Describe your very unique interest/passion

One of mine is science communication. I first got into it while I was at university, after seeing a talk given by an academic who spoke about the relative risks of recreational drugs versus various sports. There was also the Bad Science column by Dr Ben Goldacre in the Guardian at the time.

I actually got into the field myself to some extent, as I started working in a healthcare-related industry and ended up working as a medical writer. The things I write are technical reports rather than news articles or anything fun, but they do need to be seen and understood by people outside the field, so being able to explain scientific concepts to anybody at all is still really important. I actually did a part-time Masters degree in science communication which I finished in 2018.

Of course since it's work now there are lots of other tasks to do, so I don't end up writing for the whole time I'm contracted to work. I do get some time every weekday to do it though, usually in the afternoons. On top of that, I like watching science documentaries and listening to podcasts because I really enjoy other people's sci-comms work. Some of my favourite science communicators are Hank Green, Brian Cox, and Sydnee McElroy.

I remember that Goldacre column.  He wrote a piece criticizing one of Johann Hari's books.

Yes, he did- and the neuroscientist Dean Burnett did something similar for another of Hari's books in the same paper. He's another good science communicator, actually- very funny and accessible.

I also lean towards the latter.  Humans are not meant to live the way that many Autistics live.  I spend more time alone than is healthy for anyone.

Yes, I think we probably all need a slightly different combination of medication and/or therapy depending on what else is going on in our lives and how our bodies react to meds. I've done well with sertraline and acceptance therapy, because I had few side effects from that medication and acceptance therapy is good for chronically ill/disabled people. But that might be a terrible combination for someone else.

I couldn't tell you if you're depressed because you're autistic, but depression and autism often do occur alongside each other. I don't know whether that's inherent to autistic brains or if it's an effect of living in a world that's hard for us to handle- I lean towards the latter.

How do you desire to have a world with more case by case treatment, is it with more cognitive therapy for each depressed person? I use antidepressants, but have not yet tested talking out to a psychologist.

I would like to know why I feel depressed, is it because of autism? battybats

How do you desire to have a world with more case by case treatment, is it with more cognitive therapy for each depressed person? I use antidepressants, but have not yet tested talking out to a psychologist.

I would like to know why I feel depressed, is it because of autism? battybats

I also lean towards the latter.  Humans are not meant to live the way that many Autistics live.  I spend more time alone than is healthy for anyone.

Yes, I think we probably all need a slightly different combination of medication and/or therapy depending on what else is going on in our lives and how our bodies react to meds. I've done well with sertraline and acceptance therapy, because I had few side effects from that medication and acceptance therapy is good for chronically ill/disabled people. But that might be a terrible combination for someone else.

I couldn't tell you if you're depressed because you're autistic, but depression and autism often do occur alongside each other. I don't know whether that's inherent to autistic brains or if it's an effect of living in a world that's hard for us to handle- I lean towards the latter.