Tag: #ActuallyAutistic

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 …

January 18, 2019

Would it be useful to announce my autism on a medical bracelet? What would that say about me?

Well, I know what I wish it would say.

I wish it would say to police officers, “I strictly follow every rule to the best of my ability. If it seems like I’m not following directions, it’s …

January 17, 2019

Aurelia the Really was no ordinary princess.

Every feeling was a feeling Aurelia really, really felt.

Every flower was a flower Aurelia really, really fancied.

Every frock was a frock Aurelia really, really frolicked in – quite to the dismay of the lords and the ladies.

The rest of the kingdom, try as they might, …

January 17, 2019

Earlier this week, I wrote about some things I wish I’d realized as a teenager. But what about as a little kid?

If I could go back in time, this is what I’d tell my childhood self:

1. Your brain is different.
2. It will make some things easier.
3. It will make some things …

January 17, 2019

I empathize very strongly whenever I hear the sound of a crying child, especially a wailing baby. It seems to me like a very reasonable reaction to the frequent frustrations of daily life, and it feels like they’re speaking on my behalf with sounds that aren’t socially acceptable for me to make.

I believe that …

January 16, 2019

Many autistics object to the symbol of a puzzle piece, because none of us want to be puzzling. If others want to understand us, we want to help.

I’ve found that there are two key principles which enable anyone to understand me better.

The first is this: There is no subtext.

I say what I …

January 15, 2019

My idea of a perfect moment is one that stimulates all of my senses at once – but gently, without surprises. A perfect balance is nearly impossible to plan, but occasionally it just happens.

My favorite example is sitting by a crackling fire, squished between friends on a couch, sipping hot tea, with someone softly …