If you are new to the world of autism and neurodiversity, perhaps having just discovered that your child or another friend or relative is autistic, it can be a worrying time. You will have lots of questions, like can autistic people work, and it is absolutely the right thing to do to ask them and find out as much as you can. That is the best way to equip yourself to give an autistic person…
I have felt exhausted almost all the time for about as long as I can remember. I know that being autistic is a factor in this as I have talked about in other articles, not least because I have to spend much of my life living an “act”, trying to work out what a supposedly normal person would do in my circumstances. But I also know that my depression and anxiety play a huge role…
The word “essential” is perhaps one of the most overused of our time. It’s definition according to lexico.com is “Absolutely necessary; extremely important.” And yet I frequently see it used in a myriad of ways which are patently at odds with that definition. The misuse that irritates me the most, for no obvious reason, is “essential oils”. I have never used one of these oils in my life – indeed I am not even sure…
First things first, I really don’t like this question! It is full of presumptions, most if not all of which I profoundly disagree with. But the simple answer is no, an autistic child will never be normal, they will always be incredibly special and that is a wonderful thing, not a problem. So let’s try and unpack that question a bit more. I totally understand why people would ask it, and if you have arrived…
Good question, and thank you for asking (even if you didn’t ask and just stumbled across this by accident). In many ways, this is one of those situations where asking the question at all is really more important than trying to absolutely nail down a definitive answer. It is always a wise move to try and put yourself in someone else’s shoes, even if only for a brief time. And I can only describe what…
I have to admit, some days at the moment are turning into a real slog for me. I have lots of things on the go, and I am well aware that instant results do not happen despite all those emails I get telling me I can make £10,000 a week by doing nothing at home! But when you go for a little while in your own business or even in your wider life and seem…
I had a sudden and vivid memory last night. In September 2001, when the 9/11 attacks took place, I was working in a large office building in central London. Our access to the internet was limited, but we quickly picked up on the terrible events on New York City, and like the rest of the world struggled to find more details as the horrifying events unfolded. As we left for the day, keen to get…
We all find it hard to bounce back from something bad in our lives. Standing up to prolonged pressure, mistreatment or difficult circumstances is even harder. In this time of self-improvement and social media profiles which only show the positives of the lives of others, it is very easy to feel that our resilience is low compared to others. Well, I have news for you. Your resilience is not nearly as low as you think…
I am scared. Scared of this virus and what it might do to my friends and family. Scared that the restrictions that have at least kept it in check to some degree will be lifted too soon leading to more outbreaks. Scared because I no longer know what to believe and who to trust. I spend quite a lot of my life in fear anyway, and it is really not nice. A combination of anxiety,…
It is now 6 weeks since I went further from home than just outside my front gate to place and collect my dustbins. This is having a number of impacts on my mental health and thoughts, many of which I am sure I do not fully realise or understand, and some of which I suspect I may not notice for some time. As I have said before, I like being at home. I am happy…