• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Geek Club Books

Autism Education, Awareness, Acceptance, Advocacy

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Home
  • About
    • Autism Storytelling for Hope and Change
    • Speaking
    • Creative Team & Educational Specialists
    • Advisory Board
    • Our Benefactors
    • Press
    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclaimer
  • Blog
    • All Articles and Interviews
    • Articles By Author
  • Families
    • Welcome Autism Families!
    • Autism Resources Bundle!
    • Freebies
    • Mighty League Autism Moms
  • Educators
    • Welcome Educators!
    • Autism EDU
    • Bluebee TeeVee, Autism Information Station
    • School Visits
  • Comics
    • Autism Comics Overview
    • Autism in Real Life Comic
    • Autism Spectrum Comic
    • End Awareness Comic
    • Understanding Autism Comic
    • Mighty League 1: Autistic Hero Comic
    • Mighty League 2: Autistic Hero Comic Book
  • Resources
    • How to Find Resources
    • Asking Autistics
    • Autistic Self-care
    • Amazon Autism Book Shop
    • What is Autism?
    • Books By Autistic Authors
    • What is Autism Awareness?
    • Autism Glossary
    • Autism Myths
    • Autistic or Person with Autism?
    • Speech and Language
    • Autism Business Ideas
  • Zoom Magazine
    • Issue 13: Family
    • Issue 14: Trailblazers
    • Issue 15: Powerful Women
    • Issue 16: Travel
    • Issue 17: Health
  • Take Action
    • How to Advocate for Autism
      • #Activate4Autism
      • Activator Heroes
    • Make a Difference
  • Contact
  • Donate

#AskingAutistics: Let’s Take down Autism Myths One-By-One

January 28, 2020 By Jodi Murphy 2 Comments

TwitterFacebookPinterestLinkedInRedditWhatsApp

Christa Holmans Asking Autistics January 2020

By Christa Holmans, Neurodivergent Rebel

When I was diagnosed autistic at the age of twenty-nine, suddenly, my entire world view was shifted, as I began to dig through the memories and moments of my past through a new lens – the lens of autism.

They say hindsight is twenty-twenty.

Well, it certainly is now. It’s like looking at life with a new pair of glasses, as I continued to learn about autism, I was able to see everything with more and more clarity.

Twenty-nine years. I went almost thirty years of my life, not knowing I was autistic. Twenty-nine years of struggling to maintain friendships, feeling like a distant alien, a creature not of this world, but not knowing why. Almost thirty years of migraines and neurological symptoms because I didn’t know about sensory processing differences.

There are autistic people in the world today who may never gain this knowledge…

…or learn the truth. They may live a life of sensory overload, burnout, and illness because they don’t understand autistic health. They will go to their graves beating themselves up for struggling with “simple tasks” failing to recognize the “complex tasks” they excel in.

The lost generation may never know the self-compassion I’ve grown since diagnosis, learning to accept myself when I make “common autistic mistakes.” Before I was diagnosed, I would mentally berate myself for how I thought I had been “missing the mark,” but often, I had set the bar too high – by non-autistic standers. Now, I have the power to let it go and am more accepting when I make mistakes. Self-compassion – I needed that.

Once I finally had the information and was confident in what it meant for me, I was able to re-direct my life to a more positive and healthy direction. I began to worry less over what others thought and expected of me so that I could set my own new, autistic, expectations.

When I tried to speak up and ask for the help I needed, people often met me with hostility, as if my needs were completely unbelievable. “You’re not autistic!” “You never asked for this before.” “It’s not fair to give you the window seat; everyone wants that seat.”

Why were my requests for accommodation and my autism diagnosis so quickly dismissed?

The autism myths and stereotypes were working against me.

Most people in the general public have a very narrow view of what autism is. Maybe they have met one autistic person, or have watched a TV show with some other mythical autistic character who closely follows the DSM like a bad checklist.

I’m continually fighting people’s cognitive dissonance. People have an idea of what autism is, and I’m challenging their views because I don’t fit into the “autism box.” Instead of being receptive to this new information (that conflicts with the information they think they know about autism), people push back, holding on to their narrow, often harmful beliefs.  It turns out a lot of non-autistic people think autistics are all emotionless robots incapable of empathy, love, or meaningful connection.

These stereotypes and lies about autistic people are what irked me the most when I was newly diagnosed. Lies, written by non-autistic people, who have observed autistic people from the outside, and assumed they knew what was happening on the inside based on a non-autistic perspective. These lies are published in medical journals and written textbooks all. They are all over the internet. There are even popular blogs, where non-autistic people, complain about the autistics in their lives.

Some of the myths are very dangerous.

If I didn’t know I was autistic or what autism was, and read one of those blogs or even the DSM, I might not be able to recognize myself through all the pathology and misunderstandings that have been portrayed by non-autistic people.

When you start to ask people what they “know” about autism and autistic people, you hear a wide variety of responses, but there are some myths that are more common than others. I found that I was hearing a lot of the same myths over and over again and was curious if other autistic people had had similar encounters.

Since my diagnosis, I’ve asked many questions, but this question takes me back to the beginning, to three years ago, and the reason I started the Neurodivergent Rebel blog. It was an attempt to correct all of the myths and misinformation – my main goal, my mission. It comes full circle.

I ask:

Screenshot of Asking Autistics January 2020 Tweet

#ActuallyAutistic #AskingAutistics- what do you think is the most common misconception about autistic people?


That we are childish. Maturity has different ways of showing itself, but a lot of neurotypicals are so blinded by what they see as deficits that they never notice our strengths

Emmy, @Autisbian


All autistics are intellectually disabled. Some people have an additional diagnosis of intellectual disability, but they are both different things and don’t always come together.

Carrie


Some people believe that autistic people aren’t social.  Like anything and anyone else, it varies.

Judi Goforth, @Comfortdoll62


Autism only happens in boys and/or children. Autistic people always have special interests. Everyone’s a little autistic. Autism improves with age. Autism can be cured. Autism should be cured. Autistic people lack empathy. (I know you asked for one, but I had a lot in me.)

Kourtnie McKenzie, @k_mckenzie


Well with me it’s that because I’ve a car license then other people think I can drive anywhere… which I can’t. And then also there’s people that think I don’t like driving in the dark… huh? Some real weird things.

Sarah, @likeasquarepeg


That we have no emotion, empathy, or feeling.

Michael Gilberg


I think a misconception must be that autistics “look” a certain way. How many of us have been told, “But you don’t LOOK autistic!”?!

@QuirkyQuandary


All the non-expert experts: “You can’t be Autistic. My mom’s friend’s cousin’s dog walker’s son ‘suffers from’ Autism and you’re nothing like him.”

@MooseResists


That if we can communicate eloquently (even if only in writing) at any time then that disqualifies is as truly autistic, and we are only “mildly” autistic or have a few traits. ??‍♀️

@AutismMH


Read more #AskingAutistics articles by Christa Holmans, Neurodivergent Rebel

Our website at Geek Club Books is a platform for autistic voices, positive autism advocacy and education, and sharing autism resources we think you’ll want to know about. Here are additional categories we cover and questions we explore:

  • How to Find Resources
  • What is Autism?
  • What is Autism Awareness?
  • Autism Myths
  • Autism Glossary
  • Books by Autistic Authors
  • Autistic or Person with Autism?
  • Speech and Language
  • Autism Business Ideas
  • Autistic Self-Care
  • Zoom Autism Magazine – Autism through many lenses
  • Find great books in our Amazon Book Shop
TwitterFacebookPinterestLinkedInRedditWhatsApp

Filed Under: Blog Haps, Neurodivergent Rebel, Penfriend Project Autism Columns Tagged With: #ActuallyAutistic, #AskingAutistics, neurodiversity

About Jodi Murphy

Jodi Murphy is the founder of Geek Club Books, a registered nonprofit committed to creating a world where autistic individuals are fully accepted, valued and have a voice. Her priority is bringing autistic individuals creative and leadership opportunities that are meaningful, empowering and support their advocacy. She works with a creative autistic team to produce pop culture-based autism awareness education that is innovative, engaging, positive and opens hearts and minds to a new way of thinking about autism. Sign up for Geek Club Books mailing list for free apps, resource guides, curriculum, audio stories and more: https://geekclubbooks.com/autism-bundle.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Walt Roshon says

    June 29, 2020 at 1:20 pm

    I also learned I was autistic as an adult and, Short of the migraines, my life experience was nearly identical to what you describe. I was 48 when I first learned I about Asperger’s Syndrome when it was still a separate diagnosis in the DSM. OMG, that changed everything! Everyone that I’ve met that learned later in life express the same relief at finally having an rational explanation of all the problems that they’ve dealt with. The life experience of us with an adult diagnosis is so different than those with a childhood diagnosis.

    I don’t know how you came to a diagnosis, but I’m in IT and saw an article in one of my trade weeklies indicating that as much as 70% of the people in IT were on the spectrum . It provided a link to the “Aspie Quiz”. I aced that, and that led to extensive research online that led me to a self diagnosis using the Adult Asperger Assessment (AAA) and other tools. I finally a formal diagnosis of AS:High Functioning (I was attacked recently by someone else in an LBGTQ forum for saying that.) by a Forensic Psychologist for confirmation and protection under the ADA. I suspect that most adults start with self-diagnosis and then seek formal confirmation.

    Reply
    • Jodi Murphy says

      June 29, 2020 at 2:51 pm

      Thanks for sharing this Walt.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Join Our Neurodiverse Community:

Read Our Current Issue:

Search

Latest

  • A Year That Forced Me to Be More Patient and Flexible
  • This Year I’ll No Longer Apologize for Taking Up Space
  • #AskingAutistics: What Caused Your Autistic Burnout?
  • Why I’m the Caregiver I Never Had Growing Up
  • Allowing Myself Grace at Every Turn

Topics

  • 501c3 Mission (8)
  • Anxiety (8)
  • App & Product Reviews (12)
  • Autimisms (29)
  • Autism Acceptance (13)
  • Autism at Work (9)
  • Autism Entrepreneurs (17)
  • Autism Resources (6)
  • Blog Haps (534)
  • Buzz (6)
  • Classroom (15)
  • Curious Interviews (116)
  • Day in the Life (9)
  • Dorktales (4)
  • Impactful Blogs (9)
  • Labels (4)
  • Love (5)
  • Mighty League (31)
  • Neurodiversity (2)
  • Our Personal Autism Journey (28)
  • Penfriend Project Autism Columns (215)
    • Adriana's Awesome Autistic Book Lists (1)
    • Aspierations (16)
    • Autism Insider (76)
    • Autistic Speaks (27)
    • Being Brave (25)
    • Chloe Rothschild (3)
    • Fidgets and Fries (2)
    • Happy Aspie (9)
    • My Shaynanigans (8)
    • Neurodivergent Rebel (19)
    • Positively Autistic (17)
    • Proud Autistic Living (6)
    • Tud Sense (5)
  • Pop Culture (8)
  • Safety (8)
  • Self-Care (7)
  • Self-Esteem (3)
  • Self-Improvement (10)
  • Sensory Needs (9)
  • Social Skills (4)
  • Speech and Language (6)
  • Tell Us Your Story (29)
  • Zoom Autism (55)

Footer

Support Our Work

Partners

#ReadYourWorld Advisor
 

Stay Connected

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Copyright © 2021 Geek Club Books

To improve your experience on our site we may use cookies. Find out more.