The more you learn about #Autism the more you realize that sorting #ActuallyAutistic people into categories isn't just wrong it's objectively impossible

You're either Autistic or Not!
#AutismAcceptance #AutismAcceptanceMonth

The 3 "levels" in the DSM aren't based on symptom clusters or easily discernable appearances

They are based on how much support is needed; they aren't "different types" of #Autism

I know you heard there was multiple types

I know you have seen portrayals of autistic people that present it that way

Non-Autistic people wrote these narratives

If you want to know Autistic people and the profound differences between each of us follow #ActuallyAutistic people

A good way to understand is that we are as different from each other as we are from you

I have met many Autistic people IRL who are perceived very similar to me and when I talk to them we realize how differently we experience the world

Many Autistic people are so different from me that we didn't even get along nicely

Compared to other disability groups we have a lot less shared experiences within our circles

What does this mean for "allies"?

It means following just the most popular autistic accounts you are likely to only be exposed to variance within our population that is palatable to a larger audience

A lot of smaller autistic accounts just aren't as palatable; seek them out

Autistic people are found in every other community as well

We embed ourselves into your cultures and our dedicated interests means we often provide some of the most valuable resources for education, recruitment, and infrastructure maintenance/construction

The smaller less palatable accounts I am referring to are most of my favorite accounts

Their messages can be hard to understand, crude, or using insular language that you might not understand

Giving them the benefit of doubt allows me access to their often nuanced perspectives

Almost all people who have the highest level of intensive knowledge in something are hard to communicate with; it's an opportunity cost of achieving that

When we give others the benefit of doubt and work harder to understand/be patient we learn a lot more ourselves

If anyone has questions about what insular community language means what I am happy to answer questions

Mutuals can DM me any time; I do really well with prompts but otherwise am very isolated so almost always looking to talk with more people right now

If anything, I am a great example of a palatable and normative #ActuallyAutistic account

Trauma makes me hypercorrective for the responses of others so I am very easy for allies to follow; most of the people that taught me what I know have been around longer and have less reach

If you are following me/listen and found me to be already pushing your tolerance re: autistic communication style please know you are only dipping your toe into the depth that is the #ActuallyAutistic community ocean

If you find yourself focusing on our tone that's a red flag

I would shout these people out but most of the people that taught me the most are somewhat introverted, misanthropic, and paranoid

You have to find them and you have to challenge yourself to listen; if you aren't having difficulties understanding you aren't deep enough