The #ActuallyAutistic hashtag has really opened my mind to a lot of things. It has enlightened me to so many behaviours and traits that I either share directly, or can relate to in some way. All of these things in my personal life, that I personally considered to be odd, different, strange. And sadly, way more than too often, just a negative vibe that I felt/got to/from my doing certain things. I have come to learn that I really am not alone.
However, this all comes with one huge downside.
I don't #ActuallyAutisticallyQualify. Why not? Because I don't have a paper from a doctor saying so.
So I am appealing to the community.
While I lod the goals of the hashtag and community around it, and certain things really do need to be upheld, the conotation that one must be diagnosed is a huge barrier to entry, and can come off seeming a bit discriminating. But it needs to be like that, you have to qualify something, or else, the slop and trolls... So I get it for sure. So, I propose a solution.
Can we all create a new hashtag, that should operate independent of this one, without a perceived stigma of requiring some sort of qualified determination of a condition? I propose
#ProbablyAutistic
Please feel free to reply with feedback, and please boost for reach if you support.