Age of the autistic?

A point of view 

about the current pandemic predicament & 

the autistic state of being.

Anyone remember the Age of Aquarius?  

The song was the title tune to Aquarius, a 1970s arts’ programme on LWT (London Weekend Television) with mesmerising graphics & the predecessor to The South Bank Show. 

I’ve often thought (or on less positive days, just hoped) 

that we might be nearing the cusp of the “age of the autistic” ~ a time when autistic & other neurodiverse thinking differences are widely valued & willingly harnessed alongside their neurotypical peers.  Now I’m wondering if the Covid-19 pandemic might be the rocket fuel that propels us into the dawning of the 

age of the autistic.

As life long isolation experts, some of us autistics feel well placed to weather this current storm (for me personally, so far, it feels like a storm  ... our tsunamis are something very different & much more personal).  I’m not saying all autistics feel like they were born for times such as these ... individual autistic experience very much depends on individual circumstance & what & who is going on around them.  

But whatever our circumstances, I do believe our autistic traits include particularly appropriate attributes for coping with the current situation & that others ~ those less used to imposed isolation ~ could benefit from adapting to 

our natural way of being.  

In fact, we all benefit from everyone being a lot more autistic:

~o0o~

A Window via The Murmuring Cottage

Listen properly to what you’re being told.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Take advice from the experts & experienced.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Interpret literally all official advice ... be black & white about it ... there is no grey.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Follow the rules ... to the letter.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Be patient ... people are working very hard & literally making themselves ill to help us all.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Be hyper vigilant ... observe well your surroundings & where others are ... then take positive action to avoid & maintain your distance Pac-Man style.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Show & act on intense empathy ... not just surface kindness (no judgement here).

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Be fair & just .... buy only what you need, enabling & empowering others to buy only what they need.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Treat everyone equally ... we’re equally entitled, equally responsible & equally at risk so respect that & do your bit.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Become an official volunteer if you want to help the vulnerable ... they may be more comfortable accepting help from official rule based sources.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Create ways to share virtual hugs.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Create new methods of communication ... 

& observe how eye contact does not matter!

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Introduce routine & structure to your day.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

But be ready to just stop, review, adapt & develop new strategies.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Visualise stuff, especially for kids ... eg, as usual transitions disappear & the days begin to “merge” don’t assume they’ll keep track of school days, weekends & holidays or be unaffected by this.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Enjoy solo exercise. 

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Learn to enjoy your own company & let others be & give them space, if they need it.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

If you have time, invest lots of it in becoming expert in a special interest.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Love your animals (or soft toys).

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Embrace screens.

Then, seriously, stay at home.

If in doubt ask “what would Pikachu do?”

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Dwell & ruminate on this experience at length because when this passes, which it will ...

Then, seriously, we must fix the world!

From a bit of an isolation expert, actually, 

who’s actually also autistic ...

Indoors by Me (An Affinity with A)

~o0o~

Yes, we understand isolation very well.  

Learn from us ... we’ve been isolated, self isolating & social distancing (willingly & unwillingly) since forever & will continue to do so long after this pandemic passes, as it will.  

If isolation is unusual for you ~ instead of bemoaning the impact ~ I implore you to please reflect on your experience & think about those who are forced to live like this routinely because society doesn’t currently adequately understand, accept, adapt to or include them.  Let this experience open people’s eyes to how some of their fellow humans live & promote new thinking about how society might change permanently to enable better co-existence.   

And, whilst I celebrate helping the vulnerable alongside displays of human generosity & kindness, please know that many have invisibly born the same disabling impacts on their lives with very little support (financial, emotional or practical) because the thing that impacts them so is not experienced, or even recognised, by the masses.  

As one of our autism rich family observed about staying at home:

“for us it’s life as normal but without the stress or the guilt” 

Having said that, it’s been more of an adjustment for those of school age (& those responsible for them) who’ve had to transition from learning at school to learning at home & distinguishing between home learning & homework.  Much else has been written & shared on this.

So, whilst some autistics will be struggling severely with ruptured routines, enforced change, heightened anxiety & sensory sensitivity ... others will find themselves in situations that are less altered & even more conducive to their way of being.  

But for me, the important observation at this time is:

“how relevant the autistic way of being is to how we all need to be at this time” 

& the important take out is, having gained this insight:

“what do we do next?”

It’s why I’ve written this piece & dared to be positive because it’s at times like these ~ times when we’re forced to stop, to think, to reflect ~ that we’re offered the opportunity to reassess, change & evolve.  To quote Deepak Chopra

“All great change is preceded by Chaos.”

It’s time to fix the world.

In my working life I was often warned off trying to fix the world ~ it couldn’t be done ~ I should concentrate on one or two key things, not try to fix everything.  But I never really believed it couldn’t all be done & I invariably still tried & I achieved a lot as a result, sometimes to others’ annoyance & personal pain!  Great things have not been achieved because people thought it couldn’t be done ~ quite the opposite.  

And we’ve reached a moment in time when the world really does need fixing ... the earth itself is screaming out to us to do so (link to Guardian Newspaper article "Nature is sending us a message").  And to do so requires new thinking ... different thinking.  So maybe this is the “Age of the Autistic” ... when autistic & neurodiverse brains take their rightful places at the table to imagine, enable & enact the great change that is needed (or even chair the table).

Like autistic Greta Thunberg.*

And, it seems to me, such seemingly idealistic ambitions might be particularly fitting & timely given those in the know say the Age of Aquarius has itself very recently dawned: a 2,000+ year long age of “great transformation”.  The articles & prophecies I stumbled across were lengthy & complex but fascinating.  One (The Open World Manifesto) included this biblical passage, believed to describe man reaching ultimate knowledge (line 1 & as visualised by Leonardo da Vinci in The Vitruvian Man) & the coming of the Age of Aquarius (last 2 lines).  Personally I believe in values over religion but I was intrigued to read this still:

Then the eyes of the blind will be opened

And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped

Then the lame will leap like a deer

And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy

For waters will break forth in the wilderness

And streams in the desert

I know it’s open to interpretation but it could very well validate my own thinking, don’t you think?

Vitruvian Man via Google

One other observation ... there are a number of historically accepted autistics popping up in these writings, like Einstein, Newton & da Vinci ...

For those wishing to delve or simply seek distraction, an article from The Astrology Zone might interest.

Meanwhile, take care, stay safe & if you have to go out remember social distancing = physical distancing (not my translation but a very autistic friendly translation nonetheless).

Then, seriously, stay at home.

Dogs at Door (also via The Murmuring Cottage)

~o0o~

Other articles, advice & resources abound, some of which are linked to here (I've not scoured but I consider them reliable sources ... pick what's right for you!):

Association for Child & Adolescent Mental Health Podcast 
BBC Newsround : scroll for Coronavirus Resources
Childline Coronavirus Info & Advice 

Mind Advice for Young People

National Autistic Society Resources 

Understood Resources
Young Minds How to Talk to Your Child about Coronavirus

& of course:

Gov UK

The NHS

 & published on day of writing this post 
(including an easy read version):

Gov UK Guidance for Parents & Carers on Supporting Children & Young People's MH & Wellbeing during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak

The Dog by Me (An Affinity with A)

*As an aside ... Why is “autistic” so readily placed in front of the names of people who perform negative acts, irrespective of the relevance of the condition to those acts, yet never in front of the names of people who perform positive acts, when very often the condition lies at the root of those positive acts?  Prejudice? Misunderstanding?  Ignorance?  Laziness? Presumption?  Sensationalism?  Scaremongering?  Oh dear, we actually do have a huge mountain to climb don’t we ... maybe the Age of the Autistic really is further away than I’ve dared to hope ... but I won’t give up on my idealistic belief that we are capable of fixing the world ... as long as we’re brave enough to focus on the long term over the short term ... on life on earth over politics & commercial gain (even post pandemic).

Meanwhile, & finally, here's a virtual hug from me to you.

Hug via Pinterest (original source unknown)