This is so me!

OK. LISTEN UP, Y’ALL. THIS NEEDS TO BE SAID. DOGS ARE AMAZING FOR AUTISTIC PEOPLE.

PROOF:

-They’re warm and soft (very sensory friendly)

-You can ramble on about your special interest around them

-They don’t judge you so no need to mask

-When they lie on you, it’s sensory BLISS (weighted blankets could never)

-Petting a doggo is a great way to stim

-Cuddling your pupper is a great way to calm down after a meltdown

-Dogs do great things for the autistic community

-You can train a dog to bite ableists

-Dogs make a great special interest

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(my sweet lil pupper, Mr. Darcy is pictured below)

INTRODUCTION: 

Hyper-focus is very common trait in autism and is both a blessing and a curse. Hyper-focus can best be described as feeling intense passion towards something. Examples of hyper-focusing include spending large quantities of time doing the thing you’re hyper-focused on, thinking about your special interest/subject of hyper-focusing often, wanting to discuss your interest, or feeling strong emotions regarding what you’re hyper-focusing on. 

THE DRAWBACKS:

Hyper-focusing has a few major drawbacks to it. Examples of the drawbacks are becoming fixated on unproductive things like browsing social media, becoming irate when someone interrupts you in the middle of your hyper-focusing, pushing aside important things/obligations, being unable to switch gears, or getting so deep into what you’re fixated on that you forget even the most basic necessities. 

I’d say in my own experience as an autistic person who hyper-focuses, the biggest issue I face is neglecting my obligations and even taking care of myself to pursue what I’m fixated on. Right now, I should be finishing the 14 assignments in my to-do list for school, but I’m so eager to write this blog post that doing the mountain of homework assigned to me has been pushed to the back of my mind. The amount of times that I’ve come into class and had to explain to my teacher that I did not complete my homework probably exceeds 300. I’ve forgotten to brush my teeth, forgotten to shower, been late for class, stayed up beyond reasonable hours, or forgotten to even eat or drink when I’m hungry/thirsty plenty of times. I typically forget one or more of these things per day. Often, my mom and dad or others need to remind me to do basic tasks such as the aforementioned ones. Also, plenty of times I find myself getting hyper-focused on unproductive things like reading the Attack on Titan shipping wiki.

THE BENEFITS: 

Despite the drawbacks, there are plenty of positives surrounding hyper-focus. Some benefits of hyper-focus are when hyper-focusing, an autistic person may be practically unstoppable and very motivated. Hyper-focus can lead to an autistic person achieving seemingly impossible/impressive goals. When hyper-focusing on a positive or productive subject, it can lead to a plethora of positive outcomes and make one seem very diligent and motivated in the eyes of others. 

My own hyper-focus has helped me out in many ways. It has granted me the ability to do things which seem impressive to a lot of neurotypicals, increased my enthusiasm for life, given me escapes from hardships, and helped me become who I am today. My favorite example of how my hyper-focus benefitted me was in 6th and 7th grade. I had a major World War II special interest throughout that period of time. Because of this, I decided to write a story about children growing up in Germany during the war. I was able to write about 50,000 words in the project because I was so fixated on the topic. I never finished the story simply because my World War II special interest faded out around 8th grade, but my World War II novel stands as one of my proudest achievements. 

CONCLUSION:

Overall, hyper-focus has its benefits as well as its drawbacks.

SOME MOODS OF BOTH BEING AUTISTIC AND HAVING ADHD

1. Being hyperfocused on something, but suddenly getting interested in some other thing so you forget what you’re hyperfocused on

2. Being unable to focus on the conversation you’re having while simultaneously being able to detect every single sound or bit of sensory information around you

3. Wanting rigid order and structure in life, but being too disorganized to make the structure into reality

4. Craving stimulation because you’re bored, but getting o v e r s t i m u l a t e d because it’s too much

5. Forgetting that you have homework a minute after the teacher tells you you have it while being able to remember every single element of your special interest

INFINITY SIGN > PUZZLE PIECE

PUZZLE PIECE >:-(

-Ugly looking

-Implies autistic people/autism is puzzling

-Implies autistic people need to be put together

-Autism $peaks uses it as do anti-vax autism moms

-Has ableist connotations

-Widely denounced by the autistic and neurodiverse community

-No cool significance behind the puzzle piece

-Puzzle pieces are small fragments of a big picture

INFINITY SIGN :-D

-Rad design

-Encompasses the depth, diversity, and complexity of autism

-A positive symbol which represents positive things

-No ableist connotations

-The autistic community is infinitely awesome so it’s a fitting symbol

-Used by the Autism Self-Advocacy Network (they’re awesome too)

-Embraced by the autistic and neurodiverse community!

-Infinity as a concept is very fascinating (endlessness is cool)

Info for NTs/Allistics #1

***

-Autism is a spectrum, not a scale

-LGBT autistics exist

-autistic POC exist

-Female autistics exist

-Autism Speaks is an awful and unethical organization

-The puzzle piece is an outdated ableist symbol. We use the infinity sign.

-Autistic people can feel platonic, romantic, or sexual attraction

-Vaccines DO NOT cause autism

-Stimming is perfectly valid and beautiful

-Autism is very diverse and no two autistic people are entirely the same

-Identity-first language isn’t offensive. It’s ok to say “autistic person” instead of “person with autism”

ABOUT ME: MY AUTISM, MY AUTISTIC JOURNEY, AND MY AUTISTIC TESTIMONY

I am technically what some call a “high-functioning” autistic, but I dislike the term high functioning since it is a term dismissive of my struggles. I can blend in with neurotypicals if I try, but quite frankly, it is very hard and draining to do so. I am verbal and don’t have too many struggles with motor skills or socializing, but I am very sensory sensitive, I have many special interests, I make various vocalizations, and I stim a lot. 

I found out I was autistic around seventh grade. Initially I was very surprised by this and was scared due to my own misconceptions on autism. I was a bit reluctant to believe it at first, but soon enough I began to realize how autistic I really was. I was always a bit of an oddball, I hated loud noises or bad textures, would often fixate on things like security cameras, and I also had plenty of challenges with socializing with my neurotypical peers. I was considered a gifted kid due to my skills in the creative arts like writing, playing piano, composing music, and drawing, but my skills in the regions I wasn’t hyperfocused on were very mediocre or poor.

After finding out that I was autistic, I began to read up on autism and follow a lot of accounts by autistic folks for autistic folks. I learned all about traits common in autism, how to manage sensory overload, and many other things. Most importantly how my autism isn’t a curse but a blessing that has made me who I am. 

ABOUT ME: WHY THIS ACCOUNT WAS CREATED

Hello world! I am Gwyn. I use she/her pronouns.

I have created this blog for a multitude of reasons:

-To provide fellow autistics (and other neurodiverse friends) with tips on how to survive a neurotypical society

-To make funny relatable posts for autistic people like myself to laugh at and say “hey that’s me!”

-To educate neurotypicals/non-autistics/allistics on autism in hopes that I can help them be allies

-To break the negative stigmas on mostly autism, but also on ADHD and neurodiversity in general

-To expose lies and misconceptions on autism as well as to point out major ableist things for neurotypicals and neurodivergents to avoid

-To open a space for LGBT+ neurodivergents in the LGBT community

-To show my own life and share my story with the world as well as to give people an insight into the life of an autistic person

-And more!

Welcome aboard and enjoy the ride :)

switching emoji!

endos not allowed to use!!

rapid switch/switchy emoji

ENDOS AND THEIR SUPPORTERS DNI