World Autism Awareness Week: Video highlights difficulties autistic people face on public transport | DisabledGo News and Blog

Travelling on public transport can be pretty stressful at the best of times.

However, for someone who is autistic, venturing on their everyday commute and facing the unknown can be an incredibly overwhelming experience.

The National Autistic Society has released a video called Diverted that shows a young autistic woman trying to remain calm while on a train surrounded by other people.

The video illustrates how things such as loud noises, flashing lights and accidental knocks with fellow passengers can trigger emotive responses from an autistic individual.

It’s been released as part of the National Autistic Society’s “Too Much Information” campaign to mark World Autism Awareness Week, which is taking place this year from March 26 until April 2.

The person cast in the lead role of the video is Saskia Lupin, a 21-year-old aspiring actor from Brighton.

Lupin is autistic and personally finds travelling on public transport extremely tough.

“I struggle a lot with the unexpected changes that can take place: they make me feel anxious, they make me panic, they make me angry but overall I feel confused, like I can’t do anything and all sense of rationality is lost,” she wrote for the Huffington Post.

 

Source: World Autism Awareness Week: Video highlights difficulties autistic people face on public transport | DisabledGo News and Blog

Autistic Outrage – Why is the Autistic Community so upset? : Neurodivergent Rebel

This is a question I get fairly often in relation to all the various autism related tags on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.  – “Why is the autistic community so upset?”

Because almost all of the media representation of autism comes from people who aren’t even autistic. Autistics ARE speaking. Are YOU listening?

 

Source: Autistic Outrage – Why is the Autistic Community so upset? : Neurodivergent Rebel

Stop Banning Autistic Stimming Because of Fidget Spinners

Henny Kupferstein

Are the new fidget spinners driving you crazy? Autistic stimming and fidget toys differ in purpose. It is necessary to adjust your attitude from a different perspective.

Fidgets are marketing as a toy to keep the fingers busy, specifically for a kid who has focusing issues. Focusing issues are consistent with a diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or ADHD. Focus-seeking fidgeting is a very different purpose than the need to stim in order to prevent sensory overwhelm. The two should not be confused. During sensory overload, an autistic person’s body will uncontrollably move in ways that will try to reboot their brain back to its original functional state. When you react to their reactions to their sensory world, you are irresponsibly causing more harm with your judgement.

Imagine you have a tuning wrench because you are piano technician. The wrench serves a very specific function, and you need your…

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The things every child with autism wishes you knew

We are often quick to make judgements on what we perceive to be happening when children behave in a way that draws attention – but when a young person with autism is struggling to cope with the world, the last thing they need is our criticism.

These 10 tips reflect our combined experience of research and close engagement with children with autism. And as a proud parent of a boy with autism, I would like everyone to think more about how they respond to children.

Because if we take time to respect and understand people with autism our communities will become more enriching and inclusive for everyone.

1. See me for who I am

Source: The things every child with autism wishes you knew

Mother’s fury after disabled son is left on a bus for hours : Express.

This is disgraceful and an incident that should never occur, it is abuse of neglect and is a safeguarding issue.

Is there a risk assessment?

From the article it does not state if safeguarding procedures have been implemented. The child is epileptic and as stated in the article could have had a seizure where the child could have died, then it would have been a police matter.

The article also does not say how the child is attending the Frances Wright Nursery while the investigation is proceeding or what the situation is regarding the staff who allowed this incident to occur.

The procedures and quality checks do appear to be well below an acceptable standard.

Stimming — What is it and why does it bother you so much ?

There should more acceptance of others, for then the world would be a better place.

Open letter from an Autistic human

Such a great insight to autism and a must read for all of us.

Unfortunately many people only see what they want to see,as this creates a safe life for themselves. But everyone of us should be free to live our own lives and be free of criticism and abuse from others. When people do not understand or are unwilling to understand situations and occurrences that are before them they tend to withdraw into their safe areas, which invariably results in them acting in an unfriendly manner to instances that they are unsure of. People are too judgemental and unwilling to learn from experiences they encounter.

So I say to you live your life how you wish for it your life not theirs.

WindSweptChildOnAShootingStar

This letter is to everyone and someone in-particular ; to you and not you; to me so I can better understand myself; to the parents so they don’t misunderstand their children; to the teachers, bank clerks, shop assistants, carers, doctors, nurses; to my family and yours; but most of all it’s to you if it hits a nerve.

Allof my life I have suffered, struggled with a disability I didn’t know I had. A disability that meant day to day living was a battle like no other, where my senses where attacked every minute to the point of actual pain and I had to just act like nothing was happening. If I acted like myself and showed I was in pain I would be smacked , told that I was being pathetic, a freak , told ” You’re fine ! Stop acting like that !”, ” you’re showing us all…

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Hope

We are all different so why should one person react the same as another, why not accept and respect a person for who there are, not how others wish them to be.

Bear this in mind and you and your son will come through.

ourownnormal

He’s 6, he has beautiful big brown eyes, a head full of lushious dark hair and Gorgeous olive skin.

He’s an amazing reader, fabulous at puzzles, he can name the actors names of any marvel character and knows anything there is to know about super powers.

He’s tidy, smart, sweet and particular.

By the age of two he knew all his colours, shapes, how to work the iPad, the apps and how to navigate round them better than I do now.

He can be loving, so loving, caring and thoughtful and so intelligent in his chosen fields.

I never realised as he was my first child, all the things he didn’t do. He didn’t wave goodbye, he didn’t like cuddles and he was always on the go. I just thought he didn’t like goodbyes, that he wasn’t an overly affectionate child and that he was ‘just a boy’. I was…

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A new normal

Caring and life.

One-third of autistic children likely to wander, disappear – Medical News Today

Source: One-third of autistic children likely to wander, disappear – Medical News Today