The rate of suicide among autistic people is three times higher than the typical population. Autistic females as well as people with additional psychiatric conditions are disproportionately affected. One potential reason for this higher risk may be that autistic females are typically diagnosed and …

By Steve Staniek We had retired from the constant noise of the big city to a quiet place in the country we called High Reach, where we learned that we were to become grandparents for the first time. Our son’s growing family would need more space during weekend visits, and it was time to finish the …

Some things that have helped me with uncertainty and anxiety are below. By Aaron Bouma If you’re like me, an autistic adult that is dealing with anxiety and a strained mind at times, you are far from alone. Does uncertainty give you anxiety? For me, it does. For instance, if there is a militar…

By Jill MacCormack There are certain autumn nights when the quality of air is of such utter perfection that no matter my exhaustion I must heed the call of a walk under the auspices of darkness. Tonight was one such night. A gentle rain had fallen early in the eve, just enough to deepen the damp sme…

I once was a girl with a dream to belong, to overcome, to change the story written for her. I once was that girl who couldn’t walk, couldn’t count, couldn’t win, couldn’t love, couldn’t fit in. By Martina L. Beattie I once knew a girl with red-brown hair to her back and hazel-gree…

By Kris McElroy I found out I was autistic when I was 30 years old after over two decades of misdiagnoses, misunderstandings, and maltreatment. The diagnosis helped make so much more sense to me about myself and the world around me. It helped me understand I was having meltdowns because I was overlo…

Love Beyond Convention and Appearances Header Art: M. Mithum Whimsical is the effect of this, our final Art & Poems Series 2021. See all blog posts here. See all art submitted in 2021 here. Of all the many submissions this year, those included herein exude themes of hope beyond sight, love b…

“Art can permeate the very deepest part of us, where no words exist.” Header Art: Kathy Crabbe Art Art by Ansh Batra Ansh’s Dreamworld As a mother I can surely tell you one thing, these are Ansh’s emotions and unsaid words which most of us are blessed with. Art is his way of expression, a sou…

By Suzanna Chen (she/they pronouns) I proudly identify as Autistic. I am reaching out to you as a member of Detester Magazine, a non-profit platform dedicated to amplifying BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) youth activism on socio-political issues. We, alongside the platform, Learn fro…

The Art of Autism’s 2nd post for our 6th Annual Art and Poems for Peace. See first compilation here. Header image: April Tobin “Bird in Flight” Art and Poems for Peace is compiled by The Art of Autism and includes this message from the Youth Assembly, which will meet for an annual…

Recently I told Debra Muzikar (editor of the Art of Autism blog) about the book I wrote on Buddha Shakyamuni’s life entitled “Symphony for India Buddha and Freedom.” In this book, Siddhartha behaves like a person on the autism spectrum since early childhood. Debra asked me to write an article on wh…

From a woman on the autism spectrum By Bea Mienik Can you paint with no color? As this year’s Disability Pride Month came to a close last month many companies pledged their support for disability inclusion. Where is the walk behind the talk? Ours is a society that is daily becoming more and m…

What? College classes start this week. This summer just sped by! We were all so happy to be at least partially out of COVID confinement that we crammed as much fun and adventure as we could into this summer. We surfed, kayaked, went whitewater rafting, enjoyed playing in the parks and hiking through…

“I believe God gives each of us a purpose. To the horse, it’s to run across the prairie. For a cowboy, it’s to ride,” Brady Blackburn (Brady Jandreau) By Nils Skudra This evening I just finished watching The Rider, a compelling biographical western film directed by Chloé Zhao and starring Bra…