Accidentally open secrets regarding Autism

From ActuallyAutistic Wiki

Here is the link to this @Twitter thread🧵


There are facts that are known by so many Autistic people that they don't get talked about much, so people often don't realize they are a "thing" and then once they know ... they know, so they don't talk about it, and then you end up with people who don't "know."

  • Autistic people naturally gravitate to other Neurodivergent people.
  • When a person realizes they are Autistic, most will quickly develop the ability to "detect" if another person is Autistic.
  • The vast majority of Autistic people are glad they are Autistic and want to keep it that way. They want accommodations, not a cure.
  • There is a strong connection between Autistic people and cats.
  • A lot of Autistic people personify objects and feel they have a semblance of life.
  • Autistic people tend to look much younger than they are.
  • On average an Autistic person will die 16 years earlier than a peer without Autism. Sooner if they have comorbidities such as Kinetism (ADHD), Depression, etc... This is due to lack of accommodations and acceptance.
  • Autistic people are frequently drawn to animation, many with a focus on Anime. There are many reasons for this.
  • Autistic people tend to eat a very small range of foods that they personally like to eat.
  • Elsa from Frozen is Autistically coded and "Let it Go" clearly parallels letting go of Autistic masking.
  • Autistic people are very likely to be LGBTQ+ compared to Allistics.
  • All the characters in Parks and Recs, except Anne Perkins are Autistically coded. (You will find that a lot of Autistic people loved the show before realizing they are Autistic)
  • Autistic people are not socially deficient. Autistic people are as effective at working together as Allistics are working together. There are challenges when Allistics and Autistics work together. Allistics perceive Autistics as deficient because there many many more of them
  • There is nothing wrong with being Autistic.
  • Self Diagnosis is Valid for a multitude of reasons.
  • #ActuallyAutistic is a hashtag that means you are openly Autistic.
  • Autistic people tend to have a different style of "autobiographical" memory than Allistic people. Allistic people have a constant recording of their experiences but Autistic people tend to have vivid powerful memories of specific moments.
  • Up to 86% of Autistic people also have Kinetism (ADHD)
  • Stimming can seriously reduce Autistic stress. Many Autistic people have suppressed their ability to Stim for so long that they have to actively "deprogram" to get back to a natural level of stimming.
  • The Symbol of Autism is a Golden Infinity. A Rainbow infinity is the symbol of the Neurodiversity movement. Puzzle pieces represent the belief that Autistic people are missing a fundamental aspect of humanity. It is therefore considered a hate symbol by the Autistic Community.
  • Autism Speaks is considered a hate group by the Autistic Community. This is clearly demonstrated by their "I am Autism" commercial. Please do not allow children to see this video. Proceed with caution if you intend to watch it. It cannot be unseen.
  • Many Autistic people are Demi-Sexual. Many are Neuroqueer. Many are Autigender. If you are not familiar with these specific terms, you should definitely investigate them.
  • June 18th is Autistic Pride Day
  • Being Autistic is the paradox of being human but also being radically different from most people. Before you grok that you are Autistic it seems impossible to be true. After you grok it, it seems impossible that it took a lifetime to figure out something so clearly true.💚
  • Many Autistic people experience irrational fears. These are hard wired terror responses to stimuli that pose not inherent threat. Such as an irrational fear of toilets. These can be coped with "irrationally" but traditional phobia therapy will be traumatizing.
  • Ableism is discrimination in favor of the abled.
  • ABA is a conversion "therapy" grounded in the concept the Autistic neurotype is unacceptable and that Autistic people should act in all ways as if Allistic. ABA is therefore ableism and a violation of anti-discrimination laws.
  • Some states keep mandatory databases of anyone who has been diagnosed as Autistic in that state.
  • @Twitter has clear rules that prevent hateful content regarding the disabled.
  • In spite of clear rules protecting the disabled, @Twitter openly ignores hateful content that targets the Autistic and other disabled people.
  • It is a myth that all Autistic people are asexual.
  • Some Autistic people are asexual, some are aromantic, some are demi, some are hypersexual.
  • Some Autistic people are very kinky. Not following social norms can definitely apply to sex.
  • The "Autism Community" is arguably anyone who has a connection to Autism.
  • The "Autistic Community" is anyone who is Autistic.
  • The distinction is very important when speaking on matters of Autism, especially the experience of being Autistic.
  • Most countries have laws that technically protect the disabled and are extremely powerful, like the _**ada**_ in the U.S.
  • Despite the power of these laws, it can take months or years for the law to act, leaving the disabled extremely vulnerable to abuse and mistreatment.
  • Some parents of Autistic children can be very problematic and attempt to control the Autistic narrative.
  • Many of the problematic parents are actually Autistic and are unaware of it.
  • Their lack of self awareness can be extremely harmful to their children and the community.
  • It is extremely easy for Autistic people to become traumatized.
  • At times it can be difficult to understand if you are having an Autistic response or a Traumagenic response to an event.
  • Yes, a lot of Autistic people enjoy Lego.
  • Yes, a lot of Autistic people enjoy Pokémon.
  • There are a lot of things that fit in really well with Autistic traits.
  • Autistic people tend to have different love languages than the Allistic.
  • Autistic people often socialize though their special interests.
  • Groups of people that primarily organize and socialize through intense interest in a shared hobby, are frequently, disproportionately Autistic.
  • Allistic brains are wired to use heuristics and Autistics are not.
  • Heuristics are "best guesses" that are quick and efficient but imprecise and prone to error.
    • Allistic brains are fast
    • Autistic brains are precise
  • This is fundamental to understanding our differences.

Due to confusion on this topic of unconscious heuristics we wrote this thread to help explain that this is not about conscious thought.

  • Allistic brains are wired to use heuristics and Autistics are not.
  • Heuristics are "best guesses" that are quick and efficient but imprecise and prone to error.
    • Allistic brains are fast
    • Autistic brains are precise
  • This is fundamental to understanding our differences.
    • NeurodiverGENT is anyone who is not Neurotypical
    • NeurodiverSE means a range of neurotypes which may include Neurotypical.
  • Empathy gets talked about a lot regarding the Autistic. There are myths and counter myths. Empathy is a sense and a knob on the Autistic spectrum which ranges from hyper to hypo.
  • It is endless forms most beautiful.

♾❤️🧡💛💚💙💜♾

Epic Infographic by the Epic @Autism_Sketches

  • There is a saying in the autistic community: If you've met one autistic person, you've met one autistic person. You haven't met us all.
  • Autistic people tend to be meritocratic.
  • This can get us into a lot of trouble when we ignore more traditional power structures that are not based on merit.
  • Despite laws that should protect them, many if not most Autistic people are afraid to be open with their employer and co-workers about being Autistic and do not have confidence that their jobs will be safe if they come out.
  • Autistic people are often members of some form of counter-culture.
  • Some Autistic people will only /publicly/ be a member of that counter-culture /or/ be openly Autistic, the social challenges of openly being both can be daunting.
  • Autistic people remember stories about Autistic characters better than stories about Allistic characters and vice versa.
  • This will probably tell you something about your favorite characters.
  • Autistic people tend to be very good at reading things upside down and backwards and take this ability for granted as a human norm.
  • Various studies, and shocked Allistics, indicate that this is not an easy thing for Allistics to do. (Still looking for exact numbers on this).
  • Autism is often a multigenerational disability that runs in families.
  • Until someone realizes the family has Autism, no one in the family will question Autistic behaviors as noteworthy.
  • It’s literally normal behavior for that family.

Having polled Autistic people:

  • There is a 72% chance of at least one of their parents definitely being Autistic but only a 13% chance that their parents are aware of this.
  • There is only a 7% chance that their parents are definitely not Autistic.

One of the concrete indicators that a person is Autistic is if they are deeply concerned with "claiming space" that might not "rightfully be theirs" within the Autistic Community.

  • For various reasons these Autistics fundamentally believe in the sanctity of marginalized spaces.

Here is the link to this @Twitter thread🧵


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