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i love that seals can just

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this tops anything I was going to say 

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"I Don't Have a Routine"

For those who are seeking diagnosis, think they might be autistic or are already diagnosed/self-diagnosed but just confused

Routines/rituals aren't just getting up at the same time every day.

What can routines look like for an autistic (just general examples, not an exhaustive list):

Getting dressed in the same order. A change of this feels very upsetting.

Eating your food in a particular way. This may be eating each food individually, combining food in certain ways, not letting foods touch etc .

Getting ready for the day in a very particular way, specifically the order and time given to each activity. Being forced to rush or skip an activity is very upsetting.

Only going to certain shops, even if they are out of your way, because you've been there before. The same shop in a different suburb is too distressing.

Driving the same route to places. Suggested short cuts, or lane changing without mental preparation etc is very distressing. You would rather stay in the slow lane you 100% know takes you home than go down a new street.

Showering/bathing in the same order.

Stacking dishes or cleaning in a very specific order such as sink first, then counters, then stove etc. This order feels important but you cannot state why.

Work plans or school plans are day specific. You struggle to do banking on a Thursday, because that's a Friday activity, even though Thursday is just fine. But it's a Friday activity...so can't do it today.

To outsiders these routines/rituals seem to have no purpose but they are sacrosanct to the autistic individual. Changes must be given time, with lots of notifications and check-ups to ensure we're accepting the changes.

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Recently a couple of the autistic kids I work with have inspired me with openly, unapologetically owning it.

Like one kid saying “if I don’t make eye contact it’s because I find that hard and it’s easier to concentrate on what you’re saying if I’m not looking at you.”

And another one asking for clarification of an ambiguous statement to check understanding instead of just hoping for the best.

And one saying “I’m going to stim now, this conversation is hard”

I have so much respect for them for being able to voice those things! It’s inspired me to try harder to do that instead of masking until I meltdown because I’m so scared of how people will react.

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Reading this put so many things into perspective for me…holy shit

(op is @divergentdino on Instagram)

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Source ~ My Autistic Soul

What is Echolalia?

Echolalia is the repetition of sounds.

This is when you repeat ANY form of sound:

Phrases from movies and TV shows

Humming and whistling

Singing

Repeating your own words and thoughts

Tapping

Coping any noise, like a car or animal

Clapping

Repeating a person (even down to the exact time)

Repeating words and phrases in your head is a form of echolalia, too!

Why Do Autistics use Echolalia?

To improve language skils

For comfort

To deepen relationships

To communicate and engage

To acknowledge

To process

To stim

Because we want to

Autistic people of all ages use echolalia, along with people who have ADHD, Tourette's, and Schizophrenia.

Echolalia is natural, healthy and necessary.

Echolalia should never be interrupted, stopped, mocked, or "treated".

Echolalia is communication. Echolalia is comfort. It is a stim. It is really friggin fun. Seriously holy cow you should try it sometime.

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Pirate jokes

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So I went to an art exhibit recently, a collection of Native American art from pre-colonial times to the present. As you might guess, there were a few pieces whose artist was lost to time or erased. But instead of the usual “artist unknown” credit, the curators instead chose to label the artists as “Name Once Known”.

I think that’s amazing. It says, “we don’t know your name any longer; we’ll never know who you were, exactly. But you were a person once, and you mattered. You had a name, and you were loved, you had a life, and you made this art. And that means something. Your name was once known.”

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I was someone who only had to survive today. But ever since I met Moon Soo, I began to wonder and wait for tomorrow.

Just Between Lovers (2017)

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This is still the best thing on the internet

[Sound on]

(via)

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