neurodivergent

hi, I’m new to the mighty. I’d never heard of this app before my therapist suggested it as a way to try to expand my social circle with like-minded individuals since I have a hard time making new friends. I’m #neurodivergent (diagnosed #ADHD , but possibly also #Autistic ) and also deal with #generalanxietydisorder, major treatment resistant #Depression , and food issues. I am a previous patient of ECT therapy.

some other info about me: I’m #nonbinary and my pronouns are they/them; I’m also queer. I’m fat and learning to love my body, and trying to dress the way I want despite years of being afraid to. I really like punk/goth/alternative fashion but I also love tie-dying and Crocs so I’m trying to reconcile all that. I love tattoos (I have three so far) and piercings (6 facial so far). I like going to Disneyland but kind of abhor them as a corporation. I love animals of all kinds and I have a dog and two snakes who live with me, plus two cats with my parents. I used to love writing and reading a lot more; I’ve actually won several poetry competitions, but due to my depression and subsequent ECT treatment I have a hard time cognitively and it’s become quite difficult for me to read or write more than a short post on social media.

I’m starting to realize how much I miss socializing now that I’m not as depressed as I used to be and I’d love to find community and maybe even some friends. Photo is of me in case anyone is curious. The sweater is Sauron-themed because I love LOTR.

The Holidays For me As A Black Autistic Woman

We all love the holidays don’t we? Family, food, festive gatherings, gifts etc… well me personally I hate them! Here’s why. We come together and bond over food with our family we bond over gift exchanging we bond over catching up with what those we haven seen in awhile are doing, its all love languages its all love, so how could you Hate, Love? Love can be triggering too, as a late diagnosed autistic I was and still am looked at as rude and stand offish meanwhile I’m just trying not to faint from sensory overload , yes it’s great to see family you haven’t seen in a while its beautiful they all came together, cooking for each other is a act of love but for me… seeing too many people at once especially those I’m not really used to, gives me anxiety, being forced to eat different foods made by different people ( because turning down food at a black gathering is a crime) with different taste, textures, smells, the mixture of all the different smells and seasonings because you know seasoning is important, the overload of the different range of and tones of voices all running together etc is adding to the sensory overload you are already having from the overstimulation from everyone wanting to and proceeding to hug you because there haven’t seen you in awhile, its A LOT and while it may seem harmless those that don’t understand autism and doing harm by not even attempting to learn about it I don’t fault my family or black community because a black face has never been the face of autism and a black women has definitely never been the face of autism, luckily at black family gatherings there’s a coat room you know the designated room where all the coats are in a room on someones bed ( which by the way bothers me because that’s outside clothes on a bed) but that’s besides the point, there’s a always a room with coats and occasionally a sleeping baby, but my point is its quite there and I can escape and hide there until I’m physically and mentally able to somewhat function around everyone again, to avoid being called rude or being in a bad mood or being disrespectful , black grandmothers and elders do not tolerate disrespect and what black grandmothers do you that are familiar with autism and autistic traits? Not many if their not doctors, teachers, or some other type of expert etc. so while the holidays are great for some and I love my family and relatives The Holidays for me as a Black Autistic Woman are something that I celebrate being over #Autism #Autistic #AutismAcceptance #actuallyautistic #autizzy #SensoryProcessingDisorder #SensoryOverload #Neurodiversity #neurospicy #neurodivergent

Embrace neurodivergence.

You can have a #MentalHealth condition and ALSO just be plain eccentric. Not everything unique that you do needs to be labeled as a symptom.

Don't let anyone tell you you're “ill” just because you're different.

#BipolarDisorder #neurodivergent #Love

Meet Molly McGregor, an 11 year old social butterfly who just started with ACEing Autism Northville this Spring.

“She needs to get her energy out,” her mother Jennifer McGregor laughed when asked about her reasons for signing up. “She is really social and has done a lot of sports like adaptive soccer, special needs gymnastics or swimming lessons.”

Molly was born with a genetic disorder which manifested with low muscle tones. “It took a while, like 2 years, but they found what caused her delay,” Jennifer explained. “But the ASD diagnosis actually happened this past February and now she’s able to get behavioral support as well as other therapies.”

As the proud mom mentioned, it helps to explain her a little bit better. “She struggles more with coordination, physical things.” But all her activities have helped her tremendously and amongst them ACEing Autism. “She loved it, she was excited to go every week, and knew some peers there so she had a lot of fun. ”Even though she gets really motivated by the games, she likes the actual tennis, she wants to practice at home,” Jennifer happily shared. “We do volleys every morning when she waits for the bus,” she laughed.

As she talks about the session, Jennifer noticed some great improvements. “She could make contact with the ball better and she now knows how to hold the racquet properly.” As the conversation continues, Jennifer goes on to explain that on top of helping Molly, ACEing Autism has also been beneficial to her. “There were some parents I knew, so it was great to catch up with them. The special needs world is small so we get to catch up and share experiences.”

Congratulations Molly on your first session and all your progress. We can’t wait to see you next session!

#ASD #AutismSpectrumDisorder #neurodivergent #Neurodiversity