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Autsim and social skills

the_steven

hello all!

firstly as the title says but im an adult with autism so where would i get help with learning social skills? 

i am able to say hello or goodbyes to the random employees where i go to shop for even if its one item ( i deliberately do not use the self-checkouts to hope to learn some useful social skills from actual people) but this is my limit.

im not so sure if i could talk small talk with other people (i have trouble sometimes with family), on the internet is fine and im perfectly able to but actually talking in real life to others, i feel i couldn't.

so is there anyway to help an adult with autism learn some social skills? 

thank you.

  • Former Member
    Former Member

    What sorts of things are you looking for?  If it's mastering "the fine art of witty repartee and small talk and being the centre of attention at every party darling sweetie muh! muh!" then I suspect none of us could help you :-).

    The easiest place to start is talking to people who you have some sort of shared interest with.  Or people that you've known for a little while and have started to build up some shared experiences with.  The danger with the shared interests thing is to remember not to hog too much of the conversation or interrupt too much.

    For small talk, you're not really looking to necessarily make a huge connection, it's just about passing the time.  So topics of conversation tend to be pretty neutral like the weather, what's been in the news recently, clothing, what's been on TV etc.  Try practising some "openings" so you have some well rehearsed lines that you feel comfortable with and maybe have a few "specialist topics" where you feel on comfortable ground.  Start small and build up as you get more confidence.

    Another thing you can do would be to observe how people have conversations.  Coffee shops are good places for this.  You can get a drink etc. and have a book or something and just casually watch and listen to what's going on around you.