It occurs to me, there's nothing wrong with my brain.
I would thrive in a slow, gentle world focused on candor and justice with lots of quiet, natural environments to chill and let deep thoughts unfold.
I just happen to be terribly wired for a society that's pretty much going off the rails in all directions.
My #WorldAutismDay episode of Autistic Storytime With David from the other day
https://www.davidgrayhammond.co.uk/p/autistic-storytime-with-david-episode-dd0
#ActuallyAutistic #autism #AutismAcceptanceMonth #AutismAwarenessMonth #AutisBewarenessMonth @actuallyautistic @autisticadvocacy
My special interest: Dogs
Autistic me sees a book on a table tittled "Underwater Dogs"
Oh I didn't know there were dogs under water... Let me learn... "Opens book"...
Pictures of normal dogs in a pool or underwater. 
#autistic
#autism #actuallyautistic
#Neurodivergent #AutismAwareness #AutismAwarenessMonth #adhd #dogs #dog
Autistic community: What is ableism in your own words?
Your comments may be used in an up coming Podcast and Substack anonymously.
#autistic
#autism #actuallyautistic
#Neurodivergent #AutismAwareness #AutismAwarenessMonth #adhd
Every autistic person needs support and help. We should not be ashamed to ask for help and asking for help should not be used against us.
#autistic
#autism #actuallyautistic
#Neurodivergent
Autism is NOT a disease or something to discriminate someone over!
Pass it on.
Happy World Autism Awareness/Acceptance Day, and the start of Autism Awareness/Acceptance Month! Remember that Autism Speaks is a hate group, and you can show your support for actual autistic people by wearing #RedInstead!
So it's #autismawarenessmonth apparently. I got my official diagnosis last year at the age of 39. I wouldn't call myself a part of the #autism community (yet), so I can't and won't speak about other autistic people (or is it autists? I'm still learning!).
I always knew I was "different"; school and my parents noticed it in third grade. I was diagnosed as highly gifted with a personality disorder (thank God for the German healthcare and school system!). Two therapies during my childhood 1/5
@renata_fernandes@autistics.lifeThis is my first #AutismAcceptanceMonth. Before last September I didn't know I was autistic. I'm still learning to accept and love myself. It's been a crazy journey, but I wouldn't trade it for anything else. It's been wonderful to share these self-discovery moments with the autistic community especially here in the Fediverse. You've always been so kind to me. Thank you. I know I don't post a lot, but that's ok. I don't think I need to post a lot to let you know I appreciate you. Just knowing there's a whole community of us here makes me feel safe in a world that is constantly vile towards us. And autism acceptance month should be every month.
To allistics: You should be doing more. You should be loving us, not pitying us. You should be admiring us, not trying to turn us into something we'll never become. Instead you should be helping us become whatever we want to become. We're diverse, beautiful, and we'll keep resisting and fighting to be loved, accepted, supported, and admired.
#AutismAcceptanceMonth
#ActuallyAutistic
#AutismAwareness
#AutismAwarenessDay #AutismAwarenessMonth
#AutismAcceptanceDay #ASD #Autistic
Happy Well-Intentioned People Who Don't Know Much About Autism Saying Somewhat Harmful Things And Then Forgetting About Us Entirely For The Rest Of The Year Month to those who celebrate.
Oh look, it's #AutismAcceptanceMonth, or officially #AutismAwarenessMonth but that really means #AutismBewarenessMonth because mostly it's allistic people telling other allistic people to beware of us.
I'm so tired of non-autistic people capitalizing on us and using this month to push their ableism and eugenics. I'm also tired of well-intentioned folks trying to do something helpful but they get it entirely wrong because they didn't even think to ask an autistic person if what they want to say would help. You know what we need for autism awareness? Allistic folks with platforms should lend their platform to autistic folks. No more of Hank Green foolishly promoting ABA because he's totally ignorant about autism and is just doing his job of confidently reading a script someone else wrote about it (as he did last year). I think about what that video might have been like if Hank had just introduced an autistic YouTuber and let them have the stage for 10 minutes, or perhaps had a back-and-forth conversation about the topic.
I wish there were a way to get *any* allistic creator/influencer/celebrity/politician to stand up for autistics the way some straight people stand up for gay and trans rights, the way some white people stand against racism, or the way some men stand up for feminism. But they don't - they just make jokes about us being awkward while autistically-coding fictional characters to make them more interesting and marketable.
Beware, we could be anywhere! Stay vigilant, be aware of your surroundings. At any moment, an autistic person could jump out of the shadows and infodump at you!
April ist der #AutismAwarenessMonth bzw #AutismAcceptanceMonth . Leider gibt es oft das Vorurteil, jemand könne nicht #Autist sein, weil er /sie arbeitet, sprechen kann, studiert hat, #Kinder / #Familie hat. Oder alle Autisten seien mathematisch begabt, orientierungslos im Freien, empathielos, ordentlich. Vergesst es. #Autismus ist ein #Spektrum. Fragt einfach Personen, die #ActuallyAutistic sind, was das für sie bedeutet und wie es sich anfühlt. Ihr werdet staunen.
Autistic Coach @hmm_cook@universeodon.comTuesday is my workshop on tips for telling people you’re autistic. Totally free. Info here.
Hank Green still owes us an apology for that autism video
It's only January, but I'm already dreading April and Autism Bewareness Month (AKA #AutismAwarenessMonth AKA #AutismAcceptanceMonth). I think it's gonna be pretty bad this year, since the USA is now taking a hard turn toward ableism and enforced conformity. Usually I have no idea what to focus on for April, and it's just me trying to not get upset at all the inspiration porn and pro-ABA bullshit. But this year I have a specific goal, and it needs some help.
Last year, YouTube's #HankGreen (of vlogbrothers, SciShow, and so many other things that he's nearly unavoidable) appeared in a SciShow video titled "What is the Autism Spectrum?" He did not write the script for the video, but he did present it so he's still responsible for what he said. The video got some positive reaction because it was better than most other autism videos, and many people don't have enough context about autism to see how inaccurate much of the information was. But many of us autistic folk thought it was a bad video that pushed the medical model of disability, included some eugenics, and promoted ABA as "the only effective evidence-based intervention for someone on the [autism] spectrum". Even if the video contains some good information, I think the amount of harmful information in it means it should be taken down.
I tried to contact Hank to express my concerns and disappointment, and to ask for a retraction and apology for the video. I said that it was like he'd done a video that promoted gay conversion therapy, because ABA is in fact the same thing as conversion therapy, created by the same person (Ole Lovass), and with the same issues. I saw others reach out publicly, and know others that did privately as well. But Hank never responded, and never acknowledged there was even any feedback, let alone address it. So I just can't watch anything with him in it anymore, and that turns out to be pretty difficult on YouTube, because he's involved in so many things. That's made watching YouTube nearly a daily upset, and I hate it. I also miss out on the useful stuff he says, and he does still say useful things. But I just can't bring myself to watch someone who promotes the torture of autistic children.
I know I'm not going to be able to get Hank's attention all on my own, and even if I did I doubt he'd be receptive to little old me complaining he was a meany. But I'm wondering if we could get a big enough group to make enough of a stir to get his attention. I really want him to understand he presented harmful information, apologize, retract the video, and make a replacement video co-hosted by an autistic youtuber who knows what they're talking about. Nothing about us without us! I have no idea how hard it would be to make it happen, but it would be great to get him to make a correction video to release in April this year.
Is this just a pipe dream? Is this a dumb idea that could never work, or is there a chance of success? I doubt I have the spoons to lead a social media campaign for it myself, but I really would love to help make it happen. I wish we autistic activists were better organized for this kind of thing. Any thoughts or suggestions?
I think this response video by "Autism From The Inside" is good and does a much better job than I on critiquing Hank's video. If you want to watch Hank's original video, search on YouTube for "SciShow autism". https://youtu.be/_bYPdc2cT-E
Autistic Coach @hmm_cook@universeodon.comToday's my workshop on what to expect in the later ID autism journey. Join me? Sign up last minute here:
The #Maine Millennial: On #autism, awareness and acceptance
My level-one diagnosis, later in life, lifted a weight off my shoulders.
by Victoria Hugo-Vidal
April 21, 2024
"April is #AutismAwarenessMonth. A lot of autistic self-advocacy organizations – that is, organizations primarily run by autistic people, rather than parents or doctors – would prefer it to be known as #AutismAcceptanceMonth I’m kind of in the middle on that – I think people need to be aware of autism before they can accept it. Awareness is necessary for acceptance."
Many children with autism thrive on routine and predictability, which can make vacations challenging for them. Here's a story from USA Today with tips on how to plan a trip, choose an airline that provides accommodations for autistic children, and details on what to expect from an autism-certified resort.
Don't call yourself and ally to Autistic people if you haven't given me, an Autistic person, cake this April.
#ActuallyAutistic #AutismAwarenessMonth #AutismAcceptanceMonth
@joshsusser [neurodifferent.me]
Don't "fight Autism!"
Autism is people.
.
#ActuallyAutistic #autistic #autism
#AutismAcceptanceMonth #AutismAwarenessMonth #AprilSucks
