This is an important post about how we need to start working harder to respect, understand, and accommodate autistic people. Lot’s of people tell their personal stories of witnessing parents of autistic children dehumanizing and disrespecting their own children for being “on the spectrum”, and it’s really sad.
this is truth. i grew up expected (not by my parents or immediate family they are wonderful but by my grandparents and church and basically everyone else) to act like a tiny NT adult. at 5 years old. sit still, no swinging your legs, stop fidgeting, you’re talking too much, you’re being too loud, you’re being too much stop stop stop stop shut up stop dont do that stop cant touch that stop stop STOP.
and now im constantly worryin about talking too much, talking too loud, being annoying, people just pretending to like me or just putting up with me, am i fidgeting too much, im sitting wrong, etc etc etc all the things but ESPECIALLY talking. because for my whole childhood all i was told was sit still and shut up.
that takes a toll on you.
treat us like people, let us stim, and dont tell us off for being ourselves. im lucky my parents let me enjoy and talk about my special interests to the fullest, or the thing that became my anchor, my main coping mechanism, and to this day is the main way i found friends (my fandoms) would be lost to me. please, treat us like you would any other person, any other child, anyone who deserves love attention happiness. that’s the bare minimum and parents of autistic children seem to be failing miserably. the bar is literally on the ground and yall digging a hole. and it damages us.