Resources for people on autism/asperger’s spectrum?
September 10, 2020 6:43 AM Subscribe
An acquaintance is interested in increasing her productivity, but she is feeling overwhelmed, because on the Autism/Asperger’s spectrum. Are there any community resources online where she can find camaraderie, self-care tips, and guidance?
She’s interested in increasing her work hours so she can earn more money for her family, but reports that she finds it overwhelming as a neurodivergent person.
Are there any resources available for her like message boards, online community spaces, social media groups, etc? Places where she can discuss this with other people on the spectrum who have found effective strategies for goals like these.
She’s interested in increasing her work hours so she can earn more money for her family, but reports that she finds it overwhelming as a neurodivergent person.
Are there any resources available for her like message boards, online community spaces, social media groups, etc? Places where she can discuss this with other people on the spectrum who have found effective strategies for goals like these.
I feel a bit uncomfortable bringing this up because I don't know if it's still the case, but in the past some autistic people have criticized Wrong Planet for putting too much emphasis on "Aspie supremacy" and distinguishing between the "right" kind of autistic people (Aspies, generally highly verbal, socially awkward but often able to mask well enough to get by as quirky, eccentric, or "absent-minded professor" type) and the "wrong" kind (non-speaking, not able to mask at all). When I started looking for resources five years ago, I looked into Wrong Planet and didn't feel that it was a good place for me.
Some discussion on Wrong Planet: Why is aspie separatism/supremacy controversial?
And here's a paper in Disability Studies Quarterly that discusses Aspie supremacy in the context of Autism, Rhetoric, and Whiteness.
As far as things I would recommend, here are some of the blogs and resources I like, almost all of them by autistic people (some of the blogs haven't been updated recently but still have a lot of good information:
Also, Steve Silberman (author of Neurotribes) is not autistic but is an excellent ally to autistic people and the autistic community. This is his TED talk on The forgotten history of autism and this is a discussion on "Neurodiversity: History, Politics, and Human Well-Being".
posted by Lexica at 11:20 AM on September 14, 2020 [3 favorites]
Some discussion on Wrong Planet: Why is aspie separatism/supremacy controversial?
And here's a paper in Disability Studies Quarterly that discusses Aspie supremacy in the context of Autism, Rhetoric, and Whiteness.
As far as things I would recommend, here are some of the blogs and resources I like, almost all of them by autistic people (some of the blogs haven't been updated recently but still have a lot of good information:
AASCEND (the Autism Aspergers Spectrum Coalition for Education Networking and Development)A couple of YouTube channels I also really like are Autistamatic, Neurowonderful, and Nathan Selove's channel (all by autistic people).
Everyday Autistic
Invisible Strings
Judy Endow's blog (Judy is an autistic LCSW who presents on a number of autism-related issues)
Life with Aspergers (blog by a man who was diagnosed as autistic after his eldest son was diagnosed)
Spectrum News (group blog, mostly written by autistic people, on a range of topics)
The Art of Autism (group blog, largely about art and creativity)
Michelle Swan's blog
A Stranger in Godzone
Autism and Expectations
The Autism Wars
Lydia X. Z. Brown's blog
Autistic Not Weird
ASAN (the Autistic Self Advocacy Network)
AWN (the Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network)
Chavisory's Notebook (blog; the September 8, 2020, post talks about the difficulty of finding autistic community online)
I Know This Rose Will Open
Ollibean
The Artism Spectrum
The Autistic Me
Thinking Person's Guide to Autism
Real Social Skills
Also, Steve Silberman (author of Neurotribes) is not autistic but is an excellent ally to autistic people and the autistic community. This is his TED talk on The forgotten history of autism and this is a discussion on "Neurodiversity: History, Politics, and Human Well-Being".
posted by Lexica at 11:20 AM on September 14, 2020 [3 favorites]
Also, if your friend has Twitter, two hashtags she might want to check out are #ActuallyAutistic and #AskingAutistics.
#ActuallyAutistic is intended to be used by autistic people only and is a way for us to find each other online. #AskingAutistics is open for non-autistic people to ask questions if they want to get answers from actually autistic people (instead of Autism Parents™ or other non-autistic people who think they know more about being autistic than people who are actually autistic do).
posted by Lexica at 11:37 AM on September 14, 2020
#ActuallyAutistic is intended to be used by autistic people only and is a way for us to find each other online. #AskingAutistics is open for non-autistic people to ask questions if they want to get answers from actually autistic people (instead of Autism Parents™ or other non-autistic people who think they know more about being autistic than people who are actually autistic do).
posted by Lexica at 11:37 AM on September 14, 2020
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posted by NotLost at 10:08 AM on September 10, 2020 [1 favorite]