Reflections

A photo of Australian-based Autism support specialist, Kristy and her husband.

Meeting my (now) husband. autism dating neurodivergent May 20, 2021

In the years of my heavily masked unidentified autistic life, dating was an absolute nightmare.

I hated it.

Relationships caused me so much confusion, pain, self-doubt and anguish.

Flirting. Ugh.

Eye contact, words, body language, no clue.

No freaking...

Reclaiming the word "autistic." autism language neurodivergent radical acceptance May 13, 2021

A great beginning point when becoming a friend and ally to the autistic community is to use the term "autistic" rather than ASD.

I see the abbreviation ASD and my skin crawls.

Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Disorder.

"My ASD kiddo" equates to "My autism...

Image of a young person, with their back turned, at the beach.

My disability is my most sacred ally. language masking pda radical acceptance May 06, 2021

So much of my anger, resentment and self-loathing as a young person came from the pressure I felt to mask.

Masking is both something I, as an autistic person partake in as a choice at times to get to where I want to be in life (e.g. jumping through hoops to get into courses or job...

Image descriptions: an illustration of a mother and child saying “Mum is the best.”

When there's not enough processing time. autism neurodivergent parenting Apr 29, 2021

Parenting is tough.

Being autistic and parenting can be challenging when we share the same sensory challenges as our little people and need time and space to be calm.

Today we had a tricky moment and I said with more force behind my voice and energy than usual “I think...

Close up of a blue eye with gold glitter all around.

I'm not looking at you. autism behaviours commuincation neurodivergent Apr 22, 2021

I can’t tell you how concerning it is that we have such an incredibly uninformed requirement for autistic people to make eye contact.

When we understand autism as an identity and culture, we are able to reframe the way we understand eye contact and perhaps stop placing such...

Hello there, passive-aggression. autism behaviours commuincation neurodivergent Apr 15, 2021

This morning whilst packing up from a weekend away, one of my children told me I had been passive-aggressive.

It was a shock.

I had said “I’m sensing annoyance in your tone” and that was their response: “Yeah because you were being...

Photo of two fingers covered gold glitter in a 'peace sign' formation.

This is a difficult time. Let's acknowledge that. autism boundaries neurodivergent radical acceptance Apr 08, 2021

Immerse yourself in communities, places and with people who feel right for you.

A group or page isn't necessarily safe or right because someone else says so.

You get to choose.

Last night I jumped on to have a look around at what some of my neurokin were writing and sharing,...

Awareness month? Nah, not over here. autism language neurodivergent parenting radical acceptance resilience Apr 01, 2021

This morning I'm reminded of an appointment with an obstetrician in the public system seven years ago.

I was heavily pregnant with my last baby.

He was going over my subsequent pregnancies and deliveries and stopped upon something in the notes that was apparently worth dropping...

Image of a person holding a placard with the words 'A smile to protect'

Repeat after me... "I am not my child." autism parenting resilience Mar 25, 2021

People need the space and freedom to feel; to explore and understand the incredibly complex depth and range of their emotional life.

This begins in childhood.

As children, particularly autistic children, it’s important for us to be afforded and provided a safe and secure...

Image of a woman and child playing outside.

Let's discuss: "Living with autism." autism language neurodivergent radical acceptance Mar 18, 2021

I'd like to encourage individuals, professionals seeking out education to be better allies, and families of neurodivergent individuals to be cautious when engaging with any information and education around "neurodiversity".

The word has become the new buzzword for many to hijack, not...

A close up selfie of a lady pulling a face.

What I've learned as a PDAer... commuincation neurodivergent pda Mar 11, 2021

If you've seen any of my instastories over at instagram.com/_kristyforbes; if you're in our inTune Access Support: Family Collective membership then you'll be quite accustomed to seeing me in my pyjamas with my hair all over the place.

Some of my best work is done in my pyjamas,...

An image of a lady sitting at a desk with a superimposed Jedi mask covering her face

Why wasn't I invited to be a Jedi? (a fun one) autism behaviours neurodivergent Mar 03, 2021

Random weekday memory...

I once went against my better judgement out of curiosity (it's ALWAYS that autistic curiosity and fascination with humans, concepts and belief systems) and sat in on a live webinar on DNA spiritual and energetic cleansing.

Yep, I just said that.

...

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