🧩 Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

🧩 Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
🧠 Welcome to the Family — Our Brains Just Work Differently
So… you’re autistic?
Welcome. 🧩
Or maybe you’re wondering if you might be.
Either way, pull up a chair.
Actually…
Is that chair comfortable?
Because if it isn’t, we’re going to have a problem. 😂
Autism Spectrum Disorder — ASD — is a neurodevelopmental condition that affects how our brains process information, communicate, interact with the world and respond to sensory experiences.
And if you’re autistic, you probably already know one important thing:
🧠 There is absolutely no such thing as “the autistic experience.”
We’re a spectrum.
Which means my autism can look completely different from yours.
One of us may barely speak.
Another may talk continuously about one incredibly specific subject for three hours.
One of us may hate loud noises.
Another may happily stand next to a speaker at a techno event.
One may need enormous amounts of support.
Another may live independently, work, have relationships and appear completely “normal”…
…while internally running approximately 47 simultaneous social calculations.
😂
🧩 So what actually makes us autistic?
Clinically, autism involves persistent differences in two major areas:
1️⃣ Social communication and interaction
We may experience differences with:
Reading social cues
Understanding body language
Facial expressions
Eye contact
Conversation
Understanding implied meanings
Knowing what behaviour is expected
Building or maintaining relationships
2️⃣ Restricted or repetitive behaviours, interests or activities
We may also experience:
Repetitive movements
Repetitive speech
Strong routines
Distress when routines change
Intense interests
Sensory sensitivities
Sensory-seeking behaviour
Repetitive ways of doing things
And these characteristics begin during the developmental period and must cause meaningful difficulties or impairment.
So no…
Liking dinosaurs does not automatically make us autistic.
But knowing the evolutionary history, average lifespan, geographical distribution, skeletal differences and reproductive behaviour of approximately every dinosaur ever discovered?
…
We’re listening. 🦖😂
😂 50 THINGS OUR AUTISTIC BRAINS MIGHT DO
These aren’t diagnostic criteria.
They’re the everyday weirdness that some of us recognise immediately.
Because sometimes you don’t need a clinical description.
You just need someone to say:
“OH MY GOD. YOU DO THAT TOO?” 😂
🧩 1. Stimming
We might flap our hands, rock, tap, bounce, rub things, pace or repeat movements.
It’s called stimming.
For us, it can help regulate emotions, attention or sensory input.
Basically:
🧠 “Please hold while the system recalibrates.” 🔄
🧩 2. Hand flapping
Excited?
Happy?
Overstimulated?
Our hands may suddenly decide they have their own agenda.
👐
Brain: “WE HAVE FEELINGS!”
Hands: “WE SHALL EXPRESS THEM.”
🧩 3. Rocking
Sometimes rocking helps us regulate.
Sometimes it feels calming.
Sometimes we’re just sitting there rocking while everyone else wonders what the hell we’re doing.
We know.
We don’t necessarily know either. 😂
🧩 4. Leg bouncing
Someone:
“Can you sit still?”
Our nervous system:
“Absolutely not.” 🦵
🧩 5. Finger movements
Flicking fingers.
Rubbing fingertips.
Moving our hands.
Playing with tiny objects.
Sometimes our fingers are basically running background software.
🧩 6. Spinning
Some of us LOVE spinning.
Apparently our brains enjoy vestibular input.
Everyone else:
“You’re going to make yourself dizzy.”
Us:
“That’s the exciting part.” 😂
🧩 7. Watching the same movie 37 times
We know what happens.
We know every line.
We know when the emotional bit happens.
And that’s EXACTLY why we like it.
No surprises.
No uncertainty.
Excellent. 🍿
🧩 8. Playing the same song until it becomes part of our DNA
🎵
Again.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Someone:
“Can we listen to something else?”
“No.”
🧩 9. Hyperfixating
We discover something interesting.
Suddenly it’s:
EVERYTHING.
We research it.
Watch videos.
Read articles.
Learn obscure facts.
Find communities.
Learn terminology.
Possibly redesign our entire existence around it.
And then…
Three weeks later:
“What was I doing again?”
😂
🧩 10. The Special Interest™
Someone makes the fatal mistake of asking:
“What are you interested in?”
Congratulations.
You’ve just opened the vault.
📚🧠
🧩 11. Missing hints
Someone:
“It’s getting late.”
Our brain:
Correct. It is 22:37.
What they may actually mean:
“Please leave.”
Us:
“Oh.”
🧩 12. Taking things literally
Someone:
“I’m dying laughing.”
Our brain:
Medical emergency?
😂
🧩 13. Sarcasm
Some of us LOVE sarcasm.
Some of us struggle to recognise it.
Some of us understand it perfectly…
…but respond literally because watching the other person realise what happened is entertaining.
😈
🧩 14. Eye contact
Eye contact can feel uncomfortable, distracting or exhausting.
Because apparently we are expected to:
listen + think + talk + maintain eye contact + interpret facial expressions + remember what we were saying
all at the same time.
Multitasking has entered the chat. 👁️🧠
🧩 15. Looking everywhere except the person’s face
Wall?
Interesting.
Ceiling?
Fascinating.
Floor?
Absolutely magnificent.
Their eyes?
Too much processing. 😂
🧩 16. Rehearsing conversations
Before speaking:
“Okay, I’ll say this.”
Then:
“What if they say that?”
Then:
“I’ll answer that.”
Then:
“What if they say this instead?”
Congratulations.
We have just created a complete branching dialogue tree.
🎮
🧩 17. Replaying conversations afterwards
Three hours later:
“WHY DID I SAY THAT?”
Five years later:
“WHY DID I SAY THAT?”
😂
🧩 18. Copying other people’s behaviour
Sometimes we learn social behaviour by watching everyone else.
How to smile.
When to laugh.
How long to make eye contact.
When to nod.
When to stop talking.
Basically:
We’re running the human tutorial manually.
🧩 19. Social exhaustion
We can love people.
We can enjoy socialising.
We can have a fantastic time.
And then suddenly:
NO MORE HUMANS.
🔋 2%
🧩 20. Needing to be alone
Being alone doesn’t necessarily mean we’re lonely.
Sometimes solitude is how we recover.
Silence.
Familiar surroundings.
No questions.
No expectations.
No:
“What are you thinking?”
“Nothing. PLEASE LET ME BE NOTHING.” 😂
🧩 21. Talking too much
We know.
We know.
We’re supposed to stop.
But…
YOU MENTIONED OUR INTEREST.
It’s too late.
🧩 22. Talking very little
And sometimes we don’t have words.
Stress, overload, exhaustion or the situation itself can make communication much harder.
Same autistic brain.
Different day.
Different capacity.
🧩 23. Interrupting
The thought arrives.
It’s brilliant.
It’s relevant.
It’s going to disappear.
SAY IT NOW.
🧩 24. Finishing someone’s sentence
We already know where the sentence is going.
Our brain has calculated the trajectory.
Our mouth:
“So basically—”
Everyone:
😐
Us:
😬
🧩 25. Needing routines
We like knowing what happens next.
Same route.
Same order.
Same food.
Same chair.
Same everything.
Because predictability can make life considerably easier.
🧩 26. The Plan™
Someone changes the plan.
Our brain had already built the plan.
The plan had furniture.
The plan had lighting.
The plan had a soundtrack.
Now the plan is gone.
🚨 SYSTEM ERROR 🚨
🧩 27. Organising things
Objects may have to be:
Sorted.
Aligned.
Categorised.
Colour-coded.
Arranged according to a system that makes perfect sense…
…to us.
Touch it and discover consequences.
😂
🧩 28. Pacing while thinking
Some of us think better while moving.
Walking.
Pacing.
Circling the room.
Everyone else:
“Where are you going?”
Us:
“NOWHERE. I’M THINKING.”
🧩 29. Repetitive movements
Rocking.
Tapping.
Pacing.
Bouncing.
Finger movements.
Spinning.
These can help regulate our nervous systems.
Not everything repetitive is meaningless.
Sometimes repetition is regulation.
🧩 30. Echolalia
Repeating words or phrases we’ve heard.
Sometimes immediately.
Sometimes later.
It can be part of communication, processing or regulation.
And occasionally…
a phrase simply gets stuck in the brain.
Forever.
🧩 31. Weird sleeping positions
We may sleep folded like a pretzel.
Under six blankets.
With one foot outside.
Upside down.
Possibly resembling a deceased spider.
And somehow:
THIS IS COMFORTABLE. 🕷️
🧩 32. Clothing tags
That tiny little piece of fabric touching our neck:
“I WILL END YOU.” 👕🔥
🧩 33. Food textures
Sometimes food doesn’t taste bad.
The texture is bad.
And once our brain says:
NOPE.
That’s it.
Dinner has been cancelled.
🧩 34. Same-food syndrome
If we find something safe that works…
WHY WOULD WE CHANGE IT?
Breakfast:
Same.
Lunch:
Same.
Dinner:
Same.
Everyone else:
“Don’t you get bored?”
Us:
“No.”
🧩 35. Noise
Vacuum cleaners.
Alarms.
Hand dryers.
Dogs barking.
People chewing.
Pens clicking.
Someone making a repetitive noise three tables away.
Our brain:
“CAN EVERYONE PLEASE STOP EXISTING SO LOUDLY?” 🔊
🧩 36. Hearing things nobody else hears
“Can you hear that?”
Everyone:
“No.”
Us:
“THAT BUZZING.”
Everyone:
“What buzzing?”
Us:
“EXACTLY.”
🧩 37. Bright lights
Fluorescent lights can be particularly unpleasant for some of us.
Sometimes sunglasses aren’t fashion.
They’re:
TACTICAL EQUIPMENT. 🕶️
🧩 38. Smells
Perfume.
Cleaning products.
Smoke.
Food.
Shampoo.
Someone cooking something three houses away.
Our nose:
“WE HAVE LOCATED THE SOURCE.”
🧩 39. Unexpected touching
A surprise touch can be extremely uncomfortable.
Because our nervous system wasn’t prepared for it.
WARNING: UNSCHEDULED HUMAN CONTACT. 🚨
🧩 40. Pressure
Some of us actively seek strong sensory input.
Weighted blankets.
Firm hugs.
Compression.
Heavy objects.
Deep pressure.
Basically:
“PLEASE SQUISH ME.”
😂
🧩 41. Supermarkets
Lights.
Music.
People.
Colours.
Movement.
Smells.
Announcements.
Choices.
Carts.
Someone standing directly in the middle of the aisle.
THIS IS TOO MUCH.
🛒💀
🧩 42. Meltdowns
A meltdown isn’t a tantrum.
It can happen when our nervous system becomes overwhelmed beyond its ability to regulate.
We may cry.
Shout.
Become distressed.
Try to escape.
Lose the ability to communicate normally.
It isn’t:
“I’m not getting my way.”
It’s closer to:
“My nervous system has exceeded capacity.”
🧩 43. Shutdowns
And sometimes instead of exploding outward…
We disappear inward.
We may become quiet.
Withdraw.
Stop speaking.
Struggle to process information.
Look completely disconnected.
We’re still in there.
The system is just in emergency mode.
🧩 44. Recovery mode
After sensory or social overload, we may need:
Silence.
Darkness.
Sleep.
Alone time.
Familiar surroundings.
No questions.
No decisions.
No people.
🔋 PLEASE PLUG HUMAN IN.
🧩 45. Knowing EVERYTHING about one bizarre subject
Someone:
“How do you know that?”
Us:
“I researched it.”
Them:
“Why?”
Us:
“Because it exists.”
Perfectly logical.
🧩 46. Getting completely absorbed
Sometimes we can become so focused that hours disappear.
Food?
Forgotten.
Phone?
Forgotten.
World?
Gone.
Our brain has entered:
THE ZONE. 🧠⚡
🧩 47. Losing track of time
Five minutes.
One hour.
Three hours.
Time is apparently a suggestion.
🧩 48. Suddenly needing to move
We’ve been sitting quietly.
Everything is fine.
Then:
MUST MOVE.
Walk.
Stretch.
Bounce.
Shake.
Dance.
Anything.
The nervous system has requested movement.
🧩 49. Being “too honest”
We may say exactly what we mean.
No hidden message.
No secret meaning.
No elaborate social strategy.
Just:
“That’s ugly.”
Everyone:
😳
Us:
“You asked.”
😂
🧩 50. Doing something that makes absolutely no sense to everyone else
And this might be the most autistic thing of all.
Because sometimes we do something that looks completely bizarre.
But inside our brain…
IT MAKES PERFECT SENSE.
That’s the thing about autism.
The behaviour isn’t necessarily random.
There may be sensory regulation.
Comfort.
Predictability.
Movement.
Interest.
Communication.
Emotional regulation.
Pattern recognition.
Or simply…
“Because it feels right.”
🧠 THE IMPORTANT PART
Not every autistic person stims.
Not every autistic person hates noise.
Not every autistic person struggles with eye contact.
Not every autistic person has meltdowns.
Not every autistic person has a special interest.
Not every autistic person looks autistic.
And not every person who does these things is autistic.
That’s why autism cannot be diagnosed from a Facebook checklist. 😉
Diagnosis involves looking at the whole developmental pattern, not ticking boxes on the internet.
🎭 AND THEN THERE’S MASKING
Some of us become REALLY good at pretending everything is fine.
We learn:
Make eye contact.
Don’t interrupt.
Don’t flap.
Sit still.
Smile.
Laugh here.
Don’t talk about that subject too much.
Pretend the noise isn’t bothering you.
Act interested.
Don’t say exactly what you’re thinking.
And eventually people say:
“But you don’t seem autistic.”
😂
Oh honey.
You should see the amount of processing happening backstage.
🎭🧠🔥
Masking can be exhausting.
And sometimes the person who looks like they’re coping perfectly…
is actually using every available bit of energy to maintain that appearance.
🌈 AUTISM ISN’T A PERSONALITY
We’re not all:
Quiet.
Genius.
Socially awkward.
Emotionless.
Childlike.
Extremely intelligent.
Non-verbal.
Good at maths.
Bad at relationships.
Obsessed with trains.
Or whatever Hollywood has decided autism looks like this week. 😂
We’re people.
With different personalities.
Different strengths.
Different struggles.
Different support needs.
Different sensory profiles.
Different lives.
The only thing we necessarily have in common is that our brains process the world differently.
🧩 THE SA-BUZZ VERSION
Autism isn’t:
❌ “What’s wrong with you?”
It’s:
🧠 “What’s different about how your brain processes the world?”
Sometimes that difference makes life harder.
Sometimes it gives us incredible focus.
Sometimes it creates sensory chaos.
Sometimes it gives us unusual ways of solving problems.
Sometimes social interaction is exhausting.
Sometimes we become absolutely fascinated by something and know more about it than the person who invented it.
Sometimes we need routine.
Sometimes we need movement.
Sometimes we need silence.
Sometimes we need to be left completely alone.
And sometimes…
WE JUST NEED TO FLAP OUR HANDS FOR A MINUTE. 👐😂
❤️ WE AREN’T BROKEN.
We’re not defective humans waiting to be repaired.
We’re autistic humans trying to navigate a world that wasn’t necessarily designed around the way our brains work.
And once we understand that…
The strange behaviour starts becoming communication.
The stimming starts becoming regulation.
The routines start becoming predictability.
The shutdown starts becoming overload.
The sensory avoidance starts becoming self-protection.
The intense interests start becoming passion.
And the “weirdness”…
starts making sense. 🧩
🧠🧩 WELCOME TO THE SPECTRUM
We may process the world differently.
We may communicate differently.
We may regulate differently.
We may love differently.
We may learn differently.
We may experience sounds, lights, textures, smells and people differently.
But we’re still here.
Still learning.
Still figuring ourselves out.
Still occasionally wondering why someone thought fluorescent lights were a good idea.
😂💡
🧩 Different wiring.
🧠 Different processing.
❤️ Saking neurodivergence a little easier to understand — and occasionally making fun of the ridiculousness of being a human with a brain that apparently came with its own operating manual.