#neurodivergent self advocacy

[vizthedatum]

An apparently unpopular opinion: disabled people can have and do their hobbies. They deserve to have fun. They deserve to live their lives.

Their inability to do some things (like work, for example) does not mean they should be judged for… idk hanging out with their friends or to going outside. After all, having interests outside of work is often essential to our mental and physical health OUTSIDE of our disability.

And also *you might want to sit down for this* disabled people know what’s disabling for them (unless they people-please or push through due to necessity or survival of some sort). Disabilities don’t have to be visible or persistent to be disabling.

So yeah - my declaration: if an activity you want to do feels good and you’re able to do it, then do it. REGARDLESS OF YOUR DISABILITY WITH OTHER THINGS.

[my-autism-adhd-blog]

Self Advocacy Scripts I Rely on as an Autistic Person…

Neurodivergent_lou

[snakeautistic]

I’m really bad at advocating for myself because I find my ability to communicate is extremely limited under stress. It’s frustrating because I will be struggling overstimulation or overwhelm that could be eased by simply going somewhere different, or asking a clarifying question, but while in this state I do not have the ability to communicate with people around me. Part of this is just the social effort of it all, but it also has to do with the shame I feel for asking for ‘special treatment’ or bothering people.

An example of this was recently when I was retaking my math test and the room was extremely noisy, making it hard to focus. Now, due to my accommodations I’m sure I would have been allowed to ask to be moved somewhere quieter, but at that time I wasn’t able to muster up the social energy communicate that. Another example is when I sometimes unfortunately break down in class, and begin to sob. I would feel a lot better if I went to the bathroom to cool down, but I am not in the state to communicate this and ask to leave , so I wait until an adult takes pity on me and tells me directly I should probably go cool off.

[systemserendipity]

So. We've decided.

If we're going to be out, we're going to be out 110%. No more hiding behind half-truths and inside-jokes.

We're opening up to the entire world as plural.

Not just to Tumblr. Not just to Reddit. Not just to Discord. Everywhere. In-person AND online. Even on our professional-grade portfolio-style journalist's blog.

Meaning, if somebody sees our socials or otherwise hears about our identities and starts asking about it, we won't shy away. We'll block harassers as we see fit. But. There's no erasing us. Not anymore.

As trans. As demipan. As multiple. As disabled. As neurodivergent. We'll shout to the moon and back as every label we can and/or want to smash together!

Do we know the full ramifications of this decision yet? No. But we're THRIVING right now. So happy to say we're trying to serve our communitIES as a representative.

As a queer person. As a disabled person. As a system.

And, ya know what, world? You can't bully us into the closet anymore. We're done with that shit.

And does that piss you off? Good. Rot in hell.

It's 2024, and it's time for good-faith diversities of all shapes and sizes to come together against oppression.

At this point, when the entire globe aims to literally genocide us marginalized folks away, it's (again) literally radical to BREATHE. To EXIST. Let alone if you have any left-leaning political beliefs thrown in there.

So, to anybody that's in any of our communities, or any other minorities: we see you. You're real. And you're strong. Just by showing everyone you don't give a shit about the bashers. Who cares if you're a full-on, 24/7 activist or not? The fact you're trying to lead as a good example for your fellow earth is perfect.

Cringe culture is dead! Long live the victors!

My name is Bly. My general pronouns are:

he/they/it(&)

And I'm a system! 👋 Ask about it!

[whateverdays-art]

hi two more as promised!!

don't touch my aac device

don't touch me

please enjoy and don't forget you can support me on ko-fi, too!

[neuroticboyfriend]

honestly, for me addiction is all about coping with pain. and i don't just mean coping directly with drugs. sometimes it's coping without drugs, either because they're not available or not working. the entire point to my drug use is that i don't want to be in pain, but am unable to utilize healthy coping skills. the amount of pain i was (and still am) in became too much for what i could realistically handle, given my abilities and the support (or lack thereof) around me.

an example is. i ran out of drugs A, B, and C, which all help my anxiety and physical pain. drug D also helps my anxiety and physical pain, but can also cause me panic attacks and dissociation. do i stop doing drug D? no. i finally pull some self-soothing out of my ass. is it difficult? yes. incredibly fucking so, and sometimes, i cant do it. but it is a lot easier for drugs to take up most of the coping work and for me to try my best to fill in the gaps.

a lot of the time, drugs are what people resort to when they have quite literally exhausted every other option. it doesn't mean other options aren't out there somewhere, or they're doomed forever. it just means that right now, that person is at their fucking wits end and is desperate for relief from their pain. addictive self-medication is still medication - it's just a very chaotic, painful, and unsustainable one, that ends up creating as many problems as it temporarily fixes.

so please, for the love of god, give addicts a break. they're trying their best to take care of themselves, and it isn't a failing to not be able or willing to do that better or more healthily. people experience pain. it's a fact of life, and it doesn't have to express itself in a way you find digestible to be needing of support and care.

[schar-aac]

"empathy is not morality"

Image: black lines with white shadow/cutout backgroup. two beating pink hearts connected, above a 'does not equal' sign, above a balanced pair of golden scales.

[autville]

welcome autville, a community of autism acceptance! no need to mask your autism traits around these parts; we’re all autistic here! self-diagnosed and questioning folks are always welcome.

stay tuned and follow along for community bulletins and reports about general goings-on.

see ya around town!

[littleautiebird]

How did I realize my autism?

Its funny, in my youth, one thing I was worried so much about was making sure I acted “normal” so that no one would assume I was autistic (this being before I knew anything about autism or truly suspected it of myself.)

It wasn’t until one day as I was pet sitting (at age 23) that made me look into the idea.

I crawled into bed and the texture of the sheets physically made my teeth hurt. I knew it seemed silly, so I texted my best friend and asked her if she ever experiences anything like that, to which she of course said no and jokingly pointed out that its an autistic trait. I responded “wait though, I’ve kind of wondered if I am autistic multiple times in my life before…” She then encouraged me to look into it if I really wondered.

That was the start of it. I went on social media, websites, found books and podcasts, and I started my personal research. I read so many things that week in all my free time, spending many late nights just reading and taking notes. I probably filled about half my journal with these thoughts and observations.

I went through many phases of imposter syndrome, and still do. But I started to put more effort into believing my experience and intuition.

I was able to find a Phycologist near me who was known to be qualified for assessing adults for ASD. I emailed and not too long after was able to get a meeting on the calendar!

In my experience, this whole process has moved pretty quickly, which I am so grateful for because I know many don’t get that same chance.

Just yesterday I had my assessment. I think I feel good about it, but also some anxiety. I’ll have my follow up meeting on the 13th of this month, so I guess we’ll see!

Thanks for reading my experience 🖤

[chronicsymptomsyndrome]

Can I just vent. For a second. Infighting really sucks in disability/mental illness/chronic illness communities. There are going to be contradictory experiences and endless nuances within any community. And its understandable to be upset and/or angry if you come across something triggering in your safe space. It sucks but that’s the inevitable reality of the internet.

Keep scrolling or report the content or leave a respectful comment about your difference in experience/perspective or let them know it was triggering and respectfully ask that they please tag a certain thing in the future or just block them altogether. Rather than attack each other, there are so many more constructive options. We all live in a world not made for us. None of us have it easy. We all know it’s a constant battle. We don’t need to be battling each other on top of that

[vizthedatum]

If someone is having difficulty empathizing with you after repeated attempts of communicating and showing them how you want to be treated, then a boundary needs to be made.

It doesn't matter if the person is a good person or not.

This boundary can include saying "no" or changing the dynamics of your relationship (including ending the relationship).

You are not being cruel for having boundaries or pulling back your energy.

Do not enable behavior that hurts you, even if there are reasons for that behavior.

[cl0udpup]

Feeling seen and encouraged

Yesterday on Twitter, I got a ton of interaction on my post explaining the process I've been going through of researching autism, and trying to determine if it fits for me. The responses were overwhelmingly positive.

I felt validated, accepted, understood, believed. People were SO kind, warm, welcoming, encouraging, non-judgmental. It filled me with a rare kind of joy, like butterflies in my stomach, electric energy in my chest, lots of smiles, tears in my eyes.

I think this is the feeling of love. I can think of feeling this way when totally enamored with someone and sharing affection, as well as how I feel when bonding with a dog. It is the happy tears emoji.

I spent much of the day continuing reading, researching, and came across this survey about autism, completed mostly by autistic people, as well as in smaller numbers, their parents/caregivers, professionals who work with autists, and some "neutral"/non-autism-connection people.

Reading this survey was so intense. I feel like I've spent my entire life feeling alienated, different, on the fringes of society, but in this sample of people, my feelings and experiences aligned with the majority. I cannot put into words how intense this level of validation is. It was so overwhelming I practically felt intoxicated, like reality was pulsing, and a warm hug of energy and understanding surrounded me.

I wanted to document how I feel in this moment, as I can have a hard time remembering things if I don't write it down, and this feels important.

I will make two additional posts, detailing the survey, and the thread. For now, thank you for reading and supporting me. It means the world.

[gynecologistmsfrizzle]

“what to tell a doctor to get an autism diagnosis” “here’s what i learned from realizing i was autistic at 40″ “i would never want a professional diagnosis” “person first language is so regressive” “autism symptoms are only a problem because of ableism” “we dont need treatment” “no autistic person wants a cure” “four doctors told me i couldn’t be autistic so i found a fifth” “autism is an invisible disability” “dont disclose your neurodivergency to employers” “i/dd and autism have nothing to do with each other” “nt parents/advocates have no place in autism communities” “of course im autistic have you heard me talk about horror movies” babe i have nothing in common with any of you

[nld-as-insights]

Disability Disclosure: Not Needing to Tell People About a Disability Should NOT be the Gold Standard.

I, Julia, for reasons not in the scope of this blog post, regret not sharing about Non-Verbal Learning Disorder (NLD or NVLD) with internship supervisors before an internship started. However, I have to remember to not blame myself for that decision.

The school's disability coordinator said that she didn't think I needed to tell anybody that I have NLD because I did well in school and they didn't have to show me around the halls.

This statement sent me the message that I shouldn't tell anyone about NLD because it is something to hide. This statement also sent the message that it would have been a weakness, not a communication strength, to ask for help. It is likely a cultural gold standard (in the US) to not need to tell someone about one's disability and not need to ask for accommodations. This might have to do with overvaluing independence.

This standard teaches people to hide their differences and accessibility needs to appease people with prejudices.

What if this disability coordinator had advocated more for her students and taught the students ways to advocate for themselves?

Thanks,

Julia

[vivianseda]

Great scripts to help children self advocate

from Neurodivergent_lou and Mrs Speechie P

[massiveharmonytiger]

Hey, guys. I’m sharing a page with a collection of links for the Stop the Shocks campaign, which aims to ban the inhumane use of electroshock devices on autistic people (yes, it’s still being done). I’m also sharing an article from ASAN (Autistic Self Advocacy Network) from 14 July 2022 to show you guys just how recent this piece of news is. Now, I don’t live in the US as I’m sure is true for quite a few of you, but I’ve added my signature to the petitions and I’ll be doing what I can from where I am, because this is something that I care deeply about. I sincerely ask you all to also do what you can, no matter how small or pointless it seems. Please. Every bit of advocacy helps and is appreciated.

I’m also adding the link to autistic advocate and current candidate for the Maryland House of Delegates, Lydia X. Z. Brown who has an archive of the JRC (Judge Rotenberg Center’s) abuses. The JRC (a residential school for autistic children and adults) continues to use electroshock devices despite its brutality and all the campaigns against this practice.

https://linktr.ee/StopTheShock?fbclid=IwAR0NalLLZmQnRBdQq7CuGdoRVulX8kscbkoKLbHzovYXTHKOYcj5suWfui8

https://autisticadvocacy.org/2022/07/a-letter-of-support-for-legislation-banning-electric-stimulation-devices/

https://autistichoya.net/