K.J. ElphinstoneWhat has autism got to do with trauma?
Quite a lot, actually.
And not only because of what happens inside the autistic person, but because of what happens around us.
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Lizzy Miller@KatyElphinstone I've been saying for years now that if the numbers were reversed and autistic people were the majority, a lot of the things we think of as autistic traits would be way less common than you'd think. A lot of of these traits (not even the allistic laundry list of things that make us different) are responses to living in a world that isn't made for us.
Sepia Fan@elmiller0330 @KatyElphinstone
I believe that many of the special talents attributed to autistic people are the result of their desperate attempts to fit in.
I use the analogy of a pearl that has grown inside a shell. Most people (non-shells :) may find pearls beautiful and fascinating (whilst having little interest in the shell itself). But the pearl is usually the result of an injury, causing the tissue that forms mother-of-pearl to proliferate in the wrong place.
Phracker@stekopf @elmiller0330 @KatyElphinstone
I don't see how trying to fit in with non-nerds would cause someone to develop a bunch of nerdy hobbies and interests.
I don't see how trying to fit in with non-nerds would cause someone to develop a bunch of nerdy hobbies and interests.
@Phracker2Art
One might develop nerdy abilities only because one tries to understand what's going on. Analyzing everything, noticing details nobody else notice, overlooking details everybody else notices. This likely starts (unconsciously) well before one realizes it's own difference. Forming a nerdy talent.
Another part is more indirect. Like if you fit in you wouldn't have time or desire to develop nerdy talents. Some of these might be coping strategies too.
David Howell@stekopf @Phracker2Art @elmiller0330 @KatyElphinstone Definitely the ANALYSE ALL THE THINGS tendencies will shape how our interests work! And this will extend to all kinds of fields, including typically-NT-coded fields like sports...