Are you neurodivergent? Do you oftentimes find you seem to feel more tired than everyone else around you, and you wonder why? You might be surprised to know that this isn’t just due to the amount of sleep you’re getting.
Are you afraid of being misdiagnosed as normal? I initially thought getting a formal diagnosis was a mandatory part of the process so I could be accepted and for my autistic identity to be validated. Now, I know that it’s not 100% necessary, yet getting a formal diagnosis can still be extremely validating for some. The flip side, however, is also true. The fear of being misdiagnosed threatened to take away a part of my identity. Regardless of whether you seek a formal diagnosis or not, however, you can still meet other autistic people in the meantime and become a part of the diverse and welcoming autistic community.
Is Autism a disability or an identity? Does it have to be one or the other? How can a diagnosable ‘disorder’ defined by deficits in a range of criteria be an identity? What is an identity anyway? To be objective and scientific, it’s easy to overlook the human side of autism. In this video, we will go beyond the diagnostic criteria and explore the significance and complexities of these labels to determine when they are appropriate in the context of real personal experiences within the community.
This video explains in pictures the difference between ADHD and autism and the neurodiversity rainbow. When looking at autism vs ADHD, both have issues with attention regulation, executive function, emotional regulation, social challenges and many more, yet there are some key differences between them.
In 2020, Anderson Cooper reported on companies seeking out potential employees with autism, and the employment opportunities being made available to the autistic community.