25 unmasking tips to help Autistic people remove the mask
Almost a year since I discovered that I’m Autistic, I realise that most people really don’t care. Some in a good way. They accept me for who I am and have even said that learning…
Glenn Weller
Life and the great Autism trade off
A few weeks ago, the occupational therapist I’ve been working with asked me if I wanted to talk about accommodations for when I return to work. That I experienced a sudden rise in temperature and…
Autistic people and animals: a bond beyond words
In Australia, spring did sprung. Ah, spring has spranged. Spring has springed? In Australia, it is now spring…and in Brisbane that means new growth and flowers, endless blue skies and warm days (we’ve already hit…
Ableism and Autism: a desperately incompatible mix
*Please note that throughout this article I have used the term “disabled person” rather than “person with a disability”, just as I use “Autistic person” on this website. I use identity-first language because – contrary…
The joy and despair of a weekend of two halves
This isn’t the story I intended to post today. But then the weekend happened and I felt compelled to start writing something new. Basically, Saturday I felt depressed. I don’t really know why – despite…
The Pixies to 100 Gecs: Music therapy for the burned out Autistic soul
As I type, I’m listening to 100 Gecs (‘Hollywood Baby’…er, now ‘757’, gotta type more, listen less!), my latest favourite band. I first came across ‘the Gecs’ on Triple J while driving. Wikipedia says Triple…
The Ekka: an Autistic person’s perspective of this iconic event
There are few events as iconically ‘Queensland’ as the Ekka – the State’s largest agricultural show where tens of thousands of families in and around Brisbane flock annually to the RNA (Royal National Agricultural and…
Breaking news: Autistic man demonstrates theory of mind
From a very young age, whenever I met someone new, I could tell within the first few minutes by the way that they moved and the tone of their voice and the suggestions they made,…
What to consider when embarking on an Autism diagnosis
When I was 20, a long time ago now!, I went to my GP feeling sick, with symptoms that included a sore throat, fever, a stuffy nose, and headaches. He quickly diagnosed me with a…
A tale of two trips to the mountains
Last December, my wife and I took a trip to the rural town of Montville on the Blackall Range in the Sunshine Coast hinterland. It was a cabin in the woods type of getaway that…
The enduring benefits of slowness (and how it’s helping me through Autistic burnout)
When I was younger, one of my favourite books was Slowness by Czech-French novelist Milan Kundera. At the time, I was aged in my 20s and living life ‘slowly’: single, engaged in part-time, casual employment,…
I do my best work between the sheets: An Autism sleep tale
I know how the title of this article sounds. But can you blame me? I’m half asleep. Again! That’s despite me turning the lights out just after nine because I was so tired from the…
Life before, during, and hopefully after, Autistic burnout
As I wrote in a story for Reframing Autism, at the beginning of 2022 it felt as though I had hit a wall – a huge, 10-metre-thick concrete wall infused with tungsten. We had just…
Inward opening toilet doors are a germaphobe’s nightmare
Before I discovered I’m Autistic, I thought that maybe I was OCD (the idea of being Autistic didn’t even exist!). That’s because I like everything in its place, I’m very clean, and I wash my…
Autism and the relentless need for control
During the past week, I realised something about myself that isn’t easy to admit. Or maybe it’s more accurate to say that I’ve known about it for a while but tried to ignore it. Or,…