“If nihilism means life beyond the ideological workerism that builds walls and compounds of safety then I dance and sing as a nihilist to the rhythm of every tsunami that creates art with wreckage. My only tragedy is the moments of life I surrendered to the belief that I was broken, disordered, and disabled. But the death of those moments now resting in pieces gives life to a new discovery of myself, to feral expressions that overwhelm every levy of emotional control, like clandestine flora breaking through asphalt. With gun powder affection and the courage that initiates a first kiss, I find self-love in collapsing those ivory towers of decorum; my melancholy and rage might be profitable targets for control and regulation by the dealers of chemical dependencies and escapes, but they are me! They are elements integral to my existence - informed responses to my surroundings. And even if I find them difficulty at times, I embrace their existence as much as I embrace myself. And while I find even myself difficult at times, I am not a fucking science project for chemical escapism; I remain an embodiment of insubordination, the fluidity of unbridled emotions, the nihilist poetry of a tsunami in flux. I do not sympathize with conforming to behavioral servitude in order to preserve the general peace of subordinating civility! Rather than pacify my outrage or silence my despair, I have put all of society’s shame-on-mes and peer pressures to rest in coffins lined up for a bonfire in my head. And during their incineration, I will look up to the stars with a smile of admiration, for they are a dazzling beauty beyond the reach of civilized governance. For better or worse, I am me, the complete I, a storm living and breathing until I become one with the dirt and the infinite sky.”

Here are some recent books by neurodivergent and disabled people that we recommend. We provide WorldCat links, embed Kindle previews, and feature quotes for each book. What I Want to Talk About How Autistic Special Interests Shape a Life by Pete Wharmby Black Disability Politics by Sami Schalk Year of the Tiger: An Activist’s Life by Alice Wong Taking off the Mask: Practical Exercises to Help…

🌈🌈 Neurodiversity and Gender: You Hit So Hard With All the Colors That There Are

AR HI FA  Ear readers, press play to listen to this page in the selected language. Due both to their ability to denaturalize social norms an

Stimpunks Foundation

• Queer & Neurodivergent Liberation Are Entwined
• Gender Variance
• Our Dual Identities Are Not Competing; They Are Complementary
• Gender Copia & Bricolage
• I Don’t Feel Like a Gender, I Feel Like Myself
• Minority Stress
• Autigender & Neuroqueer
• Studies
• Bird, You Can Fly
• Transform
• The Malfunction Isn’t Us, It’s all the Clamor and the Fuss

• Dresses comfortably due to sensory issues and practicality
• Will not spend much time on grooming and hair. Hairstyles usually have to be ‘wash and wear’. Can be quite happy not grooming at all at times.
• Eccentric personality; may be reflected in appearance
• Is youthful for their age, in looks, dress, behaviour, and tastes
• Usually a little more expressive in face and gesture than some other Autistic people
• May have androgynous traits. Thinks of themself as half-male/half female
• May not have a strong sense of identity, and can be very chameleon-like, especially before diagnosis
• Enjoys reading and films as a retreat, often scifi, fantasy, children’s, can have favourites which are a refuge
• Uses control as a stress management technique; rules, discipline, rigid in certain habits, which will contradict their seeming unconventionality.
• Usually happiest at home or in other controlled environment.

• May have been diagnosed as Autistic when young, or may have been thought of as gifted, shy, sensitive, etc. May also have had obvious or severe learning deficits
• Often musical, artistic
• May have a savant skill or strong talent(s)
• May have a strong interest in computers, games, science, graphic design, inventing, things of a technological and visual nature. More verbal thinkers may gravitate to writing, languages, cultural studies, psychology
• May have been a self-taught reader, been hyperlexic as a child, and will possess a wide variety of other self-taught skills as well
• May be highly educated but will have had to struggle with social aspects of college. May have one or many partial degrees
• Can be very passionate about a course of study or job, and then change direction or go completely cold on it very quickly
• Will often have trouble holding onto a job and may find employment daunting
• Highly intelligent, yet sometimes can be slow to comprehend due to sensory and cognitive processing issues
• Will not do well with verbal instruction - needs to write down or draw diagram
• Obsessions (passions / special interests) are not necessarily unusual

• Emotionally immature and emotionally sensitive
• Anxiety and fear are predominant emotions
• More open to talk about feelings and emotional issues than people with typical autism
• Strong sensory issues - sounds, sights, smells, touch, and prone to overload. (May not have taste/food texture issues.)
• Moody and prone to bouts of depression. May have been diagnosed with mood disorders such as Bipolar Disorder, while the autism diagnosis was missed (note from typist: this doesn’t mean the other diagnoses are necessarily incorrect; just that they were comorbid with something that went undetected)
• Probably given several different prescriptions to treat symptoms. Will be very sensitive to medications and anything else they put in their body so may have had adverse reactions
• 9 out of 10 have mild to severe gastro-intestinal issues (e.g. ulcers, acid reflux, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and so on)
• Stims to soothe when sad or agitated; rocking, face-rubbing, humming, finger flicking, leg bouncing, finger or foot tapping, etc
• Similarly physical when happy - hand-flapping, clapping, singing, jumping, running around, dancing, bouncing
• Prone to temper or crying meltdowns, even in public; sometimes over seemingly small things due to sensory or emotional overload
• Hates injustice and hates to be misunderstood; this can incite anger and rage
• Prone to mutism when stressed or upset, especially after a meltdown. Less likely to stutter than some other Autistic people but may have a raspy voice, monotone at times, when stressed or sad

• Words and actions are often misunderstood by others
• Perceived to be cold-natured and self-centred; unfriendly
• Is very outspoken at times, may get very fired up when talking about passions / special interests / obsessions
• Can be very shy or mute
• Like people with typical autism, will shut down in social situations once overloaded, but is generally better at socialising in small doses. May even give the appearance of being skilled, but it is a “performance”
• Doesn’t go out much. Will prefer to go out with partner only or children if they have them (note from typist: I find I have a short list of “safe people” who I prefer to go out with, and I will refuse to go out if none of those people are available)
• Will not have many close friends, and will not conform to gender stereotypical activities with friends, or have get-togethers to “hang out” with friends
• Will have a close friend or friends in school, but not once adulthood is reached
• May or may not want to have a relationship. If they are interested in a relationship, they probably take it very seriously, but may choose to remain celibate or alone
• Due to sensory issues, will either really enjoy sex or strongly dislike it
• If they like someone romantically, they can be extremely, noticeably awkward in attempts to let them know e.g. may stare or call repeatedly, “fixating” on the person. This may change with maturity
• Often prefers the company of animals but not always due to sensory issues.