Show Notes
In today’s episode, you’ll hear from three guests about their autism experience and their perspectives on common stereotypes about autism around communication, relationships, and more. This is a bonus follow-up to our most recent episode about autism with Kaelynn Partlow. Join us as we explore autism further with Syd, Atlas, and Sapphire. I’m happy to have them here to share their insights. Show Highlights:
Meet Syd, a 22-year-old post-grad student who is self-diagnosed as autistic and ADHD:
Thoughts on relationships, unmasking, and “quality over quantity”
Being yourself in a world that isn’t always welcoming to your kind
Cultivating a special (and rare!) interest in learning and education
Meet Atlas, who was self-diagnosed at age 16:
Identifying with autistic characters on a favorite TV show
What it’s like to pick up on other people’s perceptions of your weirdness
Autistic traits that Atlas recognized from childhood about obsessive routines
Meet Sapphire, who was identified as autistic in 5th grade but not diagnosed until age 19:
Nuances around communication, conversations, and awkward silences
The common misunderstandings about what a relationship with an autistic person can be like
Using an “Excel spreadsheet in my brain” to catalog each person
Relationships and the need for “alone time” to decompress
Sapphire’s advice to parents who are hesitant to have their child tested/diagnosed
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