by Daniel Antonsson When people think about Autism, they might fall into the belief that Autism will stop a person from having a good life. From my own perspective being Autistic, this is far from the truth. Of course having Autism can come with special challenges and that can sometimes be tough, bu…

By Amelie M. Dalporto People often possess prejudices and invite judgement into their everyday interactions. When we see someone who may interact with the world in a way that is different from what we have experienced, we tend to disregard what they have to say and who they are. Art is a form of exp…

By Dennis Procopio “Dennis, please just get in the f***ing car.” This was my mother, pleading with her 9-year-old son to sit in a friend’s car which had crushed velvet seats. I wouldn’t. I couldn’t. It felt…. unbearable. As she herself was diagnosed with a laundry list of clinical diagnoses includ…

This blog post originated from a second reply sent to Myranda Uselton to her Art of Autism post about being a self-diagnosed Autistic. In my first reply to her, I was proud to be self-diagnosed, and in the second, I described why I changed my mind. Debra Muzikar (editor of the Art of Autism blog) as…

By Austin John Jones For me, purpose is subjective; it’s based on how I feel. If I feel like I have a specific purpose in life, that motivates me. But sometimes I think purpose is a human idea someone made up to give me comfort. From what I can tell, people who feel like they have purpose get up eve…

by Nils Valdis Vytautas Skudra I trust like any neurotypical individual, people on the autism spectrum such as myself are also vulnerable to constant advertising campaigns which urge us to buy new products and services. The word “upgrade” seems to be a rather recent linguistic invention but it is…

By Ryan Smoluk I have always been fascinated by the National Geographic magazine. The photographs are amazing. It helped to connect me to the world around me. That was back in the days before the internet. Looking back now I understand that the magazine helped develop my artistic ability and encoura…

“I realized that parents are caring for their children 24 hours a day, but who is caring for them?” LisaMarie Bernardo, CLC Ron Sandison interviews Life Coach LisaMarie Bernardo who is the mom of a son on the autism spectrum. What has been your greatest challenge as a mom of a child…

“Empowering your young person is the key to giving them the skills they need to live an independent life. If you do things for them that they could learn or even do for themselves by themselves, then you are DISEMPOWERING your young person,” Tom Iland By Debra Muzikar What is your first…

“Therapists and educators have traditionally tried to suppress or modulate a child’s special interest, or use it as a tool for behavior modification: Keep your hands still and stop flapping, and you will get to watch a Star Wars clip; complete your homework or no Harry Potter. But what if thes…

“Therapists and educators have traditionally tried to suppress or modulate a child’s special interest, or use it as a tool for behavior modification: Keep your hands still and stop flapping, and you will get to watch a Star Wars clip; complete your homework or no Harry Potter. But what if thes…

By Paul Gomez My name is Paul. This is a list of my disabilities with their corresponding percentage issue of said disabilities: 1) – Non-Indepedent 32% 2) – Anti-social 36% 3) – Emotionally Sensitive 78% 4) – Discouraged 69% 5) – Distracted/Zones Out 67% 6) – Tem…

By Tom Iland When you have autism, social interactions can be one of the most difficult aspects of life. Uncertainty and an underlying fear of rejection may cause people with autism to avoid interacting with others rather than seizing the opportunity to get to know people. People like me on the au…

“What does it mean to be autistic?” Amy Goodman “It means you have special talents and skills inside you,” Owen Suskind “What are those talents?” Amy Goodman “Being a good artist, and a piano player, and a good writer, author, and a storyteller, and a possib…