gettin' schooled 

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processing away from my main account (ask for it if you're interested) after late #ActuallyAutistic and #ADHD diagnoses. oldish. white. #trans. she. software, data, music, etymologies. <3
I don't get people posting pics of themselves with "I voted" stickers. I mean, I assume it's some combination of peer pressure telling others to vote, plus warding off incoming peer pressure by reassuring peers that you voted? Or is it just NT hive mind? Every time I vote I decline the sticker and the poll workers are a little shocked and occasionally almost offended. But I don't like stickers and don't want to participate in social head games?
TIL Jefferson Airplane cofounder and vocalist Marty Balin was autistic.
artwork by Amariah Love; shared with permission
New term. "enties," meaning neurotypicals. Like "NTs" but with less enunciation and a slightly different rhythmic quality. Also trying it is easier if you want to avoid caps but harder if you want to avoid letter count. Also it probably reminds Tolkien fans of big sapient trees, which is probably value-neutral for a lot of folks, but I think it's neat. I endorse the widespread dissemination of this word.
Is there a word for autism-radar? Like gaydar but for recognizing other #ActuallyAutistic folks? Because I think there should be a word for it, and I wanna know yours.

Wait is the whole dudes with fish pictures on dating apps thing a subtle nod to fishing metaphors for dating? "Lots of fish in the sea/Throw that one back/Go fish for a better one" kinda thing and I just totally missed it?

Or is it just some weird bro masculinity thing and I'm overthinking it.

When I'm not keeping up with dishes or laundry, it's not that I've forgotten how to do them. It's more like Dishes and Laundry Are Behind is the normal state of things now. It feels like it ties closely to the local/global precedence thing https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_precedence : That falls quick;y into part of the background global pattern, which I shift focus away from to whatever local pattern I'm focusing on now.

8/?

I feel like it's a super subtle point, and I'm not sure how to describe it to NTs. I wonder if other autistic folks see it similarly.

When I'm nonverbal, it's not that I've forgotten how to talk. It's more like I'm not paying attention to the fact that talking is a thing I could conceivably do. Other things have my focus, either because they've demanded it, or because I'm enjoying that focus being there.

7/?

Ultimately I feel like so many of my struggles come back to focus. When I'm doing something, I don't always notice other things. I don't notice my needs, sure, but also, I don't notice *that there's anything to notice*. And if I do notice the stimuli, I don't notice that I could shift focus to address them. I'm focusing, so those stimuli are just The Way Things Are.

6/?

I think the quick takeaway is that I need better tools for checking in on myself and preventing myself from getting there, and I feel like my therapist and I can work those out. I welcome suggestions.

But there's another layer, and it's why that happens in the first place. Like, I don't think it's *just* interoception difficulties, though that's part of it. I feel like more and more I'm noticing a common thread underlying a lot of my struggles.

5/?