It is my strong belief that Autistic children need to be involved in and have a say* regarding when, how, and who gets told that they're Autistic. For more information about my parenting philosophy, which has heavily influenced my perspective on this issue, please see this post. Now, I understand that there are some situations … Continue reading Autistic Disclosure – Parenting Edition
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Not an Excuse
Contrary to many allistics' (non-autistics') perceptions, Autistics disclosing our Autism to them is not a "get out of jail free card" or an "excuse for bad behavior." Yes, often we disclose our Autistic status in order to try and make our lives a bit easier, but under the circumstances, that's not necessarily a bad thing and … Continue reading Not an Excuse
Flashback Friday – Undergarments
TW: Puberty stuff, body image issues, misunderstanding. Underwear has always been a difficult topic for me. It's not the wearing of it that's most problematic, in my case. Rather, the things I find most difficult are other people's attitudes and expectations about underwear. Especially when they want to have a conversation with me about those … Continue reading Flashback Friday – Undergarments
Navigating a Minefield vs Strolling Through the Woods
It occurred to me, after writing my previous post about autistic friends, that I might have made all autistic friendships seem overly simple and easy to navigate. In reality, of course, there are still potential missteps when being friends with and conversing with other autistics - even good long-term autistic friends. We're human and certainly … Continue reading Navigating a Minefield vs Strolling Through the Woods
My Autistic Friends
Happy discount chocolate day! These are my thoughts about my lovely autistic friends and how much I value their friendships. In some ways it's a love letter, but more than that it's full of gratitude and other deep feelings that I cannot quite label with emotion names right now. Maybe someday 🙂 Spending time with other … Continue reading My Autistic Friends
Autistic Disclosure
Telling people I'm autistic is something that I've definitely gotten better at doing since last August when I received my official diagnosis. I've been extremely open about being autistic in my local writing community and haven't hesitated to tell people who know me well in real life aside from a few family members whom I … Continue reading Autistic Disclosure
Betrayal, Lies, and Dependence; one year later
For the last few weeks I've been struggling with many things. Struggling isn't unusual, of course. I think that everyone who's autistic is well acquainted with struggling often in everyday situations. But the intensity of my recent struggles has been beyond that which I'm accustomed to dealing with. I'd go so far as to call … Continue reading Betrayal, Lies, and Dependence; one year later
Conversational Depth Pt. 2
This is continued from Conversational Depth Pt. 1 from a few days ago. Wordings are what I've always seen as important. Phraseology, terminology, vocabulary, and even spelling although I'm much more particular where I'm concerned than where others are. Over the years I've come to realize that others see words differently than I do and … Continue reading Conversational Depth Pt. 2
Conversational Depth Pt. 1
I'm a logophile. I love words and their meanings. I also enjoy learning about people and why they believe the things they do. Those things sometimes make a nifty combination. When I express myself well, it can be a pretty amazing thing. When I have the time and the energy and desire, I can understand a … Continue reading Conversational Depth Pt. 1
Being Misunderstood and Mutism
Image description: Background is blue/white/grey ice crystals with the overlaying text reading, "Misunderstandings were constant, I could not get away. I pored over the dictionary to decide what to say. Unfairly, although we used the same words, We weren't speaking the same language, their meanings unheard, my meanings incorrectly inferred. ~Mamautistic, 2016" Being misunderstood is … Continue reading Being Misunderstood and Mutism
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