The Autism Spectrum: For Dummies part 1
I was thinking about how a lot of people on these tags may not know what it’s like to be autistic, may not even be themselves, or are questioning but are unsure if they are. I’ve decided to make a lil simple and easy way to understand the spectrum, which differs from what Autism Speaks (ick) promotes, and what society has been told to believe.
Let’s take Flynn, Ellie and Max. Flynn is AMAB and goes by he/him. Ellie is AFAB and goes by she/her. Max is AFAB and goes by they/them.
Flynn is an autistic 12 year old. He was diagnosed at 2. He is nonverbal and uses sign language to communicate. He suffers from an eating disorder and will not touch any food that has a mushy texture, and keeps his food separate at all costs, even sometimes by using multiple bowls/plates! He stims violently and sometimes engages in self harming behaviors because of meltdowns. He is still autistic!
Ellie is an autistic 20 year old. She was diagnosed at 18. She is semi nonverbal, but can speak pretty well in public. She excels in school, and wants to be a veterinarian when she can earn enough money to get to school. She wears earbuds in public because loud sounds make her very anxious, and she stims to calm down. When she’s home, she can completely be herself and stop masking, which can be a relief with lots of happy stimming and humming and yelling happily! Or it can cause major meltdowns from having to hide it constantly, and being told that she isn’t autistic because she doesn’t “look” autistic. She is still autistic.
Finally, there is an autistic 16 year old named Max. They were diagnosed at 15. They relate in a lot of aspects to Ellie, as far as masking goes. They’re capable of fully communicating verbally, and they have no trouble navigating life, as their autism is just a part of them that they’ve learned to be at peace with, and to love! They had a harder time than Flynn getting diagnosed, but why? It’s because Max is AFAB, and females with autism can present differently than males! Especially as far as masking goes, because females tend to be better at it. Max is still non-binary, and still completely valid as an enby, but still has the same biological sex as Ellie, which is one reason they were diagnosed late. Max is still autistic.
What do all three of them have in common, other than being autistic? Well, number one is sensory issues. What would you rate Flynn’s as, versus Ellie or Maxs? For example, I would label them as Flynn: 9/10, Ellie: 6/10, and Max 3/10, the lower being the less issue with sensory. So, there is a spectrum there, but it’s for sensory alone. What about how vocal they are? Flynn: 1/10, Ellie: 8/10, Max: 10/10. Are they any ‘less’ or ‘more’ autistic based on how their traits present? NO!!! They are all autistic, period. There is no ‘high’ or ‘low’ functioning. There is only how many accommodations they need or may not need to live peacefully and happily in a world not built for them.
So, no, your 5 your old autistic son (and still valid and beautiful!) is not going to be the same as me, a 19 year old non-binary AFAB autistic individual. We all share the same traits, just at different levels! THATS the spectrum. Just because I can speak (when masking 99% of the time) and I can take in a lot of information, doesn’t make me any less autistic. That’s just not how it works.
Please be kind in reblogs and replies, and please use tone indicators. Thank you! /lh /gen for all text above
