Neurodivergx

| 23 | Autistic | ADHD | Chronically ill | University student

[neuro-positivity]

Here's a very interesting study on hyperfocus for my fellow autistic adults, if you're interested in taking part!

Here's what they say about it:

Hello everyone,

My name is Rachel Nicholson (she/her) and I am a current PsyD student working towards my doctorate in clinical psychology. Part of my graduate training is to conduct a dissertation project and I have chosen to focus mine on the subjective experiences of hyperfocus in autistic adults. The purpose of this study is to shed a light on the autistic perspective specifically related to hyperfocus as much research on autism has excluded the community’s input all together. Those interested in participating will be asked to complete an anonymous online survey, which will take approximately 15 minutes. You must be 18 years or older to participate in this study as we are focusing on the experiences of autistic adults.

If you are interested in participating, please complete the survey via this link:

Subjective Experiences of Hyperfocus in Autistic Adults

We are currently engaged in a study of the subjective experience of hyperfocus in autistic adults. To help us gain further insights into thi

Thank you in advance for all of your help with my project and please reach out to myself ([email protected]) or my dissertation chair, Dr. Ashley Higgins ([email protected]) if you have any questions!

[spotlessmy-deactivated20210523]

this was a great read. “Laziness Does Not Exist” by Devon Price

[belleevangeline]

April is “Autism Awareness Month”, so here are a few reminders for you to keep in mind:

Autism Speaks is a hate group.

The reasoning behind “Light It Up Blue” (that there are more autistic boys than girls) stems from a tendency in doctors to base their autism diagnoses on stereotypes and sometimes refuse to diagnose girls.

Most autistic people don’t want a “cure” for autism and don’t support Autism Speaks.

Autism Speaks has given abusive/ableist parents legitimacy by portraying autism as a terrifying, life-ruining affliction and sympathising with parents who have contemplated killing their children, or actually killed them.

The views of autistic people are more important in this topic than the views of our allistic family members and peers.

Autism is not a disease.

Very little (about 4%) of Autism Speaks’ proceeds go toward supporting autistic people. More of it goes toward catering.

Autism is not a tragedy.

What autistic people need is acceptance, not awareness. 

[seisans]

if you want to find out more about why autism $peaks is horrible, i recommend this video by amythest schaber. amythest is an autistic youtuber and all of their videos are very educational, so if you’d also like to find out more about autism check out their channel, or their blog.

also, if you wanna support an organisation that is actually run BY and for autistic people, i strongly recommend ASAN. ASAN is a fantastic organisation that refuses to let conversations about autism be led by allistic people & seeks equal access, rights, and opportunities for autistics. their motto is “nothing about us without us”.

[thatautisticadhdfeel]

Neurotypicals will make socializing complicated and confusing and exhausting and then they’ll be like "not socializing is rude" to guilt you into doing it anyways, and then when you inevitably make a mistake they’re all "wow, that was rude"

And if you complain that you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t you’re being difficult and making everything about yourself

[the-great-fartmaster]

Friendly reminder; stimming is completely natural and okay! Don’t be ashamed of your stims, no matter how “weird” they are to allistic people.

We don’t exist to please them.

[autie-j]

No one:

Autistic people when we're happy:

[whitepeopletwitter]

[thatmadhatter]

Okay, but THIS.

My therapist only recently understood that when I said, “I don’t know how to make this phone call or make this appointment.” I very literally meant I didn’t know what to do. I can dial the phone, but what do I say EXACTLY? What questions are going to be asked? What do I need to have on hand? What if they ask me something I don’t know the answer to?

I’m one of those people that needs very specific and detailed instructions if I’m doing something for the first time.

[dovewithscales]

Be patient with people. We all have our struggles. Sometimes it can make all the difference in the world knowing someone can spare a few minutes to care about you and walk you through something that’s hard for you.

[sheistgawd-deactivated20210215]

Reddit is great

[living-with-autism]

Ok if any of my followers (or anyone who comes across my blog) needs help with ANYTHING and needs detailed instructions like this I would be happy to go through and write them out for you because I know how hard this is you can go to my ask box or private message me or just comment down below for something specific but I’m going to do these every once and awhile about random things but if you have a special request I will do those too

[realsocialskills]

Disability doesn't come with extra time and energy

I’ve heard a lot of advocates of inclusion say things like “kids with disabilities work twice as hard as everyone else” or “my employees with Down’s syndrome never come in late or take a day off.”

This sounds like praise, but it isn’t.

The time disabled people spend working twice as hard as everyone else has to come from somewhere.

There are reasons why kids aren’t in school every waking moment. There is a reason why vacation time exists and why it’s normal to be late occasionally.

People need rest. People need leisure time. People have lives and needs and can’t do everything.

Being disabled doesn’t erase the need for down time. Being disabled doesn’t erase the need for play, or for connections to other people.

Working twice as hard as everyone else all the time isn’t sustainable. Praising disabled people for doing unsustainable things is profoundly destructive.

People with disabilities should not have to give up on rest, recreation, and relationships in order to be valued. We have limited time and energy just like everyone else, and our limitations need to be respected.

It is not right to expect us to run ourselves into the ground pretending to be normal. We have the right to exist in the world as we really are.

[yamelcakes]

I need to plaster this on every surface of my house tbh

[im-here-for-the-content]

Transcription of image titled, “Quick List: When Are Apologies Appropriate?”

SAY SORRY WHEN: (Column on the left side)

You’ve crossed a boundary

You become aware that someone felt hurt by an action of yours

You were mistaken about something

DON’T APOLOGIZE FOR: (Column on the right side)

Taking up space

Consuming resources

Existing

Expressing yourself

Asking for something

Asserting yourself

Putting yourself first

Being different

Disappointing others

Choosing what works for you

For saying no

For saying yes

For being happy

For being sad

For being upset

For having needs

For having feelings

For having wants

For being

[its-my-mental-breakdown]

I kinda didn’t expect to be called out. But I need this everywhere I go

[mijomii]

Me: *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to eat* *forget to e

Me: why is my stomach upsets and why am I so sleepy and why do I feel sick and why do I-

[butterflyinthewell]

Intellectually disabled autistic people are important and they matter, regardless of what they can and can’t do.

Cognitively disabled autistic people are important and they matter, regardless of what they can and can’t do.

Chronically ill autistic people are important and they matter, regardless of what they can and can’t do.

Mentally ill autistic people are important and they matter, regardless of what they can and can’t do.

Multiply-disabled autistic people are important and they matter, regardless of what they can and can’t do.

Young autistic people are important and they matter, regardless of what they can and can’t do.

Elderly autistic people are important and they matter, regardless of what they can and can’t do.

All autistic people are important and they matter, regardless of what they can and can’t do.

The personhood of autistic people is non-negotiable.

[bruhgethebees]

How to be a good friend to somebody on the spectrum

Disclaimer: This is just from my own experiences with being on the spectrum! Feel free to add on or negate! My closest friends… Ask before they touch me but aren’t afraid to ask Learn my stims! My friend does my happy dance with me Talk to me first Encourage me to talk to them with physical gestures Understand that I look at their nose instead of their eyes Ask me if I’m okay when I’m overwhelmed Take me to a safe place Advocate for me when I can’t Help me advocate for myself Engage in my special interest and specific hobbies Talk about their own hobbies and engage with me in different ways Teach me about their lives and interests Tell me when they’re upset right away! Know that I might not always react the way they expect Know that I might not respond right away Help me learn them while they also learn me Play! Play! Play! Tell me not to be ashamed of being childish Are a safe place Love me very very much and know I love them too

[glumshoe]

A reminder that turning in assignments for partial credit is better than not turning them in at all. It is. Even if you think you’ve done a bad job and are ashamed of your work, or it’s way overdue, you take whatever you can get. Partial credit dramatically improves your grade over a zero, and I’m always astounded by how often even the smartest kids don’t really comprehend that. 60% is worlds better than 0%. Even 10% is going to help you. Letter grades are misleading and are not created equal. “F"s are mathematically valuable. Turn that late assignment in.

[sophygurl]

This goes for so many things in life tbh.

Can’t pay the full amount you owe on a bill? Pay as much as you can each month. Most places just wanna know you’re making a good faith effort. You can usually even call and ask for a smaller minimum monthly payment plan until you catch up, so that maybe you won’t be getting late fees added on to your balance. It’s worth calling to see. 

Third time you’ve had to reschedule that doctor’s appointment? Oh well. Your doc probably just wants to make sure you make it in to their office at all. Keep trying.

Half-assing is always better than no-assing folks. I know lots of us are anxiety-ridden perfectionists and it feels like if we can’t do everything exactly right on the first try we just shouldn’t bother. But that’s not true. 

My mom likes to say “anything worth doing is worth doing poorly” to emphasize that it’s okay to enjoy doing things even if you’re not good at them. The point is doing them. Make that shitty art project that makes you happy. Learn that new skill even if you suck at it at first. Make it to under half of the events of that club or organization you want to be a part of but can’t fully commit to. It’s okay. You don’t have to do it perfectly to do it at all. 

[mylittleredgirl]

anything worth doing is worth doing poorly.

[ars0nism]

Pros of chubby gf

- soft

- nice hugs

- thigh pillows??? Tiddy pillows??

Cons of chubby gf

- none

Pros of skinny gf

- fits in ur arms rly nicely

- ur hoodies are too big on her which is beautiful

Cons of skinny gf

- none

Pros of muscled gf

- abs?? Biceps??? Please???

- strong gf pick me up pls

- most likely works out a lot which is hot

Cons of muscled gf

- none

[pipebomb-malewife-deactivated20]

Pros of a tall gf:

-she can reach everything

-she can wear those gorgeous and long swooshy dresses without drowning in the fabric

-she still rocks heels, I mean, hello??? Tall girls in heels??? Yes??? PLEASE?

- can curb stomp facist easily

Cons of a tall gf

-none, you’re just cowardly

Pros of a short gf

- I can give her piggyback rides

- she short which means I can pick her up randomly

- she’s got a better angle for throat punching facist

- great at stealing my clothes and wearing em

Cons of a short gf

- none

Pros of a disabled gf

- she’s still her own independent person

- she’s intelligent, often times having some of the most profound things to say that people often ignore because they’re stupid

-she’s got a unique lifestyle that’s gonna be best for her and she’s gonna live life as much as she can as comfortably as she can

-stronger than any US marine

-hates fascist

Cons of a disabled gf

-none

[lily-orchard]

Finally a Tumblr Post that speaks to me

[hilbeth]

Pros of an autistic gf

-She stims when she’s happy

-She tells you about her special interests

-She’s super knowledgeable about her favorite topics

Cons of an autistic gf

-none

[the-spawn-of-loki]

This makes me happy.

[the-troijan-horse]

Friendly reminder that if you have certain foods you can't or won't eat because they're Sensory Bads, you're valid and deserve to be respected, not teased for being picky or told to get over it.

Not-so-friendly reminder that if you're a jerk to others for having sensory issues and force/guilt people into eating something they don't want to, I'll steal your kneecaps!

[autismawesomeness]

“If everyone were a little bit autistic, Salvation Army bell ringers would be illegal. If everyone were a little bit autistic, nothing ever would have strobe lights. Ever. Fluorescent lights, sirens, shirt tags, sock seams — these wouldn’t exist. There would be a strong social taboo against dragging a chair across the floor and making that horrible scraping sound with it. Perfume and cologne would be outlawed as hazardous substances and every school and workplace would have a quiet zone for recuperation. How we handled turn-taking would not involve long lines of people standing scrunched up close to each other. In short, if everybody were a little autistic, our whole society would look a great deal different than it does.”

— “Unstrange Mind” blog (via mindingmyownbrain)

[jvlianbashir]

when you find an academic source that’s perfect for your paper but it’s behind a pay wall

[deadmomjokes]

Deciding to cite it anyway base on the abstract, knowing your professor probably won’t go through and look up every source in works cited

[rootbeermolecule]

if you guys want to read academic papers but they’re behind a paywall, get the chrome extension Unpaywall. when you visit a site that requires you pay for their journal to view the article, the extension will look for other open access sites that will show you the article for free, and it’s all completely legal. all that money goes to the publisher, the writer of the paper gets none of it. https://unpaywall.org

[sewickedthread]

If you can find out an author’s name, contact them. They may be willing to email it to you.For free. 

[softlytea]

Check researchgate.net and academia.edu! Also authors’ professional websites.

[hornplayingphysicist]

Reblog to save a life

[mister-christmas]

Rebloging for any homies doing research papers.

[zetabrarian]

Librarians. Guys, your librarians. Please. Libraries can order things for you and also do a lot of the grunt work described here on your behalf. We want to help you do the things. Please for the love of God.

[geekandmisandry]

I really do appreciate librarians, I do. But my physical inability to interact with anyone unless I can avoid it prevents me from partaking in your generosity and leads me towards apps, but I thank you.