Friendships, SubstackLeave a comment
Adult Lyric, in a black ABA is abuse shirt, watching the sun setting over a lake.

From Shame to Self-Discovery: My Journey with Autism, Sensory Overload, the Pain of Behaviorism, and the Relief in Unexpected Places

Lyric Holmans

I am a 37-year-old Autistic Adult who has fairly intense sensory sensitivities (that can trigger disorientation, vertigo, migraines, nausea, and other stomach problems). However, I did not understand this crucial fact about myself for most of my life. 

One might ask, “If things were so bad, why wasn’t your Autism identified earlier?” 

When I was first diagnosed Autistic (more than seven years ago now), I had the same question, though now I know the answer -it was noticed and mislabeled. Continue reading From Shame to Self-Discovery: My Journey with Autism, Sensory Overload, the Pain of Behaviorism, and the Relief in Unexpected Places