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"Autism is the name of a type of human neurological system."
Autistic people process information differently through their senses - much more sensory information is passed through the neurological system
This means differences in how long it takes to process sensory information, how the information is understood, and how the brain responds
“The idea of typicality is a statistical one, based on the assumption that there is an ‘average’ way of thinking or being. Attachment of the label ‘impaired’ to anything outside of this average is a misnomer- we don’t say that people who run below the ‘average’ speed are impaired.”
Dr Amy Pearson, Developmental Psychologist and Researcher, University of Sunderland
Brain-is-autistic-neuroinclusive-story.pdfThis story is useful for helping children and adults understand Autistic brains.
The Spectrum
The Spectrum
The Autism Spectrum is NOT linear.
Autistic people are not high or low functioning. They do not look, act, think, or feel the same... just like there are differences amongst Neurotypical people.
Imagine a colour wheel. Each colour represents a trait of an Autistic person. You could also imagine a sound board with sliders that move up and down for each trait as well.
Some Autistics may have higher levels of anxiety and stim more frequently. While others may have sensory processing disorders and difficulty identifying emotions. There is no one-size-fits-all to Autism.
It's important to note that these traits are dynamic as well. The same Autistic person may have varying needs within the same trait at different times - especially if stress is involved.
There are a variety of examples of different interpretations of the spectrum on the slides here.
Understanding the Spectrum - A Comic Strip Explanation
UnderstandtheSpectrum.pdf
Image description: A pink background tited Autistic Burnout with a grey arrow points up and says increase sensory regulation, and a green arrow points down says decrease demands.
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