One of my authors recently mentioned they prefer “Autism Acceptance” over “Autism Awareness” because most people are aware autism exists. And she’s right, to an extent, but are they aware enough? From what I’ve seen, they aren’t necessarily aware how autism is displayed, or the difference between how it affects an individual and how an autistic person’s behavior might affect those around them. More importantly, most people are painfully unaware of the number of autistic people struggling each day in silence while in public, professional settings, only to meltdown in the safety of their cars or homes.
When people think of autism, they don’t think of people like me. They don’t think of a business owner and an author, or a graphic designer with a long employment history. I’ve actually never been one of the 70% of unemployed neurodivergent adults unless I wanted to be. But none of these things make me any less autistic.
People are aware of autism, but they don’t seem to be aware of just now broad the Autism Spectrum actually is. I love the ways in which the spectrum examples have changed in recent years from a straight line to a pie chart like this one. *Insert*
I remember once a colleague said the age-old phrase “You can’t be autistic! I know someone who’s autistic and he’s nothing like you.” My autism was confirmed later that year.
As an autistic business owner and freelancer, there are a number of struggles I face that are not obvious when I’m masking. On top of the exhaustion that comes from masking, I’m exhausted by lights that are common in corporate settings, I struggle to function when mealtimes are missed or not respected, and sudden changes in my environment or plans can completely derail my ability to complete tasks. The exhaustion that comes from long periods of forcing myself to fit a mold that wasn’t made for me is damaging.
This is exactly why I run my business the way that I do. Aside from the simple benefit of working from the safety and control of my own home, I have also begun removing working guilt from my environment. No amount of guilt and shame will ever convince someone with executive dysfunction to be able to complete a task, but a rewards system definitely might. I embrace an open-door policy with my authors and editors to ensure that, if there is a task I’ve not completed, I can be reminded and held accountable. Further, when they need more time on a task, I’m never afraid to give them an extension with grace; I know how hard it can be.
Why am I telling you all of this? Because my autism is also the reason I started this business. Books are my special interest, another facet of autism many aren’t aware of. I don’t just like books. It’s not just a hobby, and it’s not just writing books. It’s every piece of the puzzle that goes into taking a manuscript from draft to final product that is so fascinating to me, I never tire of it. I never tire of talking about it. I never tire of learning more about it.
It shocks so many to find that I designed every cover we’ve ever released, I’ve formatted every book, and I’ve even edited some of them. I designed this website, I designed our logo, and I designed and created the merchandise we have. A special interest goes so much deeper than many are aware of; it is because of this special interest that I am able to do what I do.
Nothing seems to shock people as much as finding out I did all of that… and that I’m autistic.
While people are aware of autism in the sense that it does, in fact, exist, we are a long way from a society that is aware of what that actually means for autistic people. This has a direct effect on any accommodations that may be necessary in the workplace, which might include working in a dark room or listening to music, or having something to fidget with. We are a long way from respecting autistic mannerisms that, for some reason, feel “unprofessional” like avoiding eye contact or handshakes, something I cannot stand myself.
So, because of this, I will continue calling this Autism Awareness Month. I think our awareness of autism has a very long way to go before autistic people are fully understood, valued, and accepted as they are without a harmful amount of masking involved.
We can do incredible things in the right environments. We can be some of your best employees. We just might need to do it a little differently than our neurotypical counterparts. Until more people can accept that, I think we still have a lot of awareness to spread.
