amysfer

IDK if this is an Autistic thing, but I can tolerate a lot of poor treatment - until a point. Yet, when that point has been reached, I’m done for good. No amount of apologising/changing can win me over. It’s like there’s a switch, and when it’s been flicked, it can’t change back.

Whenever someone interrupts an Autistic person, nobody flinches or thinks that the interruption is rude. It is seen as a natural course of events. But when an Autistic person interrupts someone, their behaviour is perceived as rude, awkward and inappropriate. It’s so strange!

One of the best things you can do for autistic people is explaining why. Why you’d like us to do a thing (X way); why something isn’t possible; why you’re upset with us; etc. We may not intuit the “why”, and knowing it helps us to contextualise and act with purpose and direction.

Many autistic people “shrink”themselves to fit into environments. They mask their wisdom, diminish their expression and hide their ideas because: they’ve been told time and again that they’re “too much”; and/or others have responded negatively or dismissively to their flair.

As an autistic person, I feel uncomfortable judging anyone for their facial expressions. I know what it’s like to be truly unable to control your facial expressions, and receive criticism from others for looking smug, superior, angry and/or miserable, when you’re not. It hurts.

A less talked about aspect of autistic life is that, not only are we expected to be able to overcome all of the challenges we face and do everything that a neurotypical person can do, but we are expected to do so whilst feeling chronically unwell most of the time.