If you're new here: WELCOME!!! If you've been here before: WELCOME BACK!!! For those of you who have been reading my posts, you may be more accustomed to reading about Python projects or related content. But my blog name is "Chronicles of a Neurodivergent Programmer" so I thought it would be befitting if I talk about neurodiversity for a change, especially for Autism Awareness (or ACCEPTANCE) Month 🥳 If you have read the About Me page, then you would know that I am autistic. As such, it is important to me that people, autistic or not, are aware of autism and are accepting of the autism community.
What is autism?
The diagnosis is now called "Autism Spectrum Disorder" or ASD for short. If you're autistic you have:
- Difficulties with social interaction
- Difficulties with your senses and/or change
- Been autistic your whole life (and will continue to be autistic)
While there are other common traits that are associated with autism, the above three are the core features. Although autism tends to be described as a series of odd behaviors, autism would be better described as a difference in information processing. Essentially autistic people will "see" the same thing, but "view" things differently. It's better to say that autistic people tend to have a different perspective of things from the majority of people. Different perspectives can lead to acting differently, and sometimes be perceived as inappropriate.
But acting differently or inappropriately from misunderstandings or different views is a universal experience of people, right? So, does that mean everyone is on the spectrum somehow?
Not really... The autistic experience is pretty much about never being truly sure about whether you are acting "the right way" or not. Let's use an analogy. Let's say that people use either compasses or coordinates to navigate the world. There are many more compass-users than there are coordinate-users. Most of the directions used to communicate how to go to a specific location are more suitable for compass-users. Coordinate-users would find it harder to navigate than compass-users because the directions are not communicated in a way that is easily understandable to them. Likewise, when coordinate-users communicate directions using coordinates, compass-users are baffled. It's not IMPOSSIBLE for compass-users and coordinate-users to communicate directions, but it can be DIFFICULT. While a compass may have some compatibility issues with other compasses sometimes, it's not the same thing as a compass working like a coordinate. Ultimately, people who have autism and don't have autism share human experiences but that doesn't mean that everyone is on the spectrum.
If people with autism don't think like people without autism, how would we communicate with each other?
Autistic people aren't just one giant monolith. Not everyone acts the same, not everyone thinks the same, and not everyone shares the same strengths and weaknesses. Much like when interacting with any individual, the best way is to engage with the person. That being said there are a few pieces of advice from personal experiences:
- Be honest and blunt (It might feel daunting if you're more comfortable with people "reading the room" but autistic people may "read" differently giving rise to misunderstandings.)
- Reflect on your assumptions and expectations (If you're used to people doing things in a certain way, and someone doesn't do what you expect, don't assume it's a fault of theirs. If in doubt, ask them so you can understand their point of view before being confrontational.)
- Be understanding of differences (Being fixated on normality won't really get you anywhere, difference isn't always bad and it can even be a good thing.)
I don't have autism and I don't know anyone who does, so why should I support autism acceptance?
Current statistics say that about 1-3% of the human population is autistic. That might seem like a very small percentage but that would end up being millions of people around the world. Chances are you have met someone who has autism. Even if you haven't, you will probably meet someone autistic in the future. Human beings live in societies to survive so being able to build relationships with different kinds of people will be beneficial to everyone. So... why not support autism acceptance?
In fact, my support for autism acceptance is found in the blog logo!
What went into the blog logo?
Golden 🐍
Haha ok I am aware that the python looks more yellow than "golden" but there is are a few reasons why I call it the golden python:
- Au is the chemical symbol for gold ✨✨✨ and the first two letters of Autism
- Gold is rare and so are autistic people
- Gold is valuable and so are autistic people (because we are awesome!!!... and also because we're rare I guess LOL)
- Gold is useful and so are autistic people (much like how gold is used for phone parts, autistic people can, and do, contribute to society)
You can hear more about Autistic Gold from Aspergers from the Inside
The reason why I used a python was because... I primarily talk about Python coding on this blog 😉 Actually... no wait there is another reason. Variations of the infinity symbol ∞ have been used by advocates representing Autistic Pride. I had the mouth of the Python join the tail as a reference to the Ouroboros symbol representing wholeness or infinity.
🌈🌈🌈
The term "spectrum" from ASD refers to the various ways that autism can present in each person.
"You met one autistic, you met one autistic."
The rainbow is also a nod to the overlap between the LGBTQIA+ community and the autistic community. Autism can be found in people of all races, religions, gender, sexual orientation etc. There is diversity in almost all aspects of life that I can think of, and autism is also very diverse.
💕💛
The heart refers to loving both python coding and autism. It also refers about being accepting of people from different walks of life in general. 🤟🤟🤟
What can we do to support autistic people during (and after) Autism Acceptance Month?
The first step would be to listen to autistic voices! There are plenty of advocates out there that talk about autism and organizations that work to support autistic people.
Here are a list of my favorite autistic YouTubers (in no particular order):
My favorite autism support organization is Spectrum First (especially relevant for those of you from the UK)
One of the few companies dedicated to supporting autistic adults and is proactive in hiring people with all sorts of neurological conditions.
BONUS:
I hope you all have enjoyed my autism awareness/acceptance post! For those of you who come here to read about Python coding, don't worry I have been learning more skills and working on new projects. Next month I will be posting a Python project so check that out when it releases! If you haven't seen my previous works before, check out the Blog Archive section.
See you all next month!!!
