Reach out to someone you know this World Autism Acceptance Week
Tuesday 2 April 2024 (Autism Awareness Day) marks the start of World Autism Acceptance Week, which runs until 8 April. Raising awareness of what Autism is and, importantly, what it…
Hard advocacy
I’m Autistic and I won’t be proving I’m fit to drive
Since the ABC article ‘Autistic drivers could find their licences in legal limbo’ dropped last week, there has been the usual, and understandable, flurry of chatter online and in the…
Patient care taking a backseat to the business of health
I don’t think very much of doctors, or any “brand” of health professional really – except for the nurses that tend to do most of the heavy lifting. I haven’t…
Rejection sensitive dysphoria and its connection to Autism
By the time I reached my late teens, I couldn’t walk through the local shopping centre without feeling like everyone was laughing at me. That I had never met these…
With love and support this ADHD Awareness Month
A few months after I received my Autism diagnosis, the psychiatrist I’d been seeing suggested that I also had ADHD-like (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) symptoms, and sent me for psychometric…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
A is for Autism, but a capital A is even better
As someone who has taught English and written, both creatively and to earn a living, for almost 40 years, I have a vested interest in language and the way that…
My most popular post turned me off social media – again
TRIGGER WARNING: THIS BLOG POST CONTAINS SNIPPETS OF POSTS FROM TWITTER THAT CONTAIN LANGUAGE THAT MAY BE TRIGGERING OR DISTRESSING FOR SOME. A funny thing happened over the weekend: one…
Autistic Pride Day: Not proud, not ashamed either
Sunday 18 June is my first Autistic Pride Day – that’s because it’s the first to occur since I was diagnosed Autistic at the end of 2022. Wikipedia tells me:…
Centrelink gave me a hangover
As I type, I feel like last night I had one too many red wines. But that isn’t what happened. I didn’t have anything to drink last night, or the…
You said you’re what now?
What autism is (and isn’t), why I’m disclosing with such abandon, and why nobody knew I was autistic in the first place Towards the end of 2022 I went into…