What advice would you give to other autistic people?

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As the tittle says. What advice do all of you have for other autistic people, including yours truly.

Generally, moderation is the key. Avoid extremes in philosophy, politics, and religion. Seek balanced perspectives that allow for understanding, even if you disagree. Prioritize your goals and develop several alternate plans to achieve each goal -- the more goals you can achieve with one plan, the better off you'll be.

Speak less, act more. Reveal only those things about yourself that are absolutely necessary -- never volunteer personal information. Nobody needs to know everything about you, your goals, your interests, or your plans. If they know too much about you, they will use you to achieve their own goals, and then discard you when you've reached the end of your usefulness.

Learn new things every day, even if they are outside the boundaries of your interests. The more you know about something, the more able you will be to exploit its usefulness (this applies to people, too).

Study "The Prince" by Machiavelli. Study "The Art of War" by Sun Tsu. Study "The Holy Bible". The first tells you what to do, the second tells you how to do it, and they third tells you why it should be done. Read and re-read each one until their general principles become intuitive.

Take acting lessons. Take music lessons. Take cooking lessons. The first will give you practical knowledge of how to "fit in" with almost any social situation. The second gives you a talent that will attract admirers. The third will give you the means to feed guests in your home, whether it is a dozen for dinner, or just one for breakfast.

I would say: Try to relax with things that make no sense. It is what we do not perceive well that is at the heart of the problem. This is not to say that people without autism have a better view, they in turn cannot entirely acquire the perspective that autism offers. There is a gap, but either pretending that they are on the right side of the gap is problematic.

I was an epic fail with the guitar but I can read music and identify several styles of Caribbean and Latin percussion.

I can look as meat is not involved.

Acting? TV shows are my secret hobby to dissect. I pick up traits from successful NT characters and use them to get by.....In real life I'm more like Bones....but I can't afford to turn people off like she does.....get a little caffeine and coming forward as outgoing is easier. End of the day though, I'm worn out.

Be true to your authentic self

Your disorder/disability doesn’t prevent you from being successful and happy. Ignore the functioning level given to you, and just strive to be the best person you can during your time here. Put yourself outside of your comfort zone sometimes, but be sure to always take care of yourself. Find out what you like, and attempt to expand that interest. Life isn’t always easy, but it can be a wonderful thing.

Learn about yourself (as we are typically not very self aware) and find out your strengths.

Own these strengths and develop them!

Stop judging yourself against the criteria for "normal" set out by neurotypicals; you'll never get close and consequently feel like a failure.

Whether Einstein said this our not (as it's very debatable), this quote sums things up nicely for me:

“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” The question I have for you at this point of our journey together is, “What is your genius?”

That's a very general question, but my main belief would be to persevere. If you care about something significantly, you should pursue it, but don't let ot become an obsession. Stick to your values but don't let them become ingrained to the point of being rigid and unchanging should new evidence of better values arise. Speak to people that share similar interests but don't press yourself, or them, too hard. Be socially responsible and don't let conversations or individuals become entities of obsession. Be confident, believe that you can do anything, but try to keep those beliefs tucked away; they're for you to refer to and take comfort in, and not for others to suffer. Learn how best to read social cues and try to shed any irrational social anxieties you may have.

These are the best I can think of right now.

I recommend:

Strive for the best health you can. Clean up your diet, get some exercise every day ( a walk is perfect), and get all the sleep you can. That last one is a tall order for some of us.

Keep records. Learn how to use a spreadsheet to log what you eat and when, your exercise activities, how much sleep you get, things that happen in general that are worth noting, etc. You will start to see that perhaps certain foods wreck your sleep for a night or two, or perhaps walking in a certain area causes undue anxiety, and so forth.

Learn to cook. Not only do you have total control over what is in the food you eat but it helps foster executive functioning to be able to plan what to cook, gather the ingredients, and then combine them according to the recipe. Plus it gets you a giant step closer toward independence if you are still at home.

Search for a support group in your area. No doubt you probably already have but if its been more than 6 months since you did, its time to search again. Never give up hope.

Finally, if you are not taking an anti-depressant, see a doctor and ask him to write a script. It does not have to be a psych, a general practitioner will do. Without an anti-depressant your anxiety is probably thru the roof and you don't realize how much better you can feel. When I started taking mine, I wanted to remove flouride out of the water supply and put amitriptyline in! I wanted to know where it had been all my life--and I was only taking 25 mg!

In general, take life one day at a time. Set long term goals but still, concentrate on making it one more day in your classes or at your job.

I hope these will help.

If you are an autistic human who suffers from meltdowns, learn what your triggers are & how you can prevent them or lessen their impact. I do this by keeping a trigger diary & experimenting with different self-care techniques. Also learn as much as you possibly can about asd. Knowledge is power.

Join Wrong Planet!

Autism can be an advantage and a disadvantage. Not all of us have meltdowns. and every Autistic who can interact with other people online should have a WrongPlanet account it's a good place to talk to like minded people.

If you really want to learn to do something, don't be overly discouraged if it too hard for you. Even if you have someone teaching you, you may just need to approach it differently. Or you may need to learn something else first. Come back to it at a later time and try again.

I would say learn about autism & how it affects you. Keep in mind that it's a spectrum & different people are affected in different ways. Do some self analyzing to figure out how your affected by it. !ce you learn about your issues, it's easier to learn to accept yourself for the things you cant really change & to try & change the things you think you can that would benefit you.

We are a very diverse group. Learn your own strengths and weaknesses. Check your assumptions - it took me decades and terrible surprises to finally realize that despite what they claim, most people don't steer by actual logic, and are prone to believing in their own hallucinations quite fiercely. Don't get drawn into fights you can't win - if you start looping on some bit of nonsense, linear thinking won't help, but meditation might.

Work on your weaknesses if they are malleable and benefits ensue, but otherwise, focus on using your unique abilities and avoiding problem situations. Games and entertainment are for recreation after work, but it is the work that gives life meaning, so to avoid depression, get out of that chair even if you have to volunteer or just exercise.

Get involved in the the new, sustainable economy, and boycott polluting, poisoning systems. Stay out of debt. Take care of your health and teeth. Never trust a corporation or even a millionaire if there is an alternative. Learn to be happy with or without things - the less you need, the less you can be pushed around. Whenever you get a chance, be kind.

Don't allow some BS acronym to limit or define your life. You are so much more than a diagnosis.

Be kind. Everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. This includes you.

Everything is impermanent. Don't resist an incoming tide, or cling to receding ocean waves. Go with the flow.

Don't fry bacon naked.

Be at peace.