Published on 12, July, 2020
Given experience often helps, and there are often newly diagnosed members joining the forum, I thought if we shared the things that help us most in bullet points it would be an easy read reference for everyone?
For me, has been:
- Meeting only small groups if I plan to meet people
- Meditation & Breath work (helped anxiety & digestion)
- Symprove Probiotics (helped anxiety & digestion)
- Walking in nature (elevates mood)
- Watching childhood movies (calming)
Where would Autistic people be without the internet? Is it our saviour or is it our major hindrance? My parents generation (i'm 40) seem to have been forced out into the world more. I think they may have ultimately benefited from this.Whereas i have been able to talk to anyone anywhere in the world since i was 18. It's been a distraction, but one i have developed a sickly addiction to.
For me, it's a saviour- it allows me to stay in contact with others even when I can't socialise in person, and without the internet I never would have realised I was autistic at all. I don't necessarily think that's the case for everyone though- for example, I can see how the expectation to be constantly available due to social media etc might be overwhelming and stressful to many.
In one way I agree, especially during Covid, which living alone in Manchester, which I have done for 20 years, was the only way I could keep in touch with family and friends back home in Ireland during lockdowns - one of the first people I told about my autism diagnosis was my longtime family friends Sr. Brigid and Sr. Carmel of the Poor Clares in Dublin - as long as I’ve lived here in the U.K., I still regard Ireland as my home