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How Does It Feel To Be Autistic

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What it feels like to be autistic

Autism is, in its many forms, often about looking at the world very literally. And that means social situations can seem extremely weird, because there are a lot of unspoken rules, assumptions, communications, and other messages in any social situation, many of which may pass the autistic person by. If you feel perpetually as if you’re getting it wrong in social situations and don’t know why, you may simply be “socially deaf” to these kinds of cues.

When To Seek Medical Advice

Early intervention is very important in children with autism spectrum disorder. Services such as speech therapy and behavioral and skills training are more effective if begun when a child is young.

For this reason, it is helpful to receive a diagnosis as early as possible. However, many children remain undiagnosed until they are in school. Some people are not diagnosed until they are adults.

If you suspect someone has autism, including yourself, contact a medical professional as soon as possible.

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Whats The Difference Between A Tantrum And A Meltdown

The Difference Between Meltdowns and Tantrums. Tantrums and meltdowns are hard to understand,tough to prevent,and seemingly impossible to handle when they happen.

  • About Tantrums and Meltdowns. A child may have a tantrum when he is trying to get something.
  • Differences between Tantrums and Meltdown.
  • Handling Tantrums and Meltdowns.
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    Recognising Emotions: Autistic Pre

    Autistic pre-teens and teenagers might know the words for emotions but still have trouble recognising them in themselves and others, particularly when theyre upset. They might also have difficulty recognising other peoples facial expressions, tone of voice or body language.

    Here are ideas to help:

    • Point out your childs emotions. Start with emotions like happiness, fear and anger, and then move on to more complicated emotions like jealousy, frustration or embarrassment. You could say, I can see that youre frustrated. Are you having trouble with that guitar chord?
    • Encourage your child to describe sensations in their body. For example, if your child seems worried, you could suggest that it feels like a blender in their stomach. Or you could point out how their heart beats faster when theyre feeling scared.
    • Point out emotions in characters in movies. For example, you could watch Inside Out together and talk about how the characters behaviour shows what theyre feeling.

    Ladder picture This is a useful tool for helping your child move from recognising emotions to recognising emotional intensity. Heres an example of a ladder picture for anger.

    You draw a picture of a ladder and give each rung a number from 1 to 5, plus a label:

    Then you ask your child to point at the rung that best describes how they feel.

    How Autistic Adults Raise Kids

    What Does It Feel Like To Be Autistic?

    Steven Gans, MD, is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

    Adults with autism can be great parents or guardians. While a person with moderate or severe autism is unlikely to have the skills to raise a child, many people with high-functioning autism are ready, willing, and able, to take on the challenges of raising kids.

    Many aspects of parenting and guardianship can be tougher for those on the autism spectrum. The reverse, however, is also true there are some ways in which raising kids might be easier if you have autism .

    This article starts by explaining what high-functioning autism is and common misconceptions about the autism spectrum. It then explores the experiences of two parents with autism, detailing not only the challenges they face but the parenting skills afforded to them because they have autism.

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    Interacting With A Child Who Has Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Autism spectrum disorder is a developmental disorder. It affects how children interact and communicate with others. The disorder is called a spectrum disorder because children can be anywhere on the autism spectrum.

    Children with ASD start to show symptoms at an early age. The symptoms continue during childhood and adulthood. Healthcare providers dont know why some children develop ASD. It may be a combination of genes they are born with and something in their environment that triggers those genes.

    Children with ASD have trouble relating to other people. They have trouble making eye contact. They often withdraw into themselves. They may seem uninterested in relating to family members.

    But some children with ASD may love to keep talking with family members, friends, and even strangers about a topic they are obsessed with. The problem is that they may talk about it too long. Or they may talk only about that one subject. This can push other people away.

    If you are a parent or grandparent of a child with ASD, it can be heartbreaking if you feel like you just can’t connect with him or her. But learning more about these disorders and what has helped others can help you and your relationship.

    How To Interact With People On The Spectrum

    In the first section of this article, we discussed what it feels like to live with autism. In this section, we’ll explore ways in which you can connect with someone who lives with autism.

    -Pay attention to the person’s emotions and body language:

    When people on the autism spectrum find themselves in a new social situation, it can be stressful.

    They may want some time to themselves or they might ask to go home early.

    If they’re showing signs that they need space, respect their wishes and provide them some room to breathe until they feel comfortable enough to open up again.

    – Be mindful of their interests and abilities: Try to learn about the person before going into the conversation. If you know what they’re interested in, try talking about that! You could also talk about something you know they have an interest in or are good at.

    – Take things at their pace: Some people on the autism spectrum may take longer than others when it comes to socializing and establishing relationships.

    This is normal for them – nothing is wrong with that!

    It might take them more time than other people to get comfortable around others or establish a relationship with someone new.

    Just give them some space so that they don’t feel pressured or uncomfortable around others.

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    Repetitive Behaviours And Routines

    The world can seem a very unpredictable and confusing place to people with Asperger syndrome, who often prefer to have a daily routine so that they know what is going to happen every day. They may want to always travel the same way to and from school or work, or eat exactly the same food for breakfast.The use of rules can also be important. It may be difficult for someone to take a different approach to something once they have been taught the right way to do it. They may not be comfortable with the idea of change, but may be able to cope better if they can prepare for changes in advance.

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    Little things can disrupt that concentration massively. It might only be the flickering of a lamp. This hyper-focus, or absolute concentration on a single thing, can have negative effects. It can be that autistic people stop receiving feelings of hunger or thirst, regardless of whether it is cold or hot outside.

    Every effort is concentrated on the one thing. It can be solving complicated mathematical problems or developing computer software. Autistic people have become very popular employees for IT companies because they won’t be disturbed by anything or anyone.

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    You Notice Patterns Everywhere

    Its often a special feature of the autistic brain to be able to see patterns all over the place: in letters, numbers, formations of objects, anything. A 2011 study of nearly 750 people found that the brain regions that process patterns are very active in autistic people, while the regions associated with planning and decisions were less active. If youre able to pick out patterns nobody else can see, without even thinking, you may have one of autisms peculiar advantages.

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    Autism Is Not An Illness

    Being autistic does not mean you have an illness or disease. It means your brain works in a different way from other people.

    It’s something you’re born with or first appears when you’re very young.

    If you’re autistic, you’re autistic your whole life.

    Autism is not a medical condition with treatments or a “cure”. But some people need support to help them with certain things.

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    Diagnosed As An Adult

    For some adults who are diagnosed later in life, it is likely they have already found ways to cope and be resilient in the face of discrimination and stereotyping.

    But this is not always the case. Some adults with autism still face daily and lifelong battles to cope in their day-to-day lives. They may also find things like getting a job, meeting new people and having personal relationships really difficult.

    The NHS website highlights that it might be a positive step to be diagnosed with autism as an adult presumably because you may receive support, care and benefits. To what extent a person will actually receive this additional help is another issue. And given the increasing rates with which children and young people are being diagnosed with autism, it is likely that adults who are diagnosed later on, are going to struggle to access the support they really need.

    The Core Symptoms Of Autism Are:

    What does it feel like to have Autism?
    • social communication challengesand

    • persistand
    • interfere with daily living.

    Specialized healthcare providers diagnose autism using a checklist of criteria in the two categories above. They also assess autism symptomseverity. Autisms severity scale reflects how much support a person needs for daily function.

    Many people with autism have sensory issues. These typically involve over- or under-sensitivities to sounds, lights, touch, tastes, smells, pain and other stimuli.

    Autism is also associated with high rates of certain physical and mental health conditions.

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    How It Feels To Have An Autistic Meltdown And How You Can Help

    By Sarinah O’Donoghue // BBC The Social contributor // 29 September 2020

    Autistic people, like me, have different ways of processing the world around them. Situations that others find easy to deal with can actually be really difficult for us. They can even trigger a meltdown.

    For me, a meltdown feels like my body is trying to escape the chaos inside my mind. I fidget, cry and shout to distract myself from louder, internal noises.

    Meltdowns usually affect my body and mind. I can find them physically painful and psychologically distressing, all at the same time.

    How Is Autism Diagnosed

    Doctors check babies and little kids for signs of autism at each checkup visit. A parent may think that something is wrong and tell the doctor. Maybe the child is old enough to speak but doesn’t. Or a kid doesn’t seem interested in people or plays in unusual ways.

    If the doctor suspects autism, a team of experts will evaluate a child.

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    An Interactive Tool For Children Parents And Professionals

    Children who have an Autism Spectrum Disorder have considerable difficulty learning how to manage their emotions. The My Feelings board game is a fun way for children with ASD to explore their own emotions and acquire a range of constructive ways of expressing feelings. The game is appealing to children in terms of the quality of graphics, as well as the structure, activities, and pace.

    Children who have an ASD will identify with the situations and parents, teachers and therapists will have a greater insight into the childâs world of emotions. I particularly appreciated how the game encourages children to have fun with feelings and learn how they and other participants in the game share the same thoughts and emotions.

    Break Out Your Sensory Toolkit

    How Autism Feels, From the Inside | Op-Docs

    Keep a few sensory tools or toys in your car or bag. You can offer these to your kid when their mind is overwhelmed.

    Kids have different favorites, but some common sensory tools include weighted lap pads, noise-cancelling headphones, sunglasses, and fidget toys.

    Dont force these on your child when theyre melting down, but if they choose to use them, these products can often help them calm down.

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    You Have Specific And Niche Interests

    We all have our own interests and hobbies, and people with autism have them too, but they are intensely focused on them, usually to the exclusion of everything else. Common examples can be anything from a fascination with 1970s Italian furniture makers to being an expert on all things train-related.

    Common Autism Coping Mechanisms

    People with autism may use some of these behaviors to try to impose order on their world:

    âStimming.â Short for self-stimulatory behaviors, this includes all sorts of things: flapping hands, echoing phrases, making noises, and walking in circles. Sometimes, these autism symptoms can be self-injurious, like head banging.

    To outsiders, these may seem some of the strangest autism symptoms. But Dawson points out that theyâre really not so different from all sorts of habits that lots of people have â biting fingernails, fidgeting, or bouncing a knee. People with autism might have more severe versions of these behaviors.

    Many with autism characterize stimming as pleasurable for some, stimming is a way of coping with a stressful or overwhelming situation. It can also help them concentrate. McGreevy says that her sonâs particular habit is to rub the back of his neck â even to the point where itâs raw or bleeding â especially when heâs reading. âI think it somehow helps him focus on the book instead of the 15 other things that are going on around him,â she says.

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    One Guys Opinion: What It Feels Like To Have Autism As An Adult

    by Esther | Sep 24, 2014 | Adults & Teens

    If you havent heard of Reddit, you should check it out. It is a community bulletin board if you will, where people can share information, learn about each other and share similar interests. A while ago, a redditor asked, what is it like to personally live with autism? Another redditor, named ThJ, answered.

    He starts:

    I dont have it as strongly as many, and your question is akin to asking a squirrel how it is to be a squirrel. The squirrel only has his own experience to compare with. Experiences will vary from person to person. However, Ill give it a try

    Then continues:

    In general

    • Before you know you have it, you simply assume that you have an odd personality.
    • After you find out that other people are in the same situation as you, you realize that you are in fact quite a normal autistic, and that many of your quirks are symptoms.

    Social experience

    Sensory experience

    Emotions

    Here is the link to the original post

    What Does It Feel Like To Live With Autism

    What Causes Autism? Genetics, Environment and More Factors

    When it comes to talking about Autism Spectrum Disorder, parents of individuals with it mostly ask what does autism feel like. Even individuals with it are curious about others lives and want to know it.

    However, at the basic level, if you have met one person with ASD, you have met one person with ASD. Further to that, you shouldnt expect more. Until you see something different and strange, you shouldnt do something different than when you meet normally developed people.

    There are many other questions that people living with individuals with autism. For example parents ask whether their child understands them or not, what autism feels like, what people think autism feels like and the list goes on like that.

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    Signs You Could Be On The Autism Spectrum

    Most of the stories you hear about people on the autistic spectrum feature them being diagnosed as children. It’s definitely common for signs of autism to first be noticed in childhood, when autistic kids don’t do much pretend play and find social interaction difficult. But it’s also perfectly possible for people, particularly those with more functional forms of autism , to reach adulthood without ever knowing they actually have a place in the autistic community.

    When we talk about “the autistic spectrum,” we’re referring to a very wide range of disorders under the one banner of autism. There’s no one way to present autistic signs, which is why diagnostic tests about the possibility of autism in adults tend to be seriously involved. One quiz, offered by Psych Central to determine whether you might want to seek diagnosis from a medical professional, offers 50 different questions, from social interaction to patterns and empathy. But the basics of autism of any kind, according to The National Autistic Society, are three difficulties: with social communication, social interaction, and social imagination.

    They May Appear To Be Too Over

    People with autism may get easily attached to people, leading them to become over-friendly. It can be difficult to understand other peoples perceptions of situations, therefore what they feel is appropriate, may be considered as socially unacceptable. This misunderstanding can lead to a difficulty in establishing friendships.

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    Make Them Feel Safe And Loved

    Sometimes our children are so lost in their emotions that they cant hear us. In these situations, all we need to do is simply sit with or be near them.

    Many times, we try to talk them down from their panic, but its often a waste of breath when a child is in the throes of a meltdown.

    What we can do is let them know that theyre safe and loved. We do this by staying as near to them as theyre comfortable with.

    Ive lost track of the times that Ive witnessed a crying child be told that they can only come out of a secluded space once they stop melting down.

    This can send the message to the child that they dont deserve to be around the people that love them when theyre having a hard time. Obviously, this isnt our intended message to our kids.

    So, we can show them were there for them by staying close.

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