What Autism is

actually like
From someone who actually has autism
Autism definition:
“A developmental disorder of variable severity that is
characterized by difficulty in social interaction and
communication and by restricted or repetitive patterns of
thought and behavior.”
Please remember

1. The things in this presentation may not be relatable, so please don’t write
things off that aren’t relatable
2. The things in this presentation aren’t things that can be fixed, they are
simply facts of life that i have to live with, they are normal and when i am
allowed to deal with them properly are easy to deal with
3. To try to use this presentation to help you from a better understanding of
autism
4. i have a first hand experience with it everyday and have done so for the
last 20 years and with some online research i can guarantee that the info
in this presentation is accurate
Sensory Overload.
Definition of sensory overload

Sensory overload is when your five senses—light, sound, taste, touch, and
smell—take in more information that your brain can process. Overwhelmed by all
the input, the brain responds as it would to a life-threatening situation and enters
fight, flight, or freeze mode
Sensory overload can cause

● Extreme irritability
● Restlessness and discomfort
● The urge to cover ears or shield eyes
● anxiety and fear
Masking.
Masking definition

“Autism masking is the act of hiding one's autism-related behaviors, as well as

displaying socially-expected behaviors, to fit in…the process involves applying
social skills manually rather than unconsciously. It requires consciousness, constant
focus, and effort.”
What is masking

● Masking requires an immense amount of

effort
● Masking is exhausting
● Masking does not only take place while
socializing
● Masking hides the struggles in autistic
person goes through making them seem
“less autistic”
Effort.
Effort and autism

● Day to day life takes me more effort to do because I'm given different tools
● I have a limited number of things I can do in a day safely
● I may take longer to do things as a result
● Constantly asking me to do said things makes it worse
So let me ask you something.
 So let me ask you something.

If my life Then why are

takes more your
effort expectations
the same?

Which gives
me more
stress and
that stress is
harder to get
rid of
Stress effort Stress effort
Stress.
 How does stress affect me differently?

● My body holds on to stress

● Stress can build up which leads to unavoidable burnout
● Somethings that might make burnout more likely is: changes in routine,
being overworked, changes in life (such as starting school soon)
Shut down.
What happens when I have to mask for a long
time? Aka shut down

● shutdown can be caused by the same things as burnout it is often brought on

by overstimulation and masking for a long time
● cause being Inability to speak, move, think or function.
● relatively non stressful but it is very unpleasant
● feel like time is skipping, you are moving through water, you have tunnel
vision, have a hard time understanding people and feel exhausted.
● Shut down as been compared to trying to turn on a computer without enough
power or trying to start a car with no gas.
Burnout.
What is and does burnout feel like?

● burnout is defined as: “Autistic burnout is a syndrome conceptualised as

resulting from chronic life stress and a mismatch of expectations and abilities
without adequate supports. It is characterised by pervasive, long-term
(typically 3+ months) exhaustion, loss of function, and reduced tolerance to
stimulus”
● It feels like: never ending stress
● Burnout can often result in: loss of speech, increased pain, headaches,
depression, suicidal thoughts, loss of function in everyday life such as looking
after ones self (note: this isn't just a lack of motivation but the physical inability to do everyday tasks), and
memory issues just to start
Stats.
Stats

● Autistic people are 3 times more likely to kill themselves.

● We are also 4 times more likely to be depressed.
● We are around 12% more likely to have an anxiety disorder.
● Only 33 percent of autistic adults reported being employed in 2017, keep in
mind this is not because they're lazy but because they physically cannot work
or because there are no safe work spaces.
● About 1 in 44 people have ASD.
● adults with ASD experienced greater overall (composite) stress (M = 3.20, SD
= 1.42) compared to healthy volunteers (M = 1.56, SD = .61)
How could you help?
Please avoid:
● Asking for updates on tasks i am
doing. I will get them done but
you asking me to get them done
is only going to slow that process
down
● Thinking or saying things like
“everyone is a little autistic”, “you
don't seem/act/sound autistic”
● (If you are) stop listening to
things like autism speaks
Things that will help:
● When possible giving me a heads up
(around 3 days) to help you with
something would be very helpful
● Understanding that i need days to do
nothing to stay functional and that i
am not being lazy.
● Remembering that everyone with
autism is different and just because
someone or something works for one
person doesn't mean it'll work for me
Videos

Shut down: https://youtu.be/iB7L43liuKw

Burnout: https://youtu.be/t9mI0NISBQI
Masking:https://youtu.be/E7myrdbA05Q

Other: https://youtu.be/nJEU-uaRzjg https://youtu.be/aPknwW8mPAM

https://youtu.be/aWnyDvG7XEk https://youtu.be/vPf9CLMG2Es
https://youtu.be/MkoJNVaUSuc https://youtu.be/sIdJ-IVNc_g