What does it mean to be autistic? Being autistic just means that your brain works differently. Not worse. Not better. Just different. And let’s be clear, the conception of what is “normal” versus “different” is something our society made up in the first place. Why is one part of the human experience thought to be more “normal” than another? This is, perhaps, too deep a question to address in this article, but one worth considering nonetheless.
The history of autism can be traced back to the early 20th century when it was first identified by child psychiatrist Leo Kanner and Austrian pediatrician Hans Asperger. In 1943, Kanner published a paper describing a group of children with a unique set of characteristics, which he called "early infantile autism." Around the same time, Asperger was also studying a group of children with similar ways of being. Kanner and Asperger’s work was groundbreaking and helped to establish autism as a distinct way of viewing the world.
However, Kanner and Asperger studied white boys almost exclusively. Even today, autism is often understood solely on this outdated research. As you can imagine, this doesn’t give a very full picture of autism or the autistic experience. So to get to know more about autism, in all its complexity and variety, I am sharing three of my favorite resources.
This podcast is hosted by a group of autistic women from the UK. It is approachable, real, heartwarming and informative. They present a more nuanced and personal view of autism and are extremely charming and delightful podcast hosts.
Autism can present differently in women and those socialized to be female for a variety of reasons. The difference that being female makes to the diagnosis, life and experiences of a person with autism has largely gone under researched and under reported. This book explores research and first hand accounts from autistic women and girls from early childhood through to old age, delving into interesting topics like sexuality and gender identity, pregnancy and parenting, employment, and health and well-being.
Founded by Paul Micallef, Autism From The Inside is an amazing resource no matter your learning style. If you are looking for content that is quick and easy to digest check out their youtube channel. For more in depth study they also offer online coaching, workshops, webinars, courses, and a yearly virtual summit with tons of speakers and experts (most of their speakers are autistic themselves in addition to being experts in their field). Tons to explore here!
There are so many more amazing resources and, of course, autism is just one small part of the human experience. Learning about ourselves and others is an extremely intertwined pursuit. The more we learn about others, the more we learn about ourselves and vice versa. The human experience is wide and varied, and getting to know each other is a gift.
