#actually audhder

[vivianseda]

Thank you @autism_sketches

"STIMMING: What it feels like from the inside"

In the beautiful images that follow, Autistic artist & storyteller Anouk of @Autism_Sketches depicts the experiences of some of their Autistic followers on Instagram. It is so important to learn from Autistic voices. These descriptions are exquisite.

[frilledshark-enthusiast]

Ya know the autism stare, not the stare autistics make but that way people look at you when you start talking about something. Even if it’s completely related to the conversation.

[vivianseda]

Thank you Em from NeuroWild

“I talk a lot about fluctuating capacity in neurodivergent people.

It leads to conversations about expectations, and whether it’s ok to push our kids to do hard things.

We don’t want to push our kids when they’re close to the edge. That just pushes them off.

When they’re emotional, dysregulated, unwell, exhausted, overwhelmed- this is not a time to push them. This is a time to reduce expectations and add support.

When our kids are well-regulated, emotionally ok, not mentally exhausted, in a good frame of mind- that is the time to provide opportunities for them to exceed expectations and ‘push’ themselves.

Yes?

Em 🌈🌻✌️

AuDHD SLP”

[vivianseda]

Thank you at The Autistic Life

[vivianseda]

Thank you Em from Neuro Wild

“⭐️ New resource: Telling your child they have ADHD ⭐️

I did not mean for this to be 16 pages long, but here we are. Also, hectic hyperfocus was at work when getting this done. I’m trapped at home with sickness so this was a nice distraction from that.

This resource was created for parents to use with their kid when telling them they have an ADHD brain. As we talked about the other day, it’s important that we know about our neurodivergent brain. If we don’t, many of us spend a long time feeling very broken. Our kids deserve to know that they’re not broken.

There is a fair bit of overlap between ADHD and Autism, so some of the slides are the same/similar as the last set on Autism.

This resource has slightly more technical language in it, so parents may have to do a bit of explaining as they go. That’s a good thing because this resource was designed to start conversations. It doesn’t have every bit of ADHD info one could ever need.

If your child is both Autistic and ADHD (AuDHD), you could read through both sets and talk about which traits your child has from each.

Telling your child they have ADHD (16-page illustrated resource)

This 16-page illustration set was created for parents to use when explaining to their child that they have ADHD.Each image (square on A4) ex

Feel free to share this post if you want to.

And let me know what you think of this resource 🫶

Em ☺️🌻🌈

AuDHD SLP”

[vivianseda]

Great scripts to help children self advocate

from Neurodivergent_lou and Mrs Speechie P

[vivianseda]

Thank you to The Autistic Teacher

“I feel a lot of empathy…a lot of the time. I couldn’t watch Paddington Bear… you know the film with the bear and the TAXIDERMIST!!! I was literally loosing my mind knowing there was a taxidermist after him. I couldn’t cope! I couldn’t watch the rest of the film and opted for doing the dishes instead.

Many autistic people have oodles of empathy! Although, I can relate to the second part, that sometimes, I don’t exactly know what to do with it or how to show it. I can feel so worried and upset for others and then just hide away as I don’t know how to show it or what to do. From an outsider POV maybe it looks like I don’t have empathy.

Hyper-empathy by Autisticality”

[vivianseda]

Thank you Em from Neuro Wild

“I've had a few conversations about screentime recently so I thought I would share this again.

Many autistic people use screens as an essential regulation tool. This is because the world can be pretty hard and overwhelming. If your kid is super distressed and overwhelmed when screens are turned off, this may indicate that the reality they are returning to is really rough.

Your way forward is to try and make things easier and less dysregulating for them. Start with removing neurotypical expectations. Explore regulation tools and strategies, reduce sensory overwhelm, address masking, and help them find joy.

Try and understand that screens are not just a single activity or interest, but rather a gateway to a huge variety of opportunities.

Note: not all Autistic people will necessarily relate to screens the same way. Everyone has individual preferences and interests.

Note: people who are not Autistic may relate to much of this. Other neurodivergent people may find this comic very relevant.

Note: many people have strong opinions about screen time. If you are someone who keeps their kids off screens, that’s fine. If you are someone who lets their kids use screens, that’s fine. If this info is useful to you, great. If it isn’t, that’s fine.

Do let me know if this was useful to you.

Em ☺️✌️🌈

AuDHD SLP

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Image descriptions from Community Access (Captions, Transcripts, Image Descriptions):

All slides have the NeuroWild logo at the bottom right corner, which uses a playful font. The bottom left and top right points of the N have cartoon leaves attached, as does the top left point of the W and the top point of the d. There is a small plant to the left of the word and a small flower to the right.

Slide 1: Let’s talk about SCREENTIME for Autistic Folk. (Drawing of a smiling animal rowing a boat on tranquil blue water.)

Slide 2: Every person experiences the world differently. It can be hard to imagine another person’s experience, especially when others have different brains & sensory processing systems to you. Your experience might be like this… (same drawing of a smiling animal rowing)

Slide 3: And another person’s might be like this. (Drawing of a mouse trying to swim with its nose and mouth barely above waving water. There is part of the head and tentacles of a jellyfish visible to the bottom left, and part of the tentacles of another jellyfish visible to the center right.) Autistic people often experience the world differently. Sensory input is often too intense, emotions can be all consuming, societal expectations feel impossible, and the world often seems uncaring & ableist.

Slide 4: Some of us are able to keep swimming. Many are too tired from treading water. Some of us sink. (Same picture of the mouse with seven jellyfish of various sizes now hanging on to its torso and tail. From left to right, the jellyfish are labeled “Emotional Dysregulation,” “Neurotypical Expectations,” “Sensory Overload,” “Social Pressure,” “Masking,” “Trauma,” and “Mental Exhaustion.”)

Slide 5: (Text against a full page of water with columns of bubbles on the left and right.) Where does SCREENTIME come into it?

Slide 6: For many of us, screentime is a break from treading water. It’s a chance to breathe. (Picture of a full page of water with the mouse inside a bubble smiling and holding a tablet. The jellyfish are outside the bubble.)

Slide 7: (Text against a full page of water, same picture of the mouse inside a bubble at the upper left.)

Screentime

Gives us control in a world that is often chaotic

Lets us explore new worlds, roles, & power dynamics that are otherwise unavailable to us.

Lets us connect with likeminded people who share our interests.

Lets us explore our deep interests and develop new skills.

Can bring us comfort & deep joy.

Gives us access to communities where we feel like we belong.

Lets us learn, create, & socialise without the expectation for eye contact or verbal speech.

Slide 8: (Text against a full page of water.)

Let’s examine common parent concerns through a different lens.

My kid is addicted to screens. (arrow) My kid finds screens to be a really effective way of taking a break & regulating.

My kid has a meltdown when I make them turn it off. (arrow) My kid finds it really distressing when their regulation tool is removed suddenly, or before they’re ready.

You can’t just waste all your time on screens, & miss out on real life. (arrow) My kid finds the world overwhelming. Screens are a powerful regulation tool that we can utilise. We also do our best to remove the jellyfish from their ocean.

Regulation tools are essential. We can’t tread water forever.

Slide 9: (Text against a full page of light water with scattered bubbles at the borders.)

Tips for screen time

Give warning about upcoming transitions, e.g. ‘Dinner in 10 minutes. Screens will be turned off.’ ‘Turning off in 5 minutes. How many minutes?’ ‘Time for dinner. Are you able to save it/pause it there?’

(star) At this point, adult flexibility & empathy is encouraged. (star)

Your child may be a few minutes away from a save point/end of level/song/video. Having their screen turned off at this moment is likely to be very distressing. Asking them how much longer they need can be a good way to teach time management & planning skills (i.e. learning to choose a short video at the 5-min warning)

Giving those extra few minutes makes the transition easier, and reinforces the message that the child’s feelings are important to their adult.”