As an autistic person, I decided to watch “As We See It” to see how autistic people are represented. After watching the whole season, I concluded that “As We See It” should be called “As Non-autistic Caregivers See It.”
Tag: Autistic Science Person
This checklist is for people who aren’t autistic (or whose autistic traits differ from those of their child/charge) to understand what may upset an autistic person, and cause them distress.
Created by Ezra Katz, Wikimedia Commons / Creative Commons [image: Simplified all-black figures of an adult holding the hand of a child while they stand side-by-side, on a yellow background.] Autistic Science Person twitter.com/AutSciPerson I am exhausted by non-autistic parents who: Ignore the experience of autistic people who went through ABA Say ABA “was never like that” for their child Assume their child cannot be traumatized long-term because they “seem happy” Think we’re saying they’re trash parents You can’t speak for your kid. You can’t know what they think, what they feel, and what may have caused them long-term trauma that they’ll have to work through. You. Can’t. Know. That. Right. Now. That’s not how mental health effects from masking and from sensory invalidation work. And then I try to remember that when I’m talking to one parent who is speaking over their kid and their experience, five or ten…
Photo © Jisc InfoNet | Flickr / Creative Commons [image: A small group of people, seen from behind, standing between bookshelves in a library, under a large white suspended sound dampening board.] Autistic Science Person www.autisticscienceperson.com https://twitter.com/autsciperson https://www.facebook.com/AutisticSciencePerson Sound dampening a space, especially at home, can be helpful for a lot of reasons. Many homes have appliances which can emit high-frequency noise from electricity that many non-autistic people can’t hear, but many autistic people can. Further, many autistic people have auditory sensitivity, and sounds can be a reason for sensory overload. Although some autistic people can wear headphones, earplugs, or ear defenders to reduce sound, other autistic people cannot use ear protection because of touch sensitivity around their ears or head. Further, autistic people who have auditory sensitivity and/or hyperacusis have to constantly try to shield themselves from noise to reduce fatigue, pain, and sensory overload. Having a space at home where…