I read about a new detailed map of the human brain. As expected, the "normal brains" were contrasted with "disordered" ones and how eventually they might learn "what's wrong" with them.
If you want to meet lots of lovely autistic people here (plus me š), you could do worse than follow the @actuallyautistic group and the #ActuallyAutistic hashtag. We're cool with self-diagnosis and with people who think they may be autistic and are interested in learning more. And many of us are #AuDHD.
This could be the connection between Ehlers-Danlos and neurodivergence. (People with EDS, like me, are 7 times as likely to be autistic and 5 times as likely to have ADHD -- also like me.)
I know people with estrogen have said their ADHD gets worse during perimenopause/menopause, but I'm wondering if people with testosterone 50+ also notice their Autism/ADHD symptoms getting worse. Especially more "inattentive"/stuck in their thoughts.
I feel like we really need more research on all of this.
My current world order, where my morning and overnight schedule has largely shifted to accommodate a crazy early start to get kiddo ready for alternate school pickup, has resulted in my not being up as late at night as I used to be.
What Iāve realized is this seriously impacts my productivity. Iām way more productive at quiet times in mg day, and now my working time is constrained to when others are around. This sucks.
Doctor suggested I have #ADHD but I don't think I do because:
I am able to force myself to do things even if I'm not interested in it.
I do not like spontaneity.
When I have a deadline, I cannot leave it to the last minute or anxiety would cripple me.
But I do struggle to pay attention unless am hyperfocused. And I do have executive function challenges. And I have to have a project. And I crave dopamine hits.
@niamhgarvey@actuallyautistic@actuallyadhd I'm AuDHD only recently added the ADHD to my collection. Been meaning to watch this for a while now but one of my neuro spices isn't letting me.
Together, we'll explore strategies for thriving in a neurotypical world, understanding our unique brains, and building a supportive community.
All of my workshops are open to all autistic humans, whether formally or self identified. They are pay as you can, so that everyone who wants and needs support can get it.
@NPR Here we go again... "treating autism". NPR, can't you do better? Or we're going back to treating homosexuality and transgender as well? š¤¬ #actuallyautistic@actuallyautistic
The background to this is that #AuDHD people have a choice: be yourself, and get rejected, or pretend to be NT, and get rejected, but not as quickly or as often. The NT population WILL NOT accept us for what we are!
What some people donāt seem to be able to understand is that for the ones with executive disfunction number of steps matters a lot.
I just put away all my dried laundry aside of duvet cover.
Why? Because for all the other things itās easy one-step task: grab all the knickers and shove them into the drawer, get the home clothes and put it into home clothes cube box(that cubed Ikea shelf is such a helper for people like me, I just have a cube for every thing).
But the linen shelf is at the top of the bathroom closet, and itās almost full. So I need a stepladder to be able to put the duvet cover there(I can try to shove it there without, I kinda reach the shelf itself, but in its current state the cover is likely to fall from there, and probably with some other things, so that would upset me which I am not ready to deal with now).
But the stepladder is now occupied by my winter shoes which were drying there before I put them away for summer.
But to put them away I need to get two big boxes from under my bed, empty one by putting everything that is there into the other one, put all the shoes there, put the boxes back under the bad, ensure all the boxes there are arranged in a way that is allowing my cat to play in that labyrinth, and probably clean up after that as I suppose thereās going to be a few dust bunnies.
Gosh, I got tired by just typing all that.
Going through all those steps may bot take too much time(if I donāt get distracted by something, including the urge to sort everything perfectly), but the very thought of going through all those steps just discourages me so much that I canāt find energy to start. āItās just one duvet cover!ā - they say. āItās a shitton of steps!ā - I answer.
Well, the cover is drying in a way that obscures a view from my bed which irritates me enough to maybe develop enough anger to put it away in the weekend.
Do you find that novelty can help you do something new that otherwise you wouldnāt do due to its challenging nature?
I.e. sensory and social overload is averted, at least while something is classed as ānovelā, because the buzz that comes from doing something novel keeps you going.
I ask because Iām wondering if the thrill of novelty where I simply love exploring and experiencing new things is what is helping me keep going in life. Without it, most of these new situations (and older similar ones) would simply not appeal to me at all due to the way they challenge me on an autistic level. I would probably end up in burn out. And even the novel situations take a huge amount out of me, but at least I feel happy/ier about it?
Later this year I have my ADHD assessment and I want to see if this resonates with others that identify as both autistic and ADHD. Alternatively, it could just be that I like novel things but if so, that really goes against my autistic tendencies - I function best day-to-day when in familiar, predictable situations. The opposite of novel! So itās very strange to crave the opposite, even when it costs so much.
Hope this makes sense, but please do ask me clarifying questions if not. š
But itās difficult, tiring, expensive, and my non-existent executive function relies on it while it burns my autistic circuits out.
Itās like that cartoon trope with the devil and angel on the shoulders, one craving stability, sameness and security while the other, the one that actually does the steering seeks novelty constantly.
I think Iām well and truly effed, as the only way I can actually do anything is also the surefire recipe for burnout.
@bookstodon@bookwyrm
If you read large print or dyslexic font paperback books do you prefer this to be indicated on the cover (say on a banner at the top) to help you identify the accommodation?
I compiled a quick poll based on different perspectives I've read.
ā”ļø Please consider sharing to help me reach more readers.
@bookstodon many months ago I received feedback that some readers disliked how I labeled my large-font edition of Late Identified #AuDHD workbook. So I could do better, I asked.
The majority that participated reported they wanted the accommodation labeled on their paperback in a visible way.
āLarge Font Editionā or āDyslexic Font Editionā