50 ways to help autistic people
So it's World Autism Awareness Month again!
Those who follow Autistic Not Weird's Facebook page will know that I often use the occasion to upload a ton of picture posts- not just to spread awareness but to enc...
A brief guide to coping with being different
I wasn’t very old at all when I first noticed I was different. I didn’t have a word for it until I was 24, but my differences have rarely been a secret - to me or anyone else.
And sometimes, sadly, other peo...
An autistic person’s guide to an autism-friendly Christmas
I don’t like Christmastime. And I should be allowed to say that without being criticised for it.
Don’t get me wrong, I love what Christmas stands for. But December is that month when Expectation Claus sneaks...
Fifty pieces of advice from an autistic adult, written for autistic children
The internet is full of advice articles for parents. So just for once, this one’s for children themselves!
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but this is my fiftieth article for Autistic Not Weird. So I thought ...
11,521 people answered this autism survey. Warning: the results may challenge you.
Prepare yourselves. This article’s a big one. (But for those looking at the scrollbar and thinking “wow, this is long”, the majority of it is graphs. Nonetheless, I won’t blame anyone for skim-reading.)
&nbs...
Five tips for autistic students starting college or university
On paper, I’m an amazing student. I have a Bachelors degree in Mathematics with Education (with honours), a postgraduate primary teaching PGCE, and last year I graduated with distinction in my Masters in Creati...
“Hating autism” and the damage it does
If this article challenges you, it may be a good thing. I’d encourage people to read this with an open mind, even if your instincts are telling you to oppose it.
I used to have a love/hate relation...
Navigating the autism diagnosis journey as an adult
More and more adults are coming to realise that they’re on the autism spectrum. Sometimes the possibility of autism is suggested to them by a friend, sometimes a family member, and sometimes the realisation com...
Autism and exam stress: 10 tips from personal experience
When I was sixteen, I took fourteen exams in three weeks.
In the next two years, I took another sixteen plus a bunch of resits too. At university, I took twenty-four.
I did all of them without having any ...
When you’re “not allowed” to have mental health issues
Officially, I’ve had mental health issues since 2013.
Or at least, that’s when the therapy started. I might have had mental health issues from childhood. It’s difficult to tell, because so much of it just fe...
Bridging the Gap Between Autistic Adults and Autism Parents
Sometimes, the internet is toxic. That’s no secret. And that extends everywhere, even in the autism world.
You’d think the community (namely autistic adults and parents of autistic children) would ...
I just found out I’m autistic. What do I do now?
When I first found out I was autistic, I didn’t take it well. (Spoiler alert- things have changed a lot since then.)
I remember my conflicting response to having the news broken to me: the cross be...
I asked my followers to share the most ridiculous “autism causes” they’d ever heard. Brace yourselves.
Once in a while, I invite Autistic Not Weird’s Facebook community to contribute to my articles. Most of the time, the results are either funny, informative, or actually worth publishing in a book.
But this...
My response to “you’re not REALLY autistic, are you?”
I went through most my teaching career without talking about my Asperger Syndrome. I imagined every negative outcome; people questioning my ability to teach, children in my class wondering what was ‘wrong’ with...
Five Tips for Handling Low Self-Esteem and Worthlessness
This is a big one, guys. And it’s time for me to stop procrastinating and face my past.
Those who have known me for a while will know that I have a fair amount of experience with low self-esteem, feelings of...
We need to stop saying “we’re all a little autistic”
A few years ago, I was the only diagnosed autistic staff member in a special school. The rest of the staff weren’t autistic, but many jokingly claimed to be.
“Oh, that must be my autism,” some would say as t...
Asperger Syndrome and Religion: Reconciling Logic with Faith
‘I just can’t understand how someone with a maths degree and a brain like yours can believe in God’, a relative said to me once. Oddly enough, this was years before either of us learned about my Asperger Syndro...
The balance between helping autistic people and doing it for them (and how to get it right)
During my work in special education, one story that really stuck with me involved a sixteen-year-old girl who came to us after a lifetime in mainstream schools. The most revealing moment of her first week came ...
50 Pretty Big Facts About Autism
After this album of pictures got over 3,000 shares on Autistic Not Weird's Facebook page , I thought I'd upload them all here for your viewing pleasure!
For those who are seeing these for the first time, I h...
A survival guide for Year Sixes preparing for their SATs (from an autistic teacher)
There are so many advice articles out there for parents. This one’s for children.
In particular, this is for the thousands of Year Six children who are about to take their end-of-primary-school SAT...