Published on 12, July, 2020
So this is beyond bold for me and I’m actually getting anxious suggesting this but here goes...
As many with autism struggle with social isolation as it is, being physically told to stay at home compounds the issue. So shall we all try to help one another by trying to connect a little? I’m not suggesting people slap their contact details on here and of course sensible precautions should be applied when talking to new people etc (U shan’t preach on this but be safe and sensible) but if we all tried to start a few conversations with other members, it could lighten their day or help them through a pretty tough period.
I’m sure this forum has a message service if people want to get conversational, so maybe use that?
Obviously we should respect that not everyone would want this, so maybe if this is of interest then post something saying so here and maybe send a message to some others who have posted here too.
Together we can be physically isolated but not lonely
Im anxious now :-/ my ides may get shot down, but I’ll be the first to raise my hand and say ‘I’m in ‘.
I'm a UK citizen who has been on the other side of the world for decades, but facing almost identical problems with COVID. I watch videos of what is happening over there, and communicate a lot with relatives still living there. But frankly, I've been socially isolated for most of my life and have always felt like an imposter where I now live. But then again I left the UK feeling like a social imposter, despite the fact that I like both the UK rural and urban environments, and actually have quite a positive liking of many people who live there. I have long felt like an imposter in nearly all educational, employment and social settings.I might well be a bit alienated, but also feel like just another a human being in both places. There are also people here who i really appreciate, but have never acquired a sense that they might actually be my friends. Their idea of friendship is probably a bit different from my own. I sense that their idea of friendship is a bit more geared toward networking than i would be entirely comfortable with. And my diagnosis/self-identification is absolutely the last thing they would ever wish to talk about; even with those folks who almost certainly have a few issues of their own Things are just not done like that here. But how do you avoid the subject when it is your own admission to yourself which is actually giving you the will to soldier on with a more positive attitude. Yes, I feel that there are some people back home who I could still relate to; but on recent UK visits I did not really succeed in making any new contacts there. The UK too has become rather more interested in networking possibilities than good old-fashioned friendship in recent years, fer sure!
Interested, yes! I have a few contacts around the globe already. Some from this site. But to be honest, I would really like to have at least some small element of F2F contact in the longer term; when I eventually am allowed out of my current place of COVID isolation for a short break. There is also quite a lot of essential family biz there that I should really be a lot more involved in.
Decades of online experience, employment and education haven't really helped that much.