My mom often related my childhood reading habits to devouring food. From my mother’s perspective, I was speeding through books as though my eyes were a machine with a conveyer belt tongue feeding me one after another. Convinced I wasn’t actually reading them, she required me to write book reports to prove I retained theContinue reading “Autistic Girls Don’t Devour Books, We Befriend Them “
Author Archives: SAM.KODY2
Autism, Depression, and Interacting in a Neurotypical World
Along with my autism diagnosis, I received another diagnosis: depression. I don’t remember when I started my personal battle with depression. It always seemed to be there – like those memory balls on Inside Out tinged with the color of emotion. Most of my memories are tinged with blue. It was a constant companion. SinceContinue reading “Autism, Depression, and Interacting in a Neurotypical World”
I’m NOT Fine, Thank You. How are You?
As an autistic person, I hate the question, “How are you doing?” When I say that I hate the question, think Grinch-loathes-Whoville-and-Christmas level hate. Seriously, it’s a horrible question. Why haven’t neurotypicals figured this out yet? As most autistics do, I learned about the insanity of this question the hard way. People may ask thisContinue reading “I’m NOT Fine, Thank You. How are You?”
Task Interruption at the Office: Hell on Earth for Autistics
We all know that interrupting someone is rude. Our parents taught us that. Our teachers taught us that. It’s frustrating to be engrossed in a task or conversation and be interrupted. Just about anyone, neurotypical or neurodivergent, is irritated on some level. I envy the person that can pick up a conversation with, “Now whereContinue reading “Task Interruption at the Office: Hell on Earth for Autistics”
What Does Identity Language Choice Mean for an Autistic?
Is LinkedIn promoting its polling feature? I must have missed the memo. All I see as I scroll through LinkedIn these days are polls. Polls about leadership and jobs and benefits. Polls about inclusion and interviews and, well, it turns out you can make a poll about any topic. Just scroll through your LinkedIn feed;Continue reading “What Does Identity Language Choice Mean for an Autistic?”
Autistic Employees and Workplace Social Skills
Just like most things in our society, we’ve structured the employment process around neurotypical social skills. Unfortunately, autistic social skills do not align with these expectations. It’s disheartening to read in Forbes that “a staggering 50-75% of the 5.6 million autistic adults in the U.S. are unemployed or underemployed.” As an autistic, I know howContinue reading “Autistic Employees and Workplace Social Skills”
Why Don’t They Believe I’m Autistic?
My gynecologist said it first. But she was not the last. Everyone I discuss my diagnosis with has a similar response: “You don’t look autistic.” What do people expect to see when they look at an autistic person? Autism is so integral to who I am that their disbelief is hurtful. I was diagnosed withContinue reading “Why Don’t They Believe I’m Autistic?”
What’s In a Name? Asperger’s vs. Autism
Humans have fluid identities. The names or labels we use influence how we see ourselves and our place in the world. We build our experiences, emotions, and communities around those labels. As new labels are added to our lives, we reevaluate our identities to incorporate our new understanding. This process happens after an autism spectrumContinue reading “What’s In a Name? Asperger’s vs. Autism”
Self-Advocacy is an Invaluable Tool in the Workplace
Many late diagnosed Aspie women have come to believe the negative views of others and internalized it. We’ve grown up plagued by rejection. To help us pick up on the nuances of conversation and relationships, we’ve developed mental scripts: a set of “how to be normal” instructions that we’ve accumulated throughout our lives. ThisContinue reading “Self-Advocacy is an Invaluable Tool in the Workplace”
Friendships with Aspies are Different
Jane texted back and declined my lunch invitation because she would be out of town again. Following other weekend options, she claimed she would be out of town every weekend for the next month. Funny, considering that she was out of town the last three times, I asked her to meet up with me. Once IContinue reading “Friendships with Aspies are Different”