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Hello, I'm not Sia.

Sia

Hello everybody.

My name isn’t Sia. The singer Sia once helped me feel empowered, and it's kind of ironic and funny now that she's considered a controversial name in the autistic community. Anyway…

I’m not new to the online community. I'm a long-time lurker who was diagnosed as autistic in January this year. I also have ADHD. My ADHD and autism were diagnosed in 2024 and 2026 respectively - to the surprise of absolutely nobody who knows me. At the time of writing, I'm 34.

With that said, I'm trying to reach out into supportive spaces where I can. It turns out that knowing a lot about autism and identifying as autistic (and ADHD!) still doesn't fortify you against the "But you were fine yesterday / last week / last month / last year / in your last job / when you were at school" brigade.

Here are a few things about me:

I have a brother with profound autism.

I currently work in the social care sector.

I love all kinds of music, especially metal, electronic music, 80s pop, and some genres I can't even begin to explain.

I love a good cover song.

I love oversized clothes.

I enjoy video games. I'm currently playing through Baldur’s Gate III and Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, depending on the mood.

I love writing. It's incredibly therapeutic.

I play piano by ear.

I love learning. I recently completed a Level 3 mental health course just for the joy of it.

I’m either incredibly loud or incredibly quiet and "invisible". There's no middle ground.

I'm usually rubbish at remembering to check my messages, forums, and the like (thanks, ADHD), but I'm looking forward to hearing everyone's stories and maybe sharing some of my own. Or, maybe just have some lighthearted conversations about cover songs.

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  • Hi  . My name isn't Leveller61 either but I studied the English Civil War and was excited by the Leveller movement - their radicalism appealed to my autistic sense of justice. I like the band named after them as well.

    I am also a AuDHDer, diagnosed with both last year.  Life isn't dull with the contradictions and push-and-pull of AuDHD! One week for me it's 'I need structure' then it's 'no, boring, can't stick to that, let's be creative'.

    I love music (lots of), nature, reading, cooking and I have a dog. I am recovering from deep burnout, so investing a chunk of time here to find my tribe and hopefully make some new ND friends.

    Very happy to riff on music or AuDHD or other stuff. Two very good covers: Don't Leave Me This Way as done by The Communards, and Valerie as done by Amy Winehouse.

  • in reply to leveller61

    Ah, the AuDHD contradiction. "I need structure" but "ew, no not like that". "Yes, I have a to-do list written down somewhere - in the notebook I haven't seen for a week." Or: "I'm soul-destroyingly bored and I've got a free day… Too bad today is my designated, non-negotiable admin day, which the integrity of next week definitely relies on."

    I'm really glad you've found your way here while recovering from burnout too. It takes more courage and mental energy than people realise just to reach out and start connecting again.

     

    If you ever feel like chatting about music, AuDHD life, or finding some other bits of common ground, I'd be interested.

    P.s. Amy Winehouse's Valerie is the best Valerie.

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  • in reply to leveller61

    Ah, the AuDHD contradiction. "I need structure" but "ew, no not like that". "Yes, I have a to-do list written down somewhere - in the notebook I haven't seen for a week." Or: "I'm soul-destroyingly bored and I've got a free day… Too bad today is my designated, non-negotiable admin day, which the integrity of next week definitely relies on."

    I'm really glad you've found your way here while recovering from burnout too. It takes more courage and mental energy than people realise just to reach out and start connecting again.

     

    If you ever feel like chatting about music, AuDHD life, or finding some other bits of common ground, I'd be interested.

    P.s. Amy Winehouse's Valerie is the best Valerie.

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