#actually neurodivergent
Some people apparently think that special interests are only experienced by autistic people. Not the case, anyone can experience them but being autistic can correlate with having special interests more intensely or more often. Special interests or circumscribed interests are not exclusive to autistic people but autistics generally tend to display an affinity towards having these interests essentially.
I think people also forget that even with autistic traits, non autistics can have them. Like sensory issues, socialising differences, etc. Can exist in non autistics to the same extent. They may just not consider themself autistic, may only have one type of autistic trait but not be autistic, may have a different neurodivergence that overlaps with autistic traits, or literally any other good faith reason.
And acting like its only autistic people who experience these things, or acting like all autistics experience every single one of these things, does not help in neurodivergent liberation or inclusivity.
(-Rift)
Who decided we have to give up pure and wholesome things just to grow up? Sleeping with a little Pikachu plushie does not mean I don’t also make my own doctor appointments.
reblogging because I think there needs to be more notes and more people comfortable with the idea that adulthood is a lie.
Hello friends! I am very excited about how well I feel my blog has been doing and am very proud. My notes have hit new peaks in the thousands and I never dreamed that I would finally be doing what I have wanted to do for years.
I don’t know who really checks my blog or if I have any frequent people but, I talked about the things I wanted to do with this blog during the summer that I haven’t delivered on. I Feel disappointed that I haven’t been delivering my original content like promised and I wanted to talk about some personal things that have been effecting me recently that aren’t really blog theme related.
First, although neurodiversity related issues such as adhd and autism are the theme of this blog my issues don’t end there. One of the issues I have struggled with very hard is anxiety; I have multiple anxiety disorders that impact me a lot.
I want to do well with my blog and make an impact. I want to not only make you laugh but help everyone understand these issues and maybe themselves a little bit better. But, writing a blog can be a bit daunting. What you say are things you can’t take back and are a reflection of your blog and even you that can carry on.
When my anxiety spikes, this blog can be stressful for me because I don’t want to screw up and say something wrong. I don’t want to give the wrong advice, or offend someone, produce ignorant facts or any number of other things. Sometimes this makes me tentative to post new material. Not only this but trying to keep up the quality control I try to have.
Secondly, something that I don’t think gets talked about in the neurodiversity community enough is how hard it can be for some of us to produce written content at all. By the time I post content I have rewritten it anywhere from 3-12 times over.
From the inability to summarize information or differentiate irrelevant information from critical details to spelling and grammar mistakes it takes a lot of tries to produce good content. Half of the time mistakes aren’t the kind Word can catch, such as skipped words or conjoining words etc.
This means that I have to continuously re-read over and over and even have others check my details for me to make sure what I am saying is accurate and coherent. Even then I often find simple errors in my writing after I post them.
Third, recently there has been a very serious concern in my family that has had us all stressed. I don’t get along with my family the greatest to begin with, but I also wanted to be there during what could adequately be called a family crisis. I don’t want to go into detail, but it has been a very stressful couple months, but thankfully everything is okay for now with regards to that.
Lastly, I have had my own stressful adventure with physical health concerns. I have a number of strange issues which have gone unaddressed for a long time and last month it felt like they all sort of boiled over at once. I have been in the E.R. (nothing serious don’t worry.) and trying to get different doctors appointments so I can finally get some answers and hopefully be far less stressed out about it.
All and all, this have impacted my content on Tumblr. which is by far the biggest sadness for me at current time. I just wanted to let you all know that I have no intention of leaving Tumblr. Or taking a leave from my blog at current time. It may be a bit sporadic for a period, but I have a whole file of posts I am wanting to make but need help editing into “final edit” quality and so they can be posted.
This blog is meaningful to me. It may be small right now, but it is important to me and I have ambitions that I intend to carry out at some point soon. I hope anyone reading this is understanding and will continue to support this blog. I look forward to my return into full swing.
I hope you all have an amazing day!!! You are all great! <3
Any other nd people remember just intensely identifying with creep by radiohead in middle school? Just that feeling of alienation and feeling like I didn’t belong really hit home with me
Neurotypicals will rock in rocking chairs for hours and still look at neurodivergents weird for doing it in regular chairs
I tend to assume everyone is the same as me. Like if I’m sitting next to someone and a spot opens up next to me, my first instinct is to move a seat down from the person to give them space, since I would appreciate that in their place. Often, this would be viewed as offensive since it would seem to them that I don’t like them. Is it an autistic thing to have a hard time grasping that other people have different knowledge, opinions, wants, and needs from you? Also if someone ever moves away from you, don’t feel to bad about it. It might be someone like me, who means it in a nice way!
Routines don’t have to be doing the same things at the same time every day. Sometimes, it’s choosing the exact same options in a video game every single time, even if the game gives you a variety of choices (looking at you, Life is Strange). Sometimes it’s checking your apps in the same order when you wake up in the morning. Or when your songs MUST be in the same order when you listen to them. I personally dislike routines like “wake up at 10 a.m. and have oatmeal for breakfast, shower at 11, etc.” However, I love doing everything else that I listed. I worried about being a fake autistic before I realized that those were routines too.
Sorry I disappeared for 3 months and was declared a “missing person” or whatever, I was busy being consumed by my hyperfixation
me, every time I get a new hyperfixation: oh my god, this thing is so wonderful! I’m literally going to love this thing at this same intensity until the day I die.
me, when the hyperfixation ends: my identity as a person is shattered. there is a void that will never be filled. I will never move on from this.
me, when I get my next hyperfixation: oh my god, this thing is so wonderful! I’m literally going to love this thing until I die!
Don’t assume autistic people can do everything you can do but also don’t assume that we can’t do something. Ask us about our individual abilities, since we’re all different. And if we ask for help, give it if you can.
Stop perpetuating the idea that avoiding eye contact = lying. Some of us are just autistic and shouldn’t have to force ourselves to make eye contact just to avoid being called liars.
Same goes for fidgeting. It doesn’t necessarily mean someone’s lying or nervous. It could just be the result of neurodivergence.
Many, many neurotypical people who are not from English-speaking Western culture will also not look you in the eye if you are an authority, because in their culture, that’s how you show respect.
And people with albinism and other low vision conditions often have something called rhythmatic nystagmus, where their eyes move back and forth uncontrollably.
It’s ableist against more groups than just the neurodivergent and it’s ethnocentric, bordering on outright racist, to perceive “not looking you in the eye” as dishonest or disrespectful.
Oh no it IS outright racist. That many Indigenous people don’t make eye contact ESPECIALLY with strangers was widely used against them because: SEE THEY ARE LIARS. DECEITFUL. HIDING THINGS.
I didn’t know that. This is a very important addition to my post.
Stop perpetuating the idea that avoiding eye contact = lying. Some of us are just autistic and shouldn’t have to force ourselves to make eye contact just to avoid being called liars.
Same goes for fidgeting. It doesn’t necessarily mean someone’s lying or nervous. It could just be the result of neurodivergence.
I saw this tweet about how things don’t always “occur” to adhd people and I thought I could relate to it as well, although I’m autistic and not adhd.
For example - if I have a headache, it simply won’t occur to me to take pain meds. I know I have a headache. I want the pain to stop. I am aware of the existence of pain meds. But the idea never occurs to me to take them until someone else suggests it.
The example they gave in the tweet was that if someone says hello to them, it may not occur to them to say hello back and yep… I do that as well.
I just never realized that other people may not do these things.
This is called executive dysfunction and it’s very common for both adhd and autistic people! <3
I was under the impression that executive dysfunction was being unable to transition between tasks. Like that feeling when you’re trying to get up and make some food, but your brain won’t let you no matter how hard you try. Is that something different?
They are both forms of executive dysfunction! Executive dysfunction simply means one of your executive functions isn’t working. The executive functions are:
- Emotional control
- Task initiation
- Working memory
- Self-monitoring (interoception, something a lot of autistics struggle with)
- Flexibility
- Organization
- Planning & time management
- Self control
What you’re experiencing and what you already considered executive dysfunction are both issues with task initiation, and I think what you’re experiencing is also an issue with planning.
The reason ADHD and autism are so similar is that the executive functions are impacted; among other symptoms and traits, they are both executive functioning disorders. Which is why you experience this thing that a lot of ADHDers experience, and why ADHD and autism have such a high comorbidity rate.
That makes a lot of sense. Thank you!
I saw this tweet about how things don’t always “occur” to adhd people and I thought I could relate to it as well, although I’m autistic and not adhd.
For example - if I have a headache, it simply won’t occur to me to take pain meds. I know I have a headache. I want the pain to stop. I am aware of the existence of pain meds. But the idea never occurs to me to take them until someone else suggests it.
The example they gave in the tweet was that if someone says hello to them, it may not occur to them to say hello back and yep… I do that as well.
I just never realized that other people may not do these things.
This is called executive dysfunction and it’s very common for both adhd and autistic people! <3
I was under the impression that executive dysfunction was being unable to transition between tasks. Like that feeling when you’re trying to get up and make some food, but your brain won’t let you no matter how hard you try. Is that something different?
Since I have both Tourette’s and autism, I decided to make this venn diagram to explain the differences and similarities between tics and stims. This is based on my experiences and my understanding of other people’s experiences. I may be wrong in some parts, but I’m pretty sure this general idea is correct. I find this much more helpful than the yawn/sneeze metaphor, personally.
I saw this tweet about how things don’t always “occur” to adhd people and I thought I could relate to it as well, although I’m autistic and not adhd.
For example - if I have a headache, it simply won’t occur to me to take pain meds. I know I have a headache. I want the pain to stop. I am aware of the existence of pain meds. But the idea never occurs to me to take them until someone else suggests it.
The example they gave in the tweet was that if someone says hello to them, it may not occur to them to say hello back and yep… I do that as well.
I just never realized that other people may not do these things.
Or if I’m cold, it won’t occur to me to get a jacket. I’m just like “oh well, guess I’ll just be cold.”
I saw this tweet about how things don’t always “occur” to adhd people and I thought I could relate to it as well, although I’m autistic and not adhd.
For example - if I have a headache, it simply won’t occur to me to take pain meds. I know I have a headache. I want the pain to stop. I am aware of the existence of pain meds. But the idea never occurs to me to take them until someone else suggests it.
The example they gave in the tweet was that if someone says hello to them, it may not occur to them to say hello back and yep… I do that as well.
I just never realized that other people may not do these things.
I will forever love those people who explain jokes in the comments. They are soooo much better than the people who say “nobody explain it.”
