Autistic Adults and Playgrounds

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I have a dilemma I need advice on. I crave sensory input such as swinging, spinning, and sliding. I have a playground by my house and other nice ones in town. I am a 37 year old man so when I do go it's usually early in the morning. I prefer to be there by myself unless the other people there know me. My town is pretty open, and the play equipment on some parts is for people of all ages. Still, would people that don't know me feel uneasy if they saw me playing there even if it is quiet? How do other adults on the spectrum get similar input and be socially acceptable?

Some people with young children might get uneasy. If you have an amusement park or fairs near you, they could help. What about riding a bike? Would you find that similar?

Amusement parks and fairs cost $$.

It is not convenient to go to amusement parks oten, unless you live nearby

Amusement parks, having said that, provide some of the similar sensory stimulation as playgrounds

One ride was just like a swing, except the rider sat still and did nothing

Rollercoasters feel like slides

Merry go round

Until I was 25 I played in playgrounds

But that is a different state and city than you


And your appearance is different from mine

Only way to not make any parents feel uncomfortable is if you have a child with you on the playground.

Go out biking or better still learn to ride a motorbike because that will provide a lot of sensory input. I never understood why I just felt like I was that extra bit more 'alive' when I was biking. Its to do with the huge amount of sensory info flooding your brain.

I was listening to the sound of the engine, the gearing, thinking about the mechanics from the noise, judging distance, speed, braking speed, the balance, the weather, wind. All the visual imput from the scenery flashing by you. Its great and I do often wonder how many bikers are actually autistic because I bet the % is pretty high.

Other than that, Ikea make swings you can have in your house. I have sensory kids and we have swings inside, crash mats and trampolines, slides swings etc outside. Oh and gym balls are good fun too. Make your home a place to achieve what you need. It will make a massive difference.

Parents are going to be uneasy about you hanging around a place usually frequented by children - unless you are there with a child in your care. Why would an adult be on a playground? Well in your case it's for sensory input. But the majority of parents don't understand that. Another reason why an adult might be there is to pick up children to molest.

20 years ago I had a carpool buddy who was a single male, and he wondered why the local little league parents didn't want him playing ball with the kids. I didn't say anything, but "pedophile" was what I was thinking. Not that I thought he was one, but I figured that's what the parents were uneasy about. Last month this same individual was convicted of murdering his landlady by beating her head in with a blunt object. I wonder if this guy was autistic, maybe. There were certain things he just didn't "get." But, I digress.

you could go to playgrounds that are less crowded.

certainly do not compete with children for the swingset.

some "people" could get suspicious of you, but you are not doing anything wrong.

besides, anyone could get suspicious of anyone for any reason.

some parks have posted age limits.

play structures have weight limits.

anyways, what is so great about riding a bike? plenty of drivers "feel uneasy" around bike riders. (bicycle, not motorcycle, although motorcycles too). bikes have a legal right to make left turns from the left turn lane. plenty of drivers do not know that. plenty of drivers drive badly and/or impatiently and honk when they are wrong.

Where I come from, people would laugh if they see a (childless) adult using playground equipment like a child. My mum used to know of this woman who went to the same park nearly every day and swung on the swings by herself, without any awareness of other people. My mum didn't actually know her but she was seen as the "village idiot" so everybody in the town became familiar of her. Some people were afraid of her, while others laughed. Sadly she's in a mental home now (or whatever they're called these days). Apparently she wasn't autistic though, she just had some sort of mental problem. She was also a severe hoarder in her home.

I think she was harmless, but the whole town saw her as a threat just for swinging on swings. So I'd advise you not to go into parks and use the play equipment, even though your reason for doing it is rather sane, but sadly the public will immediately think of it as insane.

You could go when no one is there.

I’m NT, my husband is autistic, and we have a NT preschooler. We definitely notice when an adult is in a kid area without a kid, and we immediately leave.

Also, little kids might see you playing and try to play WITH you, which would make the adults go into alert mode. You could get into trouble, easily, just from a misunderstanding.

I like the ikea home swing idea too. Remember, your home environment is yours, so it should be full of things you like that calm you.

I have the same issue. I want to play in the playgrounds too and I am afraid people will think I am creepy or the p word. I try to go when no one else is around even if it has to be at four in the morning or something. If police come and ask me what I am doing there, I explain that I am Autistic and I need this and I don't want to scare people who have kids. I would also feel scared if other adults were watching me judging me. I am just as afraid of them as they are for their kids even though I am completely harmless. I would even tell the police that I am afraid to go when other people are there because of what they might do to me.

Beating a lady to death, parents were right to be suspicious of him and follow their vibe.

No it's because cyclists also don't follow the rules and they run red lights and can go right in front of you so us drivers are nervous because we don't know what you are going to do. I have even gotten some mad at me for not going at a green light because I didn't know where they were going and I didn't want to hit them so they would aggressively tell me to go as if they were offended by me being careful around them and being safe around them. I just didn't want to turn and then they start pedaling and I hit them. But yet that offended them when I was trying to avoid that?


A driver is held more responsible when they hit a cyclists or a pedestrian so we have a reason to be very nervous around pedestrians and cyclists because of you do anything stupid, we are automatically held at fault unless we have a witness or a dashcam.

Truckers are held to a higher standard than regular cars so truckers also have a reason to be anxious around regular cars so many of them also use a dash cam because of stupidity of drivers.

Last edited by League_Girl on 15 Aug 2018, 10:43 am, edited 1 time in total.

People seriously call the police on an adult playing in the playground?

Honestly I would think most parents would just leave if an adult came unattended by a child or if they were taking their kid to a playground and they saw a strange person there, they would just turn around and leave and go somewhere else.

You aren't doing anything wrong, so I wouldn't be to concerned, just don't talk to or play with any children. People will judge almost anything and anyone, just do what you need to.

It may help to find a less used park or go when not many people are going to be there.

I've always liked to watch kids play; I have no "desire" for them. It's just fun to watch their social interactions, especially since I was so bad at them when I was a kid.

I also like to swing on the swings from time to time. So do many adults.

Not many have perverted designs on kids----but it is true that the perversion of kids has to be attended to vigilantly. And certain sacrifices have to be made for the goal of having not one kid be kidnapped, and not having one kid be molested.

This is why I don't look into playgrounds any more---even though I don't have perverted designs on the kids.

I must admit, I do wish that there were a socially-acceptable adult equivalent to playgrounds, as I like those kind of physical sensations myself. For some people, no doubt cycling, trampolining, watersports etc. might be a good substitute, and I used to get some of the same thrill from caving years ago. I find that the problem with those alternatives is that they are often too structured or involve the social interactions of a club, when what I want is just the sensory experiences without the feeling that I'm supposed to be "achieving" something or engaging with other people. The alternatives can also be rather expensive or not be available in a suitable time or place.

My best substitute is to go for a walk in the woods, and find an isolated spot where I can climb and swing from trees etc. (I keep a few lengths of rope for rigging up my own little swings.) Again, that depends a lot on how practical it is to get to such places, and I'm lucky that I have them within easy walking distance.

It would be nice maybe if some gyms which have ropes etc. set up would have adult sessions for autistic people to "free play" on the equipment, I think - though I doubt it's likely to happen. The equipment would then be more suitable for adults, and there would be some supervision to ensure that people didn't have serious accidents, which I must admit, does sometimes worry me when I'm out on my solo tree-swinging expeditions.