Navigating Autistic Burnout: Self-care strategies to recover and recalibrate

Burnout is sometimes referred to as ‘Autistic regression’ because the reduction in functioning across a range of areas makes it seem as though skills are ‘lost’.  As masking falls away, we may seem ‘more Autistic’ because our capacity to sustain it is reduced. But how do you recover and recalibrate when, as an Autistic person, you’re already working harder just to exist in the world? Autistic lawyer, Justine Field, provides some tips on how to muster self care when it seems out of reach.

Neurodivergent and under duress: an Autistic experience of medical consent

In this important personal account, Autistic cancer survivor Brenton Gray, highlights the problem of medical consent obtained in a healthcare system built by neurotypicals, for neurotypicals. “The fawn response is heavily programmed into a lot of Autistic people from a very early age,” he writes. “I never formed emotional boundaries, so much as a picket fence made of toothpicks. I’ve become a people-pleaser; learnt to say, “Yes” when instead I mean, “Whatever you want to hear. Now piss off!”.

Autistic Insights: Terra Vance on Relating Through Autistic Identity

In this webinar, presented by Terra Vance with support from Kate Jones of NeuroClastic, Terra explores the topic of relating to Autistic people through Autistic identity, and how to forge authentic relationships.

Please don’t ask me to be brave

In this powerful piece by one of the Reframing Autism team, she takes us behind one of her particularly damaging masks – the one called “courage”. “This mask is a warrior. It rushes headlong into battle without fear, or even better, despite fear … it lives by the mantra “act first, think later”. It is arrogant. It makes me say “yes” when inside I am screaming “no”. It says to my children “Be brave – like me!”

Autistic Adolescent Boys’ Perspectives on Engagement in Online Video Gaming, A summary for Non-Academics

In this research, published in 2022, researchers interviewed 12 autistic adolescent boys (aged between 13-15 years old) to ask them about their perspectives on online gaming.

The study is the first to explore in-depth the positive views of Autistic adolescents on online gaming.

Does Learning You Are Autistic at a Younger Age Lead to Better Adult Outcomes? A Summary for Non-Academics

Does learning you’re Autistic at a younger age lead to increased wellbeing and quality of life? That is the question researchers sought to answer when they embarked on this study. They asked 78 university students how they learned they were Autistic, how they felt about Autism when first learning they are Autistic and now, and when they would tell Autistic children about their Autism. Read this research summary here to find out the results.

Guidelines for selecting a neurodiversity-affirming mental healthcare provider

Today is R U OK? Day, a special day for checking in on the mental health of others. But it can be hard to ask this question and offer support if you, yourself are struggling. So for all of those who do want to show concern for others without taking on their mental health concerns, we created these downloadable guidelines for you to share on how to select a neuro-affirming healthcare provider. Because sometimes even asking R U OK? can be beyond our capacity, and that is OK too.

Discovering Your Autistic Identity as an Adult: What Next? 

Whether you’ve had a “light bulb” moment when reading of other Autistics’ lived experiences or have realised that you share an uncanny number of characteristics with your Autistic child – Welcome! from a community of people who will understand and accept you for who you are. But what do you do next?

When Chloe met Riley: the power of neurodivergent love

Ahead of our Symposium on Autistic Relationships, we’re exploring the magnetic attraction of neurodivergent love. We interviewed the Director of Studio Misfits, Chloe, and her husband, LGBTQIA+ and mental health advocate Riley, on the benefits of being similarly (and differently) neurodivergent.