‘Aspergers have no empathy’. Of course, I understand this statement is an over-simplification of much data and some consistent patterns, and I use it here for dramatic affect. This dangerous statement has been reinforced in clinical diagnostic attitudes, misconstrued via public stupidity and perpetuated as meaning ‘All autistic people, especially those ‘with’ Aspergers, are insensitive, […]
How Do I Feel About Empathy? Read More »
I first self-assessed as having an Aspergers neurological profile in early 2018, using an online tool. I was just turning 53, and in the midst of a prolonged period of crisis involving, among other things, upheavals in the custody of my kids from a previous relationship, with the strain affecting every aspect of my life.
Aspergers: a new Map of Self Read More »
In other posts, I’ve touched on some of the different ways I experience my own ‘autistic attention’ – ranging from very helpful (eg heightened creative focus, problem-solving, mindful awareness) to hinderance (eg anxiety, depression, rumination). As described in Part I, regarding my years of obsessive drawing, when this hyperfocus is channelled into a particular topic,
Autistic attention IV: Specialised Interest vs Social Disinterest Read More »
Human brains, alike the brains housed in other animals, are intrinsically geared towards patternmaking as a fundamental survival function; via the interface of whatever senses are available to us, our brains (and nervous systems) are constantly scanning the environment, receiving sensory (and extra-sensory) signals, from which we unconsciously select, interpret, classify, and translate into smaller
Autistic attention III: Patternmaking & the Curse of the Million Bits Read More »
A feature of Aspergers I know I share in common with many other autistic people, is a pronounced sense of ‘authenticity’. Put another way, I have a kinaesthetic response of ‘wrongness’ if something seems inauthentic, fraudulent, pretentious, insincere, unjust, unethical or patently untrue. This trait is well-documented in research into Aspergers behaviours, and voiced in
Autistic attention II: Positive distraction vs denial Read More »
I’m feeling amused at myself, but hardly surprised. I’ve just spent a whole day writing a slab of something else entirely, intending it to be a brief and succinct introduction to this section. In doing so, I’ve been enacting exactly what I was intending to write about in this chapter: autistic attention. (The same autistic
Autistic attention I: Self-distractive behaviour Read More »
Don’t believe everything you think. Context is how us cuddly ol’ apes hold our notions of ‘reality’ together; context provides specific information to the brain as a container for any further information. To use a tired computer analogy, context is the brain setting up a folder in which to save related files. I also get
Putting context into context Read More »
There are a few autism-related terms that I tend to avoid as they are not good for my health. That is, they cause me various degrees of inflammation. I understand they’re ‘only’ words, but what I’m ‘lergic to is the cultural laziness (or absence of intelligence) that surrounds these words as they are often used
Glossary Of Terms I Won’t Be Using Read More »
