What People Should Know about Autism

 

I’m not going to overwhelm you with data and statistics.  There are plenty of other spaces for that.  Instead, I’m going to give you a fun little quiz to take. 

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1. When is Autism Pride Day? June 6th, June 12th, June 18th, or June 24th

2. What is the formal name for autism? 

3. Within the community of autism, what are non-autistic people sometimes called?

4. Is autism more common with males or females?

5. Name five famous autistic people.

(Skip ahead to the end of this and you will see the answer key.)

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How did you do?  Chances are you got at least a few right, but most of the general public would not score 100% on this.  The reality is that people know very little about autism.  I say this without judgement, because specialists are still gathering information.  I am a young, autistic woman, and even I am still learning about it.  Allow me to put the general lack of knowledge into an even clearer perspective.  These are the common behaviors of those with autism:  head rolling, body rocking, and hand flapping.  In fact, these behaviors are so “well-known” that they are even considered to be stereotypes of autism.  I have always been a hand flapper, and people have noticed.  Many have asked why I do it.  “Why do you shake your hands?”  They ask.  Yet none of these people, to my knowledge,  even suspected that I have autism.  In fact, when people learn that I am, many are surprised; and some even go as far as not believing me.

…So, I do a very “stereotypical” action of autism, and yet people have a hard time believing I am autistic.  That is how little people know of our world.  Allow me to shed some light on our general perspective of the world and how we generally wish to be treated.

 

What We Are Tired of Hearing People Say 

1. We’re all a little autistic.

This is actually a fairly common thing that people say. I understand where these people are coming from. After all, everyone’s a little quirky. Everyone, as Monica Geller would put it, “has a thing”. Here is the problem with that saying though: it is simply an illogical thing to say. If someone were to do a little reading on the behaviors of autism, everyone would be able to identify with at least one behavioral trait of autism. However, identifying with one trait does not make you autistic, just as playing one game of football does not make you a football player, being onstage one time does not make you an actor, etc. Not only is the claim that we are all autistic illogical, but it is also insensitive. It invalidates, or at least brushes off, the struggles that autistic people deal with every day.

1. You’re autistic, but you’re so smart! 

Many people fail to realize the neurodiversity of autism. Some people think that if you are autistic, you are automatically unintelligent, that you cannot hold conversation, that you will never be independent, etc. There’s a flip side to this too. Some people believe that if you are autistic, you must be a genius. While there are many savants with autism, not all of us autistic people are geniuses. We autistics come in many different shapes, sizes, and personalities.(Many people say that we are “high-functioning” or “low-functioning”; while I do not personally do not find these terms to be offensive, just know that some people do.)

1. Don’t vaccinate you’re kids.  It causes autism!

While getting too many vaccinations at one time can cause a child to become ill, it does not cause autism. To my knowledge, there was only one study that claim to that conclusion, and it was found to be faulty.

1. You don’t look autistic!

Again, we are a diverse group of people. We do not all have one look to us.

1. Have you tried praying?

While I do not invalidate prayer, (I myself am a praying woman), I and many others who are autistic do not appreciate being asked by people who don’t even know us very well if we want Almighty God to cure our poor little defective brains. Now, if there is a young autistic child who is severely struggling with life and whose parents are having a difficult time, then a prayer for the parents and the child’s well-being and happiness will most likely be appreciated. However, there is a big difference between that and “praying the autistic away” if you will.

 

What People Are Curious About

 

I’ve seen people ask on Quora if autistic people are similar to psychopaths and sociopaths. People ask this because they see a certain lack of empathy trending across the disorders. My answer to this question is very generalized and blanketed, but it is straight to the point: Psychopaths/Sociopaths do not feel emotions in the way others do, but can read other peoples’ emotions very well. Autistic people feel emotions fairly similarly in the way non-autistic people do, but cannot read other peoples’ emotions or social cues very well.(Although many females with Asperger’s have a tendency to be able to read other peoples’ behaviors and mimic, a technique known as “masking”. This is actually kind of similar to what psychopaths and sociopaths do.)

 

Some people are curious about our diet. Some of us like to eat off the Kids Menu, even when we are older. Some think that this is because we are immature, or too cowardly and coddled to explore. When the truth is, some foods physically hurt us. For example, if I drink certain citrus drinks, or really anything with alcohol, I feel what I can only describe as a “zap” that goes to my temples. It is a very uncomfortable sensation. It was what I imagine a mild session of electroshock therapy could be like. So, before you judge us for our food choices, have compassion and ask questions.

 

Some people also have heard that we have sensory issues. Indeed, loud noise is overwhelming and fluorescent lights are unpleasant. Our brains are simply hardwired differently, and so we are more sensitive to certain things.

 

My Advice for Others Who Are Autistic

 

If you live in the Western world right now, you pretty much have more rights and support than ever before. While you are not obligated to tell people you are autistic, I have found that it helps when I tell people, especially professors/employers/authority. Despite societal unawareness, there has been a significant rise in societal compassion within the last few decades. Embrace that, and embrace .Accept yourself, and love yourself. Do what you can to learn about what you love, how you function, under what conditions you are most productive, etc. Challenge yourself. Do not allow yourself to stay too comfortable for too long, as comfort provides little room for growth. Live your life in truth and in love. (If you have Asperger’s, I highly recommend you read by John Elder Robison!)

 

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Quiz Answer Key

 

1. June 18th

2. Autism Spectrum Disorder

3. Neurotypicals

4. Males

5. Temple Grandin, Susan Boyle, Daryl Hannah, Anthony Hopkins, John Elder Robison, Satashi Tajiri (creator of Pokemon), and more

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

Jubilee. “Do All Autistic People Think the Same? ”Commentary by Jai, Joseph, Josiah, Shaina, and Yoni.11 

     Mar. 2020,

Paris, Jennifer et al. "Child Growth and Development.” College of the Canyons, 2019.