Autistic inertia is a real thing. I’ve never met an autistic person who doesn’t experience it.
What is inertia? A natural drive to continue.
What does it look like in practice? That varies from person to person, but here are some examples.
It’s more interesting to continue learning about one topic, and explore its nuances more deeply, than to branch out.
It’s more fulfilling to continue working on a single task, and accomplish it well, than to keep switching between tasks.
It’s more comfortable to continue eating the same food, or wearing the same clothes, than to try something new.
It’s more effortless to continue doing whatever I’m doing, which at the moment is writing, than to switch to absolutely anything else.
Autistic inertia is more complex than the “preference for sameness” listed in the diagnostic criteria. Sometimes, it isn’t a preference at all.