I'm going on a much needed break from here. I appreciate all the feedback and find it too much at times to respond, but I do read everything you say and I mean everything. I just find it overwhelming at times, so I just read.
There is a wonderful autistic community on here.
See you in the future.
I saw a thread on here about "small talk" earlier and it got me thinking about the whole autistic small talk thing.
To me It feels like It’s just empty talk about things that don’t matter. During small talk that never ends I just zone out, literally wondering to myself when It’s going to end.
I think autistic people are often mistaken for being argumentative or "needing to be right" when, in reality, it's more about FEELING right and needing the other person to understand why.
The autistic genius stereotype is dangerous for *many* reasons, but a less talked about reason is that it discredits all the anxiety, planning, strategising, and strife behind our achievements. Calling us ‘geniuses’ makes it sound like all that we achieve comes easily.
“I couldn’t find what you wanted, but I picked up this item that is very similar”.
Autistic me: oh no, there’s a gulf between what I wanted and what that is. No two items are particularly similar to me; each thing is unique and distinct.
I just do nothing and rest, relax and take care of myself as much as I can. No physical nor intellectual work, nothing that could easily tire out my mind or body.
Resting is so important.
It's kinda ridiculous how easy this answer is, yet how complicated to actually follow.
Take care.
How do you deal with autistic burnout?
More specifically, do you suffer from it effecting your ability to hold jobs or work?
I have been stuck in what feels like a burnout cycle for multiple years and it’s making it hard to live. I feel like I used to be able to function and work so much easier 😖
Being autistic is just existing and then getting punished repeatedly for doing it wrong with no clear explanation as to what exactly you’re doing wrong. Or when someone disagrees with what your saying so you must be wrong.
That's autistic life for you.
Knowing autistic burnout was caused from not being accommodated as an autistic person. However it does help you feel like less of a failure, which is something. It helps to remove the burden. It helps you to consider that this is something you can't do anything about but this was not your fault.
It took this Autistic decades to realise that not every point some people make and not every criticism they share comes from a genuine place. Some try to bait others by saying stuff that even they don’t believe, just to get a rise. Trolls do this too. There’s no point engaging with them.
Autistic people take everything literally.
Autistic me: This doesn’t apply to me. I don’t take “everything” literally. Oh, wait… did I just take the word “everything” literally when it is merely an expression and not meant to be taken literally?!
Imagine if human sensory had settings, and all of them were at maximum. That can be autistic life for you.
No matter how hard you try, no matter what you say, you can't make people who don't feel the same truly understand how bad it can be. Everyone thinks you're exaggerating or making excuses.
I didn't 'grow out' of being autistic.
I learned to pretend not to be, and acted the way I thought people wanted me to be. I did this for years.
All at my own expense, of course.
It's always deeply embarrassing and not nice when someone who knows you're autistic but doesn't know much about autism talks to you as if you were eight years old.
I’m not a terribly social person, so a mutual interest would be a plus, but If you meet me please don't talk to me like a child.
This is definitely the case. Also, NT folks, when I say something very obvious and clear about the world as it is and you laugh because it makes you uncomfortable, that does not mean I was making a joke. The incongruity is coming from inside your reality.
Having disability accommodations in college back in 2003 was so helpful. I would show up on the first day of a class with my accommodation list and the teachers would take one look at it and say stuff like “…that’s not real” and “is there something i’m supposed to do with this”
Autistic people are often hyperaware of other people, their perceptions and our environments. This can leave us feeling exposed when in public spaces, which can be a vulnerable, draining and a terrifying feeling, especially when it goes against our wishes and is beyond our control.
Being autistic is basically everyone else seeing me as "completely normal but maybe just a bit picky/particular"... while internally it's me in constant sensory overload, social overload, and fighting against my executive dysfunction to just do stuff.
Autistic people may appear ‘patronising’ but actually be genuinely and kindly trying to help you. Our brains intuit and process information in our own way, so we often can’t tell the difference between: helpful wisdom you might not know; and general knowledge or common sense.
When you try to explain what is in your mind but your words and thoughts go in lots of directions so you pause and the other person starts looking at you like you're stupid.
#autisticadam#autistic
Autistic Burnout ain't just feeling tired. It can be so much more, emotional fatigue being another. It's losing relationships because you can't perform and maintain their expectations. So you push them away. It can feel disorienting in so many ways. It can also take years to recover.
Apparently some people make friends at the gym, but I’ve been going nearly a year and I’ve not, I don’t know if it’s my general demeanour, that I wear sunglasses in the dark weight lifting section, or my T-shirt that says “I’m autistic, don’t talk to me”, but something’s putting people off.
Don’t hide the elements of you that are not like others – Bring them with you wherever you are because it’ll help others.
Don’t feel like you have to fit into a certain type of box just to please others. It took me a long time to come to that conclusion.
You are wonderful how you are.
The Autistic urge to browse online shopping apps/websites for fun and to get a little boost from seeing items you like because you don't get that from much else, so you'll take that.
