I've read a few books on autism, blog posts, government websites, and this forum (as well as the NAS-guides).
Everywhere I look, I see mention of support in one form or another—yet it often feels abstract and intangible for me. I don't quite find it, or know how to do it.
Do this happen to you too?
Here are just a few slightly disconnected thoughts, that you may want to reply to:
I struggle with what’s often called “autistic inertia,” which I understand is closely related to monotropism: you concentrate a lot in your SPIN and struggle to switch or find interest in other tasks. Mine's are programming and mathematics, and sometimes puzzles.
I worry that others might interpret it as laziness, which is uncomfortable, and it's rather that my own "obsession" pulls out me constantly. I'm also aware of what accommodations can be requested in the workplace, having done so myself. It does feel patchy and temporary, but still, it's better than nothing. In my last job as programmer I couldn't switch off from a specific task, for example, and found very hard to connect with peers at all. So I resigned.
I would also rather work from home, due to the social issues I tend to have, but am unsure whether this is a reasonable requirement. Or a job where the contact with different people is very reduced, since I get exhausted after talking to 3-5 people. Sometimes less.
I’ve found there is some help available for adults with disabilities (in Scotland), but at times I feel like an impostor for accessing it—like I’m taking support away from someone else. I suspect this is because many of my struggles aren't physical and are therefore harder to “see.”
I thought that hearing about your experiences might help me and others form a more concrete picture of what support can be found, or practices, and so on, that can improve our autistic life.
I hope this doesn't sound too bad, I just prefer to be quite frank and direct.
