My wife and I have two neurodiverse young daughters. The girls are in the first and third grades, ages at which doctors verify or revise diagnoses. As parents, we reference my experiences with the health and education systems to evaluate the services provided to the girls. Reading Rosie Weldon’s autobiography…
The Autistic Me
My personal traumas might seem minor, yet they are traumas that cause me a lot of misery. If I’ve had a bad experience somewhere, I relive it when I pass nearby. In Minneapolis, I struggled to walk or drive past some buildings on the university campuses. In Pittsburgh, I could…
Podcast 0052; Season 04, Episode 16; January 5, 2021 I’ve been reflecting a lot on friendships, the connections I don’t have. Many autistics I know are more social than I am, especially online. Not every autistic is an introvert, especially in virtual communities. My autistic traits and introversion lead to personal…
The future scares me. The Pessimistic Me dominates my internal deliberations when I try to prepare for the future. I’m an odd mix of pessimist and optimist, which isn’t easy to explain. A friend said that’s true of other creators and entrepreneurs. Yes, I gamble on the future, but I prepare…
What follows is the letter I wish I could send to prospective employers. Dear Employers: I want to work. I would be a dedicated, reliable employee. Give me an opportunity and I’ll prove my value. Previous cover letters focused on my academic and professional qualifications. However, during interviews it becomes…
I constantly stumble over the past in may daily life. A sound, an image, or even a smell might trigger a traumatic memory. The memories might be external, things that weren’t personal to me — national or global events that continue to bother me. I live in a comfortable, safe,…
Readers of The Autistic Me blog and listeners to The Autistic Me Podcast want to learn from #AutisticVoices and #ActuallyAutistic people. Followers of @AutisticMe on Twitter and Facebook send many direct messages with questions best answered by other Autistics — and you might be the expert we need on the…
Podcast 0051; Season 04, Episode 15; December 29, 2020 This episode features reflections on being an Autistic Podcaster and Blogger. Every blog post and podcast episode takes a great deal of effort. I know it takes me more effort than it should. I know writers who manage to post daily…
People like to control their spaces. We like to make our bedrooms “ours” as children. As college students, we decorate our dorm rooms or first apartments for our comfort and to signal our personalities and preferences to others. Cultures consider spaces important, too. Feng Shui or geomancy are cultural beliefs…
Podcast Episode 0050; Season 04, Episode 14; December 15, 2020 Self-Care is Self-Preservation When does being autistic mean we’re disabled? Autism becomes a disability when we cannot perform routine daily functions, either for fun or work. Daniel Sansing and Ben Sorensen discuss the autistic need for self-care. Autistic masking and struggles to “fit” into groups leave…