Putting Acceptance into Practice
There has been a seismic transition to the public facing event of the year that puts autism in the spotlight. Once Autism Awareness Week, it has been reconfigured to Autism Acceptance Week (expect some lag for at least a couple of years to adjust to the reframing). As part of its statement behind why there was a new direction being taken, the National Autistic Society highlighted that “We need society to change.”
However, is society ready to take the plunge when it comes to revaluating the way it thinks and engages with the wider autistic community? I explore what I believe to be some of my traits, along with some bigger themes, that sometimes do not always have a great reception by others and if ‘awareness’ alone is really going to be a thing of the past.
1. Taking things more slowly
From my earlier years in primary school, the pace in which I process information and perform tasks has been arguably ‘slower’ than the neurotypical/average person that might be judged by comparison. Lacking fine motor skills and dexterity when it comes to more practical tasks, I will probably need a bit more patience. Clarifying what I am doing, even half-way through, is sometimes crucial for me to know I am staying on track. Sadly, the option of working in ‘fast-paced’ work environments is more than likely to be a non-starter for me.
Are you able to adjust the pace of how you work to accommodate these needs?
2. Identifying feelings
When referring to feelings, it isn’t just common emotions (happy, sadness etc), but that managing and identifying our own emotions can end up being a struggle. The threshold of pain, in a broad sense, is considerably higher than what it might be for a neurotypical individual. This means if I am upset, this does not always translate immediately or will respond in ways that are not always conventional to others. Indeed, I might be more inclined to become selective mute in extreme stress. Physically, there may be a desire to keeping pushing on and endure as much as possible, though feeling consequences later down the track. This tends to manifest from taking on more work commitments than should be sensible.
What can you do to ensure that that autistic people have the right emotional support and not become ‘burned out’?
3. Stim to your heart’s content
Arguably, this might be the hardest kind of reprogramming for society as a whole, if people are going to see that stimming is anything other than alarming or breaking most of the unwritten social norms. However, if autistic people are ever going to be their true selves, and not mask for the benefit of others, than we have to embrace hand-flapping, tiptoeing and pacing without judgement or ignorance. It soon became apparent for me at a younger age, there are certain ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ to keep myself safe more than anything else. In fact, it would be far more desirable to have stimming on our streets than drunken adults vomiting their earlier meal in public! Who wrote these so-called rules anyway?
Is stimming a fact of life you’re ready to welcome?
4. Making autism (and neurodivergent people) part of life
It occurs to me, no matter how thinking and understanding about autism has moved forward (with some outstanding issues), it has not been equally matched by services or support to enable autistic people, and other neurodivergent identities, to have wholly fulfilling lives. To distil it into a cliché, it’s often “all talk and no trousers”. For some, there are those who have little prospect of having total independence and leading a life that you or I might be able to achieve. However, autistic people are not truly included yet regardless of ability or circumstance and, wilfully or not, are left behind. Until there is a pathway through early years, education and employment (if viable) that can offer consistent support from cradle to grave, acceptance has still got a long way to go.
What can all of us do to give autistic people an equitable chance in life?
One last thing…
The blog was written by an autistic adult, so let’s all recognise people across the lifespan, shall we? Childhood is only a fraction of life experience.
