K. J. Elphinstone

Thinking about humanity from an autistic perspective. #Autism #Autistic #Neurodivergent #DoubleEmpathy

http://www.neurofabulous.org.uk

* * *

Profile picture: Me smiling, I've got brown hair and I'm wearing a red top. Portrait by Astrid Poot, https://astridpoot.nl/

Banner: a stormy purple background with a rainbow across it.

Autistic:
DoubleEmpathy:
AutismAwareness:
AutismAcceptance:

Public Key

npub1srnkhm2x9yd889z8vumzjte2sfxptmljavrxqkpfkzhz353kzcmq5emc23

NIP-05 Address

[email protected]

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsgpemta4rzjxnnj3rkwd3f9u4gynq4alewkpnqtq5mpt3g6gmpvdspz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsw6cqtw

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub1srnkhm2x9yd889z8vumzjte2sfxptmljavrxqkpfkzhz353kzcmq5emc23

Show more details

Last Notes

2026-07-07 08:19:25 GMT

♾️Ten reasons why I like being autistic♾️
Maybe surprisingly to some, being autistic isn't all bad.
Here are some things that may get missed when autism is defined *only* through our difficulties & struggles.
#Autism #ActuallyAutistic #Neurodivergent #AuDHD
A thread 🧵
1/11

2026-06-26 10:35:59 GMT

In 46% of cases where therapy is used to stop an autistic child from stimming, the child has come out with symptoms that meet the criteria for PTSD.
#ABA #Autism #Masking #Neurodivergent #ActuallyAutistic

2026-03-07 18:56:11 GMT

#AskingAutistics
How would you describe your ordinary daily level of anxiety (if any at all)?
#Autism #ActuallyAutistic #Neurodivergent #AuDHD

2026-02-14 17:27:11 GMT

Have you wondered where the claim that autistic people lack empathy came from?
The “jellyfish” study (2011) was influential in this, as it concluded that autistic people lacked Theory of Mind & capacity for moral reasoning.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-01-autistic-mind.html
In the fictional scenario given to participants, Sally tells a friend it’s safe to swim with jellyfish. She believes they’re harmless. The friend is stung and dies.
⬇️
#Autism #Empathy #Neurodiversity #Psychology #TheoryofMind #ActuallyAutistic

2026-01-24 07:26:02 GMT

- reply

Exactly!!
What prompted me to ask this question was a Facebook post by Naomi Fischer, she's basically saying what you're saying...
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17xKsSdyr8/
And I started wondering about imagination more generally. I think the idea we don't have any - or limited - might be a great deal to do with societal expectations.

2025-12-16 06:29:02 GMT

*Reasons are for people with power*
My son was telling me about a short he'd seen, contesting the idea that if women were in charge there'd be no wars. Commentator said there would, but just "for no reason." Everyone was laughing; my son wasn't. 💓
So 🤔... perhaps 'reasons' are for those with power (it goes unspoken they're ‘good’ reasons)?
While things like 'excuses' are for those with less power who aren't doing exactly what you want them to. Think of a kid arriving late at school.
⬇️

2025-12-11 19:02:18 GMT

** Convenient myths **
Myth no. 1:
🚸 That children must be harshly disciplined to become decent, polite, kind people (it's actually the opposite).
Myth no. 2:
👹 That humans are naturally lazy, selfish beasts who, if they were kindly & gently treated from birth, would be monsters.
Myth no. 3:
🤷 That autistic people are terrible at communicating properly, so allistic people have to be very patient and accommodating with them.
A little thread 🧵
⬇️
#Childhood #ActuallyAutistic

2025-12-01 21:03:53 GMT

Does anyone have advice, or know of any networks or organisations in Belfast for neurodivergent folk.- where a young adult could make friends, or meet people, or so?
Any and all ideas welcome 💟😊
#AskingAutistics #Neurodiversity #Neurodivergent #belfast #Ireland

2025-11-28 21:58:47 GMT

#Neurodivergent #AutisticJoy #ActuallyAutistic
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/115/629/564/032/878/155/original/1906a171a60f3b67.jpg

2025-11-21 23:30:57 GMT

"What have you got to be anxious about?"
#Neurodivergent #Autism #ActuallyAutistic #SocialAnxiety #Anxiety
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/115/590/290/262/855/288/original/01fa82956cbfbcb9.jpg

2025-11-15 17:15:00 GMT

- reply

Plus, if you stick only to problem-solving instead of judging then it’s more likely that… uh… problems will get solved?
The true revolution, I think, isn’t in judging, polarizing, ridiculing, or punishing.
It’s in compassion.
End of 🧵
My articles on ‘the doghouse’, and on ‘morality and inertia’:
https://www.neurofabulous.org.uk/dynamics-of-blame.html
https://www.neurofabulous.org.uk/what-makes-bad-people.html
#ActuallyAutistic #Neurodivergent #SocialJustice #Capitalism #Media #Tech #GlobalEconomy #Politics

2025-11-15 17:13:14 GMT

- reply

The ‘blame and punishment’ model upholds the power structure, and separates us from each another and from ourselves.
Studies show that moralistic thinking reduces empathy.
If you don’t believe in blame, badness, or indeed inferiority of any kind, it’s really hard to dehumanize people. Even if you want to, you find you can’t.
(Reduced empathy article: https://www.neurofabulous.org.uk/decreased-empathy.html)
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:12:52 GMT

- reply

While if you don’t have a doghouse at all (instead having more understanding and compassion towards others and yourself) you don’t need to be so scared.
You can be honest, instead.
That way lies self-awareness.
Growth. And connection.
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:11:51 GMT

- reply

A hard and fast rule becomes: never admit fault, never confess to a mistake – not even to yourself. Never make yourself vulnerable. Always be right – and if the evidence suggests you’re not, say you’re right anyway.
If you’ve got a doghouse, with anyone in there (even if it’s Caligula, or Hitler, or so), then conceptually you’re being faithful to to the ‘blame and punishment’ model.
Given the right circumstances, you yourself, or your most loved people, could end up in there.
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:11:25 GMT

- reply

We maybe punish with judgemental words, ridicule, harsh criticism. Often against them personally.
What they look like, how they talk, how stupid or evil they are – and maybe unnecessary details e.g. about their personal or family lives.
Only that the more punishment people receive, the more they hunker down.
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:10:31 GMT

- reply

We tend also (strongly encouraged by institutions like government, industry, the media, and big tech) to get personal very quickly.
It’s a pastime we often seem to find more satisfying than the search for solutions to problems; looking for someone who’s to blame and finding fault with them. Punishing them.
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:08:52 GMT

- reply

Me: “Who are evil, you mean?”
Them: “Well, yes.”
Me: “I’m afraid I don’t believe in that, either.”
Them: “Why am I not surprised?”
We both laugh. End of conversation.
Let’s pick this apart a bit:
We tend to equate blame with responsibility, and punishment with prevention. But the outcomes are very different.
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:08:27 GMT

- reply

Me: “I’d be really surprised if at this point in your life you went that way. But anyone who believes in blame and punishment is, yes, I think, more likely to do things like that that someone who doesn’t believe in them at all.”
Them: “Thanks for that (laughing). Well, I think you’re right for most people and situations, but… no… (shaking their head) for me there are just some people who are beyond the pale.”
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:08:05 GMT

- reply

Me (cont'd): "Plus, I think a major and necessary ingredient for lacking empathy and (for example) going on to commit terrible acts like genocide is… um… believing in blame!”
Them: “Are you saying I’m the kind of person who might go on to commit genocide?” (mock serious)
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:07:38 GMT

- reply

Them: “True, but some people have horrible backgrounds and end up nice people. I think you can’t use someone’s background to justify what they do.”
Me: “I don’t think it’s really about justifying, though. Just reasons. Everyone's background has specific ingredients, unique to that person, time, place..."
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:07:03 GMT

- reply

Them: “But what about people who are responsible for genocides, are you saying they aren’t to blame for it? They should be held to account.”
Me: “Well, it’s not like they land one day from Outer Space in front of a sign that says, ‘this way genocide; that way no genocide.’ There’s, like, a context. Of course I’d want to stop them from doing any more bad things, but it would be purely preventative. Not punishment.”
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:06:35 GMT

- reply

Me: “Nuh. I don’t ever believe in blame at any level, for anyone. I think it’s illogical.”
Them: “Mostly I’d agree with you. But some people do really bad things. Cause untold harm. I don’t think they should just be let off the hook.”
Me: “I know people do awful things. But… well… if I were them I’d be doing the same thing (obviously, because I’d be them). The fact I’m not, I reckon, is more because of my trajectory than any intrinsic personal… um… saintliness.”
⬇️

2025-11-15 17:06:02 GMT

"We’re gonna have to face it, we’re addicted to blame."
My sister just described a conversation she had with a friend. It struck me it was almost identical to one I also had recently with a friend.
It was about the role of blame in our society. It went a bit like this:
Me: “I don’t believe in blame.”
Them: “Me neither. Oh, except for, like, really bad people.”
Me: “Like who?” (laughing a bit)
Them: “Well, Trump, Elon Musk, Liz Truss, people like that.”
⬇️

2025-10-25 11:12:33 GMT

- reply

There's a dilemma when it comes to male/female relationships.
Because of our cultural abandonment of children and our collective focus on power and competing (both cornerstones of our society, and yet oddly taboo as a conversational topic), most children grow up without the levels of love and support they need to thrive.
Including, of course, boys.
⬇️
#Relationships #Feminism #Parenting

2025-10-25 11:11:22 GMT

- reply

In a similar way to how I must acknowledge, as a white person, that I’m richer than most Black and brown people are.
These dynamics help those who hold the most power to become richer, and they foster division among us.
In this thread, I’ll cover a bit of ground on the gender side of things...
⬇️
#Patriarchy #Money #BlackLivesMatter #Feminism #SocialJustice

2025-10-25 11:10:16 GMT

"Who should pay?"
CW: controversial.
Many men are poor. But women, as a group taken together, are poorer. And this is true in all countries in the world, not just those known for gendered oppression.
If you’re a man who’s interested in having more connection & understanding, I think it's important to consciously know this, “I am richer, in money terms, as a man, than most women are.”
(Refs at the end)
A thread 🧵
⬇️
#Poverty #Patriarchy #Women #Relationships #Money #Feminism

2025-10-14 19:31:48 GMT

The five neurodivergent love languages 😊💖
#ActuallyAutistic #AutisticJoy #Neurodivergent
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/115/374/182/076/295/405/original/b0e4b838571cdbc4.jpg

2025-10-12 21:40:39 GMT

- reply

Every church should have a hidden cellar. Tunnels, even...
@npub10lm…wky9 @npub1tju…ladn

2025-10-12 18:14:17 GMT

- reply

And btw, 💓💔🫂
It must be terrifying, and horrible... I'm so sorry for your situation 😐
@npub1ekj…wjxt @npub1tju…ladn

2025-10-11 20:53:44 GMT

- reply

All this said, it's true that once a dictatorship is in place there's no taxing them out of power - obviously.
That's why I feel we ought to move on this stuff... before it's too late.
@npub1tju…ladn

2025-10-11 20:47:42 GMT

- reply

As for fascism - with very few exceptions (when you dig deep enough) extreme politics tend to be all about cash. The 'values' part is generally a ruse to win over the population and the cavalry.
There's a *lot* of money to be made through dehumanising and oppressing large swaths of the population.
So yes, with robust international mechanisms in place to equalise wealth, you'd change everything. Extreme politics would not have such a fertile soil to grow in.
@npub1tju…ladn

2025-10-11 20:38:31 GMT

- reply

Tax laws are a good way to equalise wealth, if they're used for that purpose (e.g. taxing property, especially when its ownership is excessive and/or detrimental to others; taxing excessive wealth , e.g. by placing negative interest on money so that it devalues over time... how that money would move!).
Plus, it would be nicer, I think, to do it without bloodshed.
There's a reason why violent revolutions and violent politics lead to yet more violence (and inequality, as you say).
@npub1tju…ladn

2025-10-11 18:13:42 GMT

- reply

I'm kind of hoping we can get international wealth taxes passed, because if we don't, we're facing global ecological and social collapse in the not-too-distant future.
@npub1tju…ladn

2025-10-11 10:41:25 GMT

Just a 2% wealth tax on the world’s richest 3,000 billionaires could raise $250 billion every year, enough to save lives, protect ecosystems, & fund a just transition to a greener future.
Ramaphosa has set the stage. His G20 presidency theme, “Solidarity, Equality and Sustainability”, puts justice to the fore. He’s launched a task force on wealth inequality & economic disparities. A billionaire tax could 'seal the deal':
https://act.sumofus.org/go/734830?t=10&akid=153805%2E15669379%2EE6bhRf
#Environment #TaxTheRich #Billionaires

2025-10-10 04:20:58 GMT

For #autistic people everywhere 💓
Credit to Taylor Sanders on Neurodivergent Memes, FB.
#Neurodivergent #ActuallyAutistic
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/115/347/951/268/859/503/original/d969dfbd3ee3a6d7.jpg

2025-09-21 05:52:12 GMT

I relate to this.
Anyone else out there 'hardworking and quiet'?
And.. yes:
"Why don't we just start using words to communicate so I can stop tracking everyone's eyebrow twitches, that would be great."
#Autism #Neurodivergent #ActuallyAutistic
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/115/240/726/183/511/118/original/df3b02da454fdda6.jpg

2025-09-16 21:10:06 GMT

- reply

1. Autistic people have often been conditioned since infancy to regularly go well outside our comfort zones (whether socially or in sensory ways), and to not complain about it.
How is one to then know that *some* of those uncomfortable things are socially not acceptable, or even illegal? 🤷‍♀️
⬇️

2025-09-16 21:09:30 GMT

Why is it that autistics can all-too-easily end up in exploitative or even abusive situations?
Giving this some thought, I figured out a couple of possible reasons for this (below).
I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this, too!
⬇️
(A short 🧵)
#Autism #ActuallyAutistic #Neurodivergent #Abuse

2025-07-25 20:25:18 GMT

#AskingAutistics
What's your relationship to information and data?
Is it like mine... in that the more info I have, the happier I am??
🧑‍💻💞
⬇️

2025-07-19 21:47:46 GMT

What she said 💟 👇
#equality #genderequality #womensrights #feminism #patriarchy #financialabuse
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/114/882/095/726/783/158/original/3cec03e207a8d5e9.jpg

2025-06-26 17:22:18 GMT

#Neurodivergent #Autistic
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/114/750/818/774/596/733/original/769a4745168ec527.jpg

2025-06-21 18:12:40 GMT

I'm looking for a theoretical physicist - also a student, or indeed anyone with a large knowledge in this subject area.
My specific question, at this moment, is about the second law of thermodynamics and entropy, but I'll have more questions.
I'd be very grateful for someone to chat with about these things.
Reboosts also very appreciated! 😊
#Physics #Science

2025-05-30 06:32:37 GMT

This 💟
#biosphere #Environment #EarthDay #biodiversity #MentalHealth #Economy
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/114/595/381/686/026/428/original/00728af240515aa9.jpg

2025-05-13 21:04:03 GMT

Agreed 😵‍💫
#ModernSociety
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/114/502/549/068/207/201/original/3b98aa021e91731d.jpg

2025-05-13 16:31:15 GMT

What does power do to humans?
A little insight into our psychology.
👇
#Psychology #Power #Leadership #Politics #Monopoly

2025-05-05 19:10:31 GMT

#LateDiagnosedAutistic #Neurodivergent #Autistic
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/114/456/804/105/672/180/original/f24b66fc3e0f9957.jpg

2024-12-26 00:29:05 GMT

- reply

Is all this burgeoning right-wing ideology around the rights of women (i.e. that we shouldn't really have any), in all walks of life and in all places in the world…
…de facto just another part of a grand money making scheme?
🤔😳
💰💰💰
15/15
#Wealth #GlobalEconomy #Billionaires #Monopoly #FarRight

2024-12-26 00:28:39 GMT

- reply

Everything these days is a tide to make the wealthy and powerful even more so.
I find this unnerving. Coincidence?
Or has the wealth-generating algorithm foretold the future?
What I'm really wondering is… 👇
14/15

2024-12-26 00:27:39 GMT

- reply

But back to demographics.
Women have more children when they have no choices, are dependent, and are poor (in rights, education, and financially).
13/15
#Demographics #Children

2024-12-26 00:27:04 GMT

- reply

It would also explain:
a) Why schools put so much pressure on children to compete & ‘succeed’
b) Why the authorities don't much like putting resources into #disabled & #autistic kids (where's the ROI?).
12/15
#School #Education

2024-12-26 00:25:54 GMT

- reply

Mm so ensuring people pay privately for raising children…
… but that the money those kids later generate (as taxpayers, consumers, workers, suppliers etc) will go into the system…
… is a savvy (if not 100% logical) move. 🤨
11/15

2024-12-26 00:25:21 GMT

- reply

… but other people are actively benefitting, economically. Salaries, pensions, a functioning system, carers when they're old… etc… etc.
Collectively, we deride & exploit (or allow exploitation of) main-carer parents.
While benefiting directly from their labor.
😥
10/15
#Patriarchy #Exploitation #Oppression

2024-12-26 00:24:39 GMT

- reply

So… let me get this straight.
Not only are parents (esp. single ones) derided, gaslit, poor… looked down upon by society while doing very arduous & difficult work...
9/15
#SingleParent #Parenting

2024-12-26 00:24:12 GMT

- reply

In my article I'd focussed on the intrinsic value of raising our young people... our future generations.
It hadn't occurred to me it could be (way down at the bottom, when you do some digging) about cold, hard cash! 💰
8/15

2024-12-26 00:23:42 GMT

- reply

One person answered my thread on “ten reasons why parents should be paid” using the phrase, “ROI”.
“Return on Investment.”
💰💰💰
7/15
#Banking #Economics

2024-12-26 00:22:59 GMT

- reply

I discovered, while researching my article, that birth rates decline when women gain better living conditions and have more rights.
Hm. Funny, that. Lol. 🤨
The two things go hand in hand.
6/15
#Patriarchy #Misogyny #Money #Economy #Capitalism

2024-12-26 00:22:39 GMT

- reply

Elon is currently also funding far-right parties in various parts of the world.
And (even more sinister than the mom thing) - like Trump - he fights actively against gender equality.
5/15
(References at the end of the thread)

2024-12-26 00:21:59 GMT

- reply

Elon repeatedly says about women that they ‘should be moms’.
Though he doesn't quite seem as interested in them getting salaries (nor indeed child support) as I am. 🤔
4/15
#Parenting #Mothers

2024-12-26 00:21:37 GMT

- reply

Elon Musk is a foresayer of doom in this regard.
He says “civilization is going to crumble” if people don’t start having more children.
Note: He lacks many things, but economic acuity isn't one of them.
3/15
#Population #Civilization

2024-12-26 00:17:37 GMT

- reply

…in its turn relies on human populations growing bigger.
If they fail to do so, or indeed decline, this economic system we currently have, based upon growth, is likely to fail.
🌪️
2/15
#Depopulation #EconomicGrowth #Capitalism

2024-12-26 00:17:01 GMT

When I recently looked into whether parents should be paid, I was coming at it from an “it's a lot of work” perspective.
https://mas.to/@KatyElphinstone/113697701436784792
But what's been brought to my attention since, is that the economic growth on which our system relies… 👇
1/15
#Wealth #Capitalism #Patriarchy #GlobalEconomy

2024-12-22 17:41:59 GMT

- reply

4. Food and shelter (and other bits and bobs), in our society, cost money.
5. Parenting being unpaid, but a lot of work, often makes the main-carer parent a dependent of one kind or another. Being dependent can be quite a powerless, even humiliating, position in society.
⬇️
#Society #Work #Labor #Money

2024-12-22 17:41:29 GMT

- reply

1. Being a main-carer parent is a lot of work.
2. A main-carer parent needs food and shelter.
3. They also need to provide food, shelter, clothing, etc. to their children.
⬇️
#Children #Mothers #Parents #UnpaidCarers

2024-12-22 17:40:43 GMT

Should parents be paid?
There are lots of reasons why we tend to think parents shouldn't be paid. I'll cover those (end of thread).
But let me first look at 10 reasons why, perhaps, they should be paid…
A thread 🧵
1/9
#Parenting #Education #Family #ActuallyAutistic #Neurodivergent

2024-12-17 07:12:29 GMT

"Glorifying pushing past our actual bandwidth is a toxic societal trait that we need to evolve out of."
Yes. And we also need to evolve out of forcing people to do so, e.g. if they're parents and their children will directly suffer if they don't.
#parenting #rest #education #capitalism
Credit to Dr. Jen Wolkin for the slide 💖
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/666/919/496/502/180/original/1ea944f267716eb0.jpg

2024-12-15 08:21:47 GMT

- reply

💚💜
I also used to draw and paint. It was 'my thing'... And I also haven't done it for years.

2024-12-15 07:11:28 GMT

I remember playing inside the beech hedge in our back garden. It was a whole other world in there.
And sitting in a cardboard box in front of the fire in our living room reading stories by firelight.
#ActuallyAutistic #AskingAutistics
Credit to Plantsages on FB for the slide 💚
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/655/590/880/954/818/original/e348b359e554606f.jpg

2024-12-10 09:00:36 GMT

- reply

Money
Stated aim: Making exchange of goods & services easier. Rewarding people for providing things of value.
Hidden aim: Pushing wealth towards the already wealthy. Maintaining power structures. Domination, compliance from those with less. To perpetuate/exacerbate inequities.
#Capitalism #InterestBearingDebt
3/8

2024-12-10 09:00:09 GMT

- reply

And in the meantime, here are a few of society’s structures and institutions whose deeper aim, I think, might be a bit different from just their stated/conscious one.
Money
School
Nations
Nuclear family
Qualifications
Punishment
2/8
#Punishment #Prison #School #Education #Nationalism #Family

2024-12-10 08:59:51 GMT

Subject: Outcomes vs intentions.
When you look at outcomes of things, I think you get a clearer idea what their real aims may be…
More about outcomes vs intentions here: https://mas.to/@KatyElphinstone/113629409658149829
A thread 🧵
1/8
#Hierarchy #Capitalism #Inequity #Poverty #Discrimination
#Oppression #Exploitation
#ActuallyAutistic

2024-12-06 17:32:52 GMT

Why do autistic people get fixated on interactions we've had with people?
I think we do it when things bother us.
But why can't we just ‘let go’? 😬🤔
A thread. 🧵
1/9
#Autistic #Neurodivergent #AuDHD #Neurodiversity #Autism #ASD

2024-12-06 14:04:19 GMT

Can anyone help me with advice on how to do an advanced search on Mastodon, through my old posts?
#Mastodon

2024-12-04 05:49:25 GMT

- reply

Ditto for me. School was not the best environment for learning, I found. It was much too anxiety provoking, and too noisy and chaotic.
@npub1vhw…r64e @npub1ckk…8cdu [@athena_rising](https://beige.party/@athena_rising )

2024-11-30 03:51:46 GMT

- reply

Oh I see! Did you simply mean you'd probably not write a book yourself?
I'm really sorry for the questions... I'm just curious and I often don't get things (people often have to explain jokes to me several times before I understand) 🤪

2024-11-30 03:06:20 GMT

- reply

Do you mean AI could write it?
🤔

2024-11-29 20:05:10 GMT

- reply

Actually the poll was specifically #AskingAutistics, so only (I hope) answered by autistic people.
@npub1jrk…mgny

2024-11-29 13:33:06 GMT

- reply

I think you're right 😊
Are you thinking of writing a book?
@npub19a2…k94s

2024-11-29 13:29:47 GMT

- reply

I think you can probably guess, but I think it's valid, considering everything!

2024-11-29 10:44:18 GMT

- reply

I did a poll, a little time ago:
https://x.com/KatyElphinstone/status/1609150432302989312?t=LxFlJ9qrlqU8FLXUWGRNww&s=19
Of 961 respondents, 85% thought self diagnosis was valid.
53% of those were diagnosed.
⬇️
#Autism
(apologies for the platform, I was still active on the bird site then)

2024-11-29 10:43:45 GMT

Self diagnosis.
Or, as it's increasingly known, 'self identifying' as autistic.
What does the autistic community think about it?
A short thread 🧵
⬇️
#AskingAutistics
#Autism #Diagnosis #ASD #ActuallyAutistic #Neurodivergent #AuDHD

2024-11-27 20:24:54 GMT

- reply

Hm. I reckon the problems in communication are perhaps due to our different way of seeing things (cognitive style).
A way that is less human centric. Less socialized.
We prioritize different things, and that will lead to different ways of communicating.
But the 'ways of being' probably comes into play as well - since we tend to be quite 'all or nothing' about our interests, as well as with our experiences. 😊

2024-11-27 06:27:12 GMT

- reply

Plus, everyone will carry on being really confused about 'what autism even is'... 🤷‍♀️
Leaving overstretched autistics to try to unravel & explain it to people lol
⬇️

2024-11-27 06:26:19 GMT

- reply

The struggles of autistics may often be *linked* to our neurotype (for a whole bunch of reasons), but, well, correlation does not equal causation!
And if we don't study the context, we won't see the bigger picture.
⬇️
#Autistic #Disabled

2024-11-27 06:25:47 GMT

- reply

These, I feel, are the two most salient features of the style of being, knowing, & experiencing that characterize the autistic neurotype.
I find it perplexing how the diagnostic criteria for autism center so firmly around our struggles...
And not around our inherent qualities. 🤔
⬇️

2024-11-27 06:24:48 GMT

- reply

2. Experiential (ways of being):
Hypo and hyper. "It's all or nothing." 🤪😐
It sometimes feels a bit like the central part of our 'feeling and experiencing' dial has been removed!
#ActuallyAutistic
⬇️

2024-11-27 06:23:50 GMT

- reply

1. Cognitive (ways of knowing):
Autistics show reduced bias towards human beings.
This manifests in things like disregard for power hierarchies, preference for outcomes over intentions, lack of herd mentality, etc.
#ActuallyAutistic
⬇️

2024-11-27 06:23:13 GMT

- reply

What characterizes the autistic neurotype?
Rather than go into the latest (highly technical!) research involving neuroimaging etc. I find it has more meaning for people if I describe the 'style of functioning' seen in autistics...
I'll be brief 😁
⬇️
#ActuallyAutistic

2024-11-27 06:22:46 GMT

- reply

"Autism is a neurotype," I answer.
So... "What's a neurotype?"
"A neurotype is a distinct way the brain and nervous system are set up...
which brings about a certain style of functioning."
#ActuallyAutistic #Neurology #Neurotype
⬇️

2024-11-27 06:21:59 GMT

"What even is autism, if it's not a disorder?"
I get asked this. Sometimes curiously. Sometimes more as a challenge, e.g. from those who 'don't believe in labels' or feel we're 'all on the spectrum.'
How to answer? 🤔
A thread 🧵
⬇️
#Autism #ASD #Neurodiversity #ActuallyAutistic

2024-11-25 11:47:07 GMT

You will know who your people are.
They will feel like safety.
They will feel like sunlight.
#ActuallyAutistic #DoubleEmpathyProblem #Neurodivergent
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/543/428/605/351/938/original/e601dd74ab4acecd.jpg

2024-11-24 08:02:33 GMT

Do you think main-carer parents should be paid?
It would be super useful, whichever your answer, to know WHY you think as you do on this question.
Thank you 🥰
#Parenting #AskingAutistics #AskingEveryoneReally #Parents #UnpaidCarers

2024-11-23 17:24:50 GMT

- reply

@npub1kr0…6vxz
Beautiful ❤️

2024-11-23 06:54:55 GMT

"Emotional regulation comes naturally from being in the presence of someone we truly trust."
As an #autistic person, this has been problematic for me (uh...so... no one?).
The only people in whose presence I'm genuinely unafraid are my own children.
#Children #Parenting #ActuallyAutistic
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/530/955/019/813/953/original/7f0b5c31712a1cac.jpg

2024-11-18 06:56:44 GMT

🎶🎵🎧🐦
😳😂
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/502/650/607/398/712/original/36f513c36203206f.jpg

2024-11-18 06:44:47 GMT

"Hyper independent adults aren't just robots who don't need people."
#ActuallyAutistic
💜💚
Credit to Dr Jen Wolkin
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/502/603/621/085/663/original/8c45fa0fc3ea883e.jpg

2024-11-17 17:42:55 GMT

- reply

Yes, exactly!

2024-11-16 07:16:59 GMT

"Children don't just need to know they're loved. They need to know that nothing they do will change the fact they're loved."
❤️
Alfie Kohn
Credit for the slide to www.artofparenteen.com
#parenting
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/491/405/632/511/837/original/f46143021cfa34f8.jpg

2024-11-14 12:10:27 GMT

💜 The kindness of neurodivergent people 💚
#ActuallyAutistic #Neurodivergent
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/481/234/812/437/573/original/e5160686a669a260.jpg

2024-11-11 21:49:58 GMT

Cunk on America 🇺🇲
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/466/526/712/882/212/original/b5bdf89248b47f93.jpg

2024-11-08 21:20:46 GMT

Antistalking: learning a person's routine to avoid them.
#ActuallyAutistic
https://media.mas.to/media_attachments/files/113/449/425/029/542/454/original/20909b6f5bb6bddf.jpg