February 3, 2019

In elementary school, I got A’s in most classes. I sometimes turned assignments in late, before finally learning to use a planner in middle school, but my “creativity” earned me bonus points that made up for it.

The one exception was gym class, where I got C’s. For everyone else, it was the easiest class …

February 2, 2019

The power has been out at my house the past two days, for urgent electrical work. The heat is working, but none of the lights or outlets are.

This is stressful for typical reasons – food is spoiling in the fridge, I can only use my computer at a coffee shop, and evening activities are …

February 1, 2019

My last post included the phrase “the depths of despair,” which is a quote from the character Anne of Green Gables. I’m not sure if she’s autistic, but the scene is still worth quoting in full, as an example of a dialogue that aims to bridge the gap between two different neurotypes.

The effort is …

February 1, 2019

Autistics never “overreact.” If you see us react strongly to something, it usually means that we do feel that strongly about it.

A child who sounds like they’re plummeting to the depths of despair? They may literally feel that way.

A teenager who won’t budge when ordered to do something? They may literally be paralyzed …

January 31, 2019

It can be hard to recognize something as a “special interest” – a passion so strong that it counts as an autistic symptom – if the interest itself doesn’t have a precise label, or if you’ve never learned the label.

Two of my special interests are like that: Phenomenology and storybookishness.

I was surprised when …

January 29, 2019

Someone who knows me very well says that he imagines the inside of my brain like the interior of a castle.

Stained glass windows stretch all the way up the walls of its grandest room, spilling colorful light onto rows of desks where scribes sit typing. What they write gets sent up pneumatic tubes, to …

January 28, 2019

I want to say a bit about how grief and heartbreak affect me as an autistic – and I want to say it now, while I’m neither grieving nor heartbroken. Maybe it won’t sound as powerful as when the experience is fresh and raw, but now is when I feel grounded enough to analyze and …

January 22, 2019

The best way for me to handle strong emotions is to transform them into something else.

Movement is the most natural outlet. Emotions can feel like a physical force, welling up in my chest and bursting out through my limbs, so rocking or swaying gives them a place to go. A friend once told me, …

January 19, 2019

Lately, some of your comments have been making my heart flood with warmth, my hands flap with joy, and my voice squeal with delight.

I appreciate how you make me feel like I’m doing something rare and wonderful, but there are many other autistic writers too! I use the hashtag #ActuallyAutistic in all my posts …

January 19, 2019

You’ve heard of air guitar. When I was in middle school, my classmates and I created an entire air band.

At lunchtime, we would put on a CD and each pretend to play an instrument. I was on the drums, hitting invisible rhythms with invisible drumsticks, and it felt like the most natural thing in …