Izzie Chea
Disability and Traveling

By Charlotte aka The Spectrum Girl

Recently I left home to go on a health journey to Thailand in order to get away from the freezing cold temperatures of Norway and the increase of chronic pain connected with it.

In addition to being autistic/ADHD, I have hyper mobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome which is a connective tissue disorder that affects my collagen which is in the ligaments and joints in the body. The biggest hint is already in the word 'connective tissue', so literally everything that keeps my body together is affected. I have good days and very bad days, but it can still be hard to express my level of pain even on my worst days because it's not something that you can really see but something only I can feel.

Disability and Traveling
Izzie Chea
Autism & Focus | The Time Break Theory

By Daniel M. Jones aka The Aspie World

Many Autistic people have major issues when it comes down to focus and concentration. This is mainly down to a co-occurring ADHD diagnosis, where there is a conflict between the autism brain and the ADHD brain. With Autism, the brain wants to hyperfocus on a specific topic or task and really get submerged into it. With ADHD, the brain wants to switch from task to task and be distracted constantly.

So how do we achieve actual focus and concentration within Autism and ADHD?

There are many medications that can help with this of course, however I do happen to test different hacks to try and see what works and what doesn’t. I have here the best of the ones I have tried that actually work and I hope this helps you!!

Autism & Focus | The Time Break Theory
Craig Stapley
Navigating College as an Undiagnosed Autistic

By Charlotte aka The Spectrum Girl

It feels strange to look at pictures of me from my graduation. I spent my life thinking that there was something wrong with me because I didn't fit in anywhere. Getting a formal education felt like one thing that could change this outlook on myself, and I believed so strongly that getting a University degree would fix everything and that I would find somewhere to fit in when I finally had one. I believed a university degree would make me get accepted for who I was and be recognized for my skills.

My story of how I got a formal education and a career whilst being an undiagnosed Autistic is a bumpy one. I don't have a GED so how do I have a Bachelors Degree in graphic design?

Navigating College as an Undiagnosed Autistic
Izzie Chea
Two Autistic People Flapping their Fists at ...

By Archer Rosenkrantz

When I was a kid, stimming was something that I had to hide. Stimming is repetitive motions that are often associated with autism. It’s a self soothing mechanism that autistic people use to self regulate and calm themselves down. When I was in kindergarten my parents started to worry about my constant repetitive motions and sounds that didn’t seem to stop. They took me to a doctor and that doctor diagnosed me with a tic disorder. Even though I exhibited many signs of autism I still went undiagnosed for a very long time. I was labeled by tons of other diagnoses to explain my behaviors. This isn’t unusual, because I was assigned female at birth. People assigned female at birth are criminally underdiagnosed when it comes to autism. Autism used to be thought of as a boy’s disease. Anyways, I was taught that my stimming was something that was wrong with me. It also seemed to bother those around me. I learned that the best way for me to fit in was to stop swimming.

Two Autistic People Flapping their Fists at Each Other Across a Crowded Room: move, groove, rock, snap, flap and hum
Izzie Chea
3 Essential Autistic Self-Employed Tips!

By Daniel M. Jones aka The Aspie World

I was asked in January 2020 to brief the EU parliament in France on the current state of autistic employment. 

Let me say that I did just that and what I told them shocked them.

I started by telling the story of a friend of mine called Anna, an autistic female from the UK.

Anna wanted to find employment and applied for numerous jobs in the midlands of the UK, out of which she was accepted by 5 employers.

Once Anna started each one of these jobs and disclosed to them that she was on the autism spectrum, she eventually was “let go” from the company as the work had “dried up”.

3 Essential Autistic Self-Employed Tips!

My College Story as an Autistic Person

My College Story as an Autistic Person

By Tim Boykin aka @blackautisticking

From August 2016 to May 2021 I have been going through a part of my life that changed me so much. I went to a place where I was taught more about common sense, my career I wanted to get into and my own self. And that place was called…

College.

But don’t worry I won’t talk about my entire experience. I want to focus on the time I got my associates degree.

In the year of 2016 I graduated from my local high school a year early. I was supposed to graduate from the 11th grade but fortunately since I took all of my required classes I was able to leave early. At 17 years old I graduated with a high school degree. Around that time I could’t believe it, a black autistic young man like myself was going to graduate with honors a year ahead of my class. The best part about it was I got a scholarship from a local community college due to my good grades and the fact that they want to accommodate an autistic person. I was excited to go to college but another part of me was a tad bit nervous just like any other time I transition from one school to another.

How I, as an Autistic Person, Improved my Sleep Quality in Three Steps

How I, as an Autistic Person, Improved my Sleep Quality in Three Steps

By Daniel M. Jones aka The Aspie World

Okay so people on the Autism spectrum are notably known to have difficulties with sleeping, this can be from a whole host of things down to too much active brain chatter or simply because they are too overstimulated from life that they find it hard to rest and relax.

Among other things is that people are sensitive to foods like sugars and different types of soda and this can also have an effect of not allowing you to sleep effectively when you’re trying to go to sleep at night and causing all kinds of issues.

Now believe me I have tried everything under the sun to try and help with my sleeping issues because I’m going to bed and waking up feeling like I’ve never slept and it’s just quite frankly becoming annoying.

A Former “Gifted” Kid’s Reflections on Burnout

By Taylor W.

I’ll be honest with you: I’m having a very hard time putting words together these days. 

Actually, I’m having a hard time doing a lot of things. It sort of feels like I’m wading through this…soul-sucking fog, one that’s left me disconnected, achy, irritable, et cetera et cetera. Lots of fun things. I made rice in a rice cooker earlier today and it felt like a serious victory. And really, in these times of constant stress and uncertainty, me feeling this way probably shouldn’t come as a surprise – I think a lot of people are in the same boat. But I’m also acutely aware of how familiar this feeling is. It’s followed me in one form or another for most of my life.

Neurodivergence: An Essential Part of My Romantic Life

By Taylor W.

Okay, quick disclaimer before we get started: this post is not going to be a good resource for advice on casual dating. I have romanced exactly two people in my twenty-four years of existence, and have found myself to be an undeniably “go big or go home” person, as far as relationships go. I don’t think I could have a casual relationship if I tried. But also, I...don’t want to? I thrive off of connecting with people on a deep level, romantically or otherwise, and I wouldn’t change that for anything. And in particular, I find that I connect much more strongly with people who are neurodivergent like me (whether they’re autistic or have ADHD, OCD, etc.). So it’s not surprising that I’ve only ever been romantically interested in people who turned out to be neurodivergent too.