The only reason I’m writing this post about this show is because it’s a show my child is obsessed with right now, so I’ve watched the episode 41,392 times. It’s not because I think the whole show is horrible or that this example is particularly egregious — just a single example I happened to see … Read more
There is a common misconception that people with autism don’t show empathy, or don’t feel empathy, or cannot take on the perspective of someone else. The three categories given in the DSM-5 definition of autism, all of which are required to be met in order for a person to receive that diagnosis, cover (1) social-emotional … Read more
You may have heard someone say, “He has severe autism” or “They have mild autism”. You might have heard “She has high-functioning autism” or “He is very low-functioning”. In response to some backlash against these terms, there has even been a newer push towards classifying autism into “level 1, 2, and 3”. And, as I … Read more
“Sensory” is one of those buzzwords these days in parenting groups, on Pinterest, and in relation to different diagnoses. I’ve seen people use it to mean pretty much everything. When I talk about sensory processing, I am not talking about kids playing with rice or shaving cream in a bin. 😊 There are a few … Read more
“Sensory” can be a real buzzword these days, and can be a little bit tough to understand! There are a few different ways of understanding sensory processing, but Winnie Dunn’s “four-quadrant” model is a very helpful one. It describes how everybody in the world (not just kids, and not just people who have difficulties with … Read more
“What about the DSM definition of autism?” This is the kind of question that I’m more likely to get from experts who are maybe trying to wrap their head around a neurodiversity paradigm but having trouble letting go of what they’ve been taught in schools or other institutions. The DSM is the Diagnostic and Statistic … Read more
Describing autism as a spectrum sometimes leads people to conceptualize it as though it is a single axis with “more autistic” and “less autistic” at the two polar ends of it, and each autistic person placed along this axis somewhere. I’m going to go more in depth about autism classification later this month, but what … Read more
I remember when I first started being exposed to the idea that disability could be largely, if not entirely, a social construct. I thought of it as kind of a nice, “politically correct” idea, and I could understand the framework that it was taking and was happy to accept it and espouse it externally. It … Read more
The Theory of Monotropism is one explanation of the origin and definition of autism as a natural, neurological wiring. It’s absolutely fascinating, compelling, and makes sense of a whole lot of things, and it stopped me in my tracks the first time I read about it. Here’s my favorite article on the whole thing — … Read more
I thought it would be helpful to have some definitions of some terms that I might use this month (and also throughout my writing). *** Autism/Autistic: I will be posting several definitions, one tomorrow and more throughout the month, of autism from a strengths-based reframe. At very least, it is worth thinking about and reconsidering … Read more