Unmasking for autistics isnāt a luxury. Itās a necessity for our mental and emotional well-being as autistic humans. But the reality is, unmasking isnāt always safe in the spaces we occupy. Itās exhausting to constantly hide parts of ourselves to fit in with societal norms.
You are stunning!
I really don't like "autism isn't a disability, it's being different" advocacy. It's certainly a disability. Even if societies and cultures weren't built around allistics, there's many challenges autistics face that are independent of that, that allistic folks never have to worry about.
I have misophonia. And itās really hard. I wanna fight, I wanna bite when I hear people chewing, sneezing, coughing, snoring. Ugh.
If you have āthe coreā of ASD (communication and socialisation deficits/differences) then itās not just ADHD. Like, ADHDers do have some issues with communication: interrupting others, infodumping, but it happens not because they donāt know how to read the room or people. Hope it helps.
Know your neurodivergent vocabulary - a #glimmer is like a small special interest, a wee little euphoria Glimmers are vital to our wellbeing! Think of them as spoon-makers. We need them to help self-soothe, cope with stress. They can be anything, but there are many shared commonly in the community
Itās quite the psychological phenomenon watching ppl get skittish when they see me in my respirator. They back away, shield mouth & display an overwhelming urge NOT to get sick. Except theyāre maskless. In public. During a pandemic. Theyāre a risk to me - not other way around.
I like it when people share their interests, the things that autistic people are so passionate about, to the point you can see their face light up. Even when Iām not really interested in your interest, Iād much rather listen to someone info dump about their interest than make small talk.
Autism is a disability. Disability is not a bad word. Being disabled is okay. Needing support is okay. Thinking differently is okay. There is nothing wrong with you. You are not a broken version of a NT person. You are just autistic.