ariska reposted this
Autistic TEDx & keynote speaker, trainer & creator | Let’s explore, share & amplify autistic voices
"Autistic? But you have a job!" 🙃 Let’s have some fun—what’s the most ridiculous reason someone doubted that you're autistic or neurodivergent?
"You can't be autistic because... you seem so normal." Also people – "Why are you acting so weird all the time?" And by the way I LOVE HUGS, AUTISTIC PEOPLE LOVE HUGS – Temple Grandin actually built her own hugging device! I'm sure she had her own reasons, but the fact remains: we love hugs, no matter where we are on the autistic spectrum.
I’ve had the “you have a job” one FROM A GP. 🙃🙃 I can’t
The classic: “but you don’t look autistic”. Related: “but you’re not like X, who’s autistic”.
"But you're really sociable! You're the last person I expected to be autistic!" (Yep, and I've also been masking for 40+ years - I just didn't know it!) Great post Katie Forbes - lots of myth-busting right there for people 😊
You’re not Autistic- you don’t like collect teddies or stones.
Yeah it's not a style lol 😂 People might find it surprising that I used to go to Raves back in the day, but when I think back, loads of ravers were Autists and ND'ers.
Interesting how in so many cases it is possible to either mask or learn coping mechanisms to cover up the signs of what people perceive as autism.
Where do I start... You can't be autistic because... 1. You make eye contact 2. You know how to talk to people 3. You're really sociable 4. You don't look autistic 5. You're really nice I am autistic because... 1. I do make eye contact, but it physically hurts, and I would rather not have to do it, and it takes a lot of concentration to remember to blink and look away and not stare at you and I don't know how long the eye contact should last, and am I doing it right? Oh, sorry, what did you say - I was concentrating on my eye contact. 2. Yes I know how to talk to people, but I hate small talk, and I want to talk about meaningful things, and I want to give literal answers, but when you ask me how I am I know you don't really want to know how I am and you're only asking to be polite, but my literal brain needs to give you an honest and detailed answer... 3. I can be really sociable with people I know and feel safe with, or when I have to be for work, but it takes an awful lot of spoons, a lot of preparation and weeks of scripting before the event, and I need a lot of recovery time afterwards. 4. I don't even know where to begin with this. 5. And I have even less knowledge of where to begin with this.
“But you are so good at networking”. Yeah - I study the neurobeige and have learned to blend in with the fauna (fawn-ah). Plus I spent most of my childhood in hospital, moving home/school, or being bullied - you learn how to fake all sorts of things :)
Ask about my POWER Assessment™ for identifying and strengthening your executive function skills // FLOW Certified Coach // Neurodiversity Consultant // AuDHD got me feelin' spicy 🌶️
2w“You don’t look autistic…” Huh? How does an autistic person look? How “should” they look? “You didn’t used to be autistic…” I didn’t KNOW I was autistic but that doesn’t mean I never was. I’ll also throw in “You don’t have ADHD because you remember things well…” Yeah because I have systems that work for me. And I usually remember and finish them in a panic. And perhaps because my AuDHD keeps me more organized than usual.