Getting the message out 'Autism in our own words'

First of all I will state this is not a survey just to reassure moderators.

Inspired by the Chris Packham Programme, and by some answered to that thread about non celebrity autistic people plus some things in another thread about life histories, I think this could be very useful for both neurotypical and autistic people.

What I am thinking of is if a book could be published with each chapter being someone's life story. It would incorporate earliest memories, our background, experiences at school, academic achievements and failures,  misunderstandings, the realisation that neurotypical were a bit strange, experiences in the workplace or of being out of work, the skills possessed and our interests, how others try to change us, the disrespect we often get - I'm sure you get the idea.

Am I the only one who would find this very interesting?  I have no idea how this could be brought to the attention of a publisher, or what forums would be available to tell our extended stories.  Even an online publication could prove interesting.

We all have a different story to tell, linked by our common condition so there would be differences but also some similarities.  Psychologists who diagnose probably are aware of all this but as a means of comparing notes and informing others this could be as valuable as any number of academic papers

Parents
  • Yes, I think this is a good idea. I'd be interested to read it, and think there might even be contributors here. If not including celebrities, could maybe just get endorsements from them to help sales.

    Here's something similar that has been done, although it's short: Being Autistic. (Wasn't free originally, but is now.)

Reply
  • Yes, I think this is a good idea. I'd be interested to read it, and think there might even be contributors here. If not including celebrities, could maybe just get endorsements from them to help sales.

    Here's something similar that has been done, although it's short: Being Autistic. (Wasn't free originally, but is now.)

Children
  • Thank you for the link Cassandro. I read the book, which is a major achievement in itself for me right now, and I found it very helpful. One story in particular resonated with me and gave me a message I needed to hear just now. All the story's made me realise that my current situation is a result of all the masking etc and not necessarily part of who I am. Meaning, I'm still in recovery mode to a great extent and I'm certainly in discovery mode. What gets me are the days when I literally do nothing, after planning what I was going to do. My first reaction is to give myself a hard time, then I work through all that and come to the place where I realise I simply need the rest right now. I don't deal with change easily and my life is changing every day right now so it makes sense that I need lots of rest. Thank you. It was very helpful. 

  • Oh, I’ll type mine up then (I wrote it in actual writing, the old fashioned way ;)), and put it on here if you’re interested in reading it although it’s not the same as the accounts I read in that book. Actually, I’m not even sure what it says at all, thinking about it, lol, when that spontaneous writing thing comes on me it’s like I have no idea what I’m writing so I might actually go and have a read of it myself! Lol’ and find out what autism means to me! 

  • Thanks for the link Cassandro. I started to read it but got bored and inpatient very quickly but I was also very tired so I have downloaded the book and will have another read at some point soon. I did skim read a couple of people’s accounts and got lots of identification so I think it would be very useful to have when you’re in the beginning stages of wondering, am I or aren’t I! :)