228 Results in Strategies

How to more easily collaborate with others

Like a lot of people on the autism spectrum, I have rigid routines and ways of doing things. This inflexibility is actually a method of coping and being able to do things well, rather than me being difficult. If I don't have such rigid plans and sequences, then I feel completely bewildered and nothing gets done at all. But what happens when your workload becomes so high that you feel you could benefit from the help of others? Or when you just feel a bit overloaded generally and could do with some practical support from others? How do you fit these people into your rigid routines? This is a massive problem that I face. As soon as other people get involved in my life, things start to go wrong - deadlines get missed, schedules get disrupted, inaccuracies occur, or people just do the wrong thing despite having good intentions. Often it means I end up having to do more work. It's not their fault though. It's just that, because of my Asperger's Syndrome, my life has to be extremely rigid and accurate. If it's not rigid and accurate then my anxiety becomes extremely high and I find it difficult to function.

Autistic introversion vs autistic extroversion

I always used to think that autistic people could only ever be introverted. As The Curly Hair Project developed, I soon realised this belief was completely false, because I have come across so many autistic extroverts. In this article I want to discuss why people might have the belief that autistic people are introverted, what the differences are between autistic introverts and extroverts, and how we can possibly support each type so that they have a fulfilling and enjoyable life!

The mystery surrounding anxiety

When I was younger I used to feel anxious most of the time. The point is, I didn't realise that it was anxiety. I knew I was "quiet", but the word "anxious" was never really brought up. Everyone called me "quiet". Quiet is a very common word and even children know what the word quiet means. What no one explained however, and what I did not realise at the time, was that "anxiety" can sometimes cause someone to be "quiet". And "anxious" can be much more of a problem than "quiet" is. "Anxiety" was a complete mystery to me.

Difficulty doing tasks that are ‘desirable but not essential’

Some autistic people are prone to avoiding or procrastinating when it comes to doing tasks. Here is an excellent example of someone who struggles with getting some things done, yet excels at getting other things complete: Leo (ASD) has trouble with certain tasks. He is very good at doing tasks that are compulsory such as work projects and paying bills, but anything that is sort of 'desirable but not essential', either never gets done or is left until the very last minute. An example might be the washing up - he won't do it until there are no clean plates to hand. Or the housework. It just gets left.

Why advance notice is important

Like most autistic people, I really struggle coping with situations that happen spontaneously. I started to think what the fundamental reason for this is and found that I have been able to summarise it quite simply... When something is going to happen, there are 3 things I need to consider:

The 2 most debilitating aspects of social anxiety

Social anxiety is an extremely restrictive condition to live with. Social anxiety, for me, is feeling extremely shy, frightened, awkward, nervous, at both the thought of interacting with someone and during the actual interaction with them. I have narrowed down the 2 most debilitating aspects, for me, of social anxiety to be...

5 ways to give and receive inspiration

One of the most important themes in my daily life is inspiration. One of my life philosophies is to have, maintain and provide inspiration every single day. It keeps me going and prevents me from falling into dark periods. A lot of autistic people suffer with low mood and I think one way to help tackle low mood is to ensure inspiration is part of your daily life. You can use this article in 3 ways: 1) to gain tips to inspire others, 2) to gain tips for getting inspiration from others, 3) to gain tips to inspire your autistic loved one who might be in a dark period.

How to cope with unpredictability

Most autistic people benefit from feeling that their world is predictable. By predictable I mean: knowing what is going to happen next and fully understanding what any situation entails. Due to the nature of being human and daily living however, no matter what measures people take, there is still going to be a degree of everyday unpredictability. I will look at some of these unpredictabilities and suggest strategies on how to manage:

Using different characters to improve social interaction

One concept that I find useful to think about is using different 'characters' to help me get better at social interaction. This can involve a degree of masking but, as I've mentioned before, I don't consider masking to always be a bad thing. The ability to mask helps me get what I want a lot of the time. It is the only way that I get by in the neurotypical world. Here are some characters that autistic people may find useful to get to know from inside themselves: The Observer

What does having no instincts mean?

One of the most severe difficulties associated with autism is the difficulty imagining what might happen in a situation. You could describe this as social imagination or just simply lacking instinct. Most neurotypical people will go into any situation and be able to cope with it on the spot. The situation can be anything, for example going on the train, going to a cafe, meeting friends, going to the GP or going to a conference. In most instances they don't have to do much 'preparation' beforehand, or least not overly conscious or right-to-the-very-last-detail preparation. Autistic people, on the other hand, have a tendency to either overprepare or underprepare.