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Sooooo….I was thinking about one of my charries’ kids, and, well…I was thinking about possibly (very small possibility, mind you) making him Autistic.
I figured out that Autism was first diagnosed in 1943, so I can actually have him be legally diagnosed, based on the time period, but I still have a problem.
How do you write a child with autism?
He’s not, like, a POV character at all, and when he’s older, many of his symptoms may actually go away, but while he’s a kid, how do I portray his Autism realistically?
He’s around the ages of 6-7, if that helps at all.
I don’t really know who to tag here, except maybe @gwyndalf-the-wise…?
I just need some help. 😅
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@godlyfantasy12, if you have any advice…😅
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@freedomwriter76
Well autism is a little difficult because it’s a spectrum but I’ll give you some of the things I’ve seen. My brother has autism and 1 of the symptoms is not responding very well socially. They may zone out and not interact with people. They tend to be extra quirky, doing things such as lining up books or toys just right. At a younger age they’re easier in some ways. The teen years are the worst because if they have a very aggressive type of autism they may act out in violence and often don’t remember the incident once it’s over.
@freedomwriter76
I think it completely depends like Sarafini said, because it’s a spectrum. If he’s diagnosed in the 40’s, he will probably be more on the severe side, since we’ve only become aware of people with more mild symptoms having autism more recently. (I hope that sentence makes sense)
I don’t have autism, but I know a few people who have it, so I can say what it looks like from the outside.
A couple people I know with autism act normal around people they don’t know very well, but when they are comfortable with the people they are with, they can get very loud and kinda enthusiastic, maybe interrupt a lot, and forget to respect people’s personal space. They aren’t trying to be rude when they are like this, they just are happy to be around the person they are with, and comfortable enough to unmask.
They can also have sensory input issues and emotional regulation issues. For example, growing up, my dad never let us have balloons in the house. This was because if they popped (which they usually did), the sound started him really bad and gave him a lot of anxiety and he would have a hard time not being really grumpy afterwards. I also have a friend who is very affectionate and gives me lots of hugs, but I never initiate any kind of physical interaction because she can get startled by it very easily or get overwhelmed.
As for people with more severe symptoms, I don’t know much. Usually, if they are non-verbal or something like that, they are actually really smart, and just have very little control over their body.
Sorry that was so long. I’m just really interested in this kind of stuff!
I still don’t know very much and I’m interested in what others have to say! I am wondering myself if a couple of my characters are autistic.
Space Princess ✨🪐 intp artist
@freedomwriter76
Also, symptoms don’t usually go away, the person just learns how to deal with them better and and hide them in public settings when they get to be adults. Often, like with adhd, symptoms get worse in teenage years because of increased stress and hormones.
Space Princess ✨🪐 intp artist
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@freedomwriter76
Also, depending on the person, some hate being touched. It makes them very upset and/or uncomfortable so some never hug at all. They are often less likely to enjoy drums, fireworks stuff like that because of the noise. Some may have squeeze balls and other sensory toys for comfort. Some have amazing memories. They may be able to recite something they just read. My main MC is like this and I’m using it in my main plot. That’s really the only thing you see rn as far as autism. I’ll bring more stuff into play later. But yeah, wow that really got off-track. 🤭😅
@freedomwriter76 @sarafini
They are often less likely to enjoy drums, fireworks stuff like that because of the noise.
Oh yeah. My dad hates the Fourth of July.
Space Princess ✨🪐 intp artist
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I do too. I haven’t been diagnosed as being autistic but I could be. Idk. Probably not but I have clothing/sensory issues and bright light/loud noises give me a headache so Idk. 🤷♀️
@sarafini
Yeah it could be possible. I can have sensory issues too, sometimes, but that’s from my adhd, not autism.
Space Princess ✨🪐 intp artist
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I haven’t been diagnosed with anything. So Idk.
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@sarafini. @loopylin. Thank you both so very much!!! 😁💕😊
All of that is very helpful!!!! 😁😉💕
@freedomwriter76 Ur welcome!
Space Princess ✨🪐 intp artist
@freedomwriter76 OH!! So I actually got a bit of advice during CWW about this (it’s more specified toward what to do about my Paxton having a stuffed animal and stutter…but maybe it’ll help you out)
This is copied and pasted btw
My little brother is autistic. He’s in his early teens, and still has a security blanket. It’s one of those small, handkerchief size ones with a bear head on top, and he got it as a toddler. It used to be a sky blue color, and very soft. Now, it’s dingy grey and practically see-through. He named it “Special.”
My brother is always carrying Special, and if he’s not, the blanket is somewhere close by. Most of the time, he doesn’t take it into public places, and leaves it in the car. When he’s scared, anxious or sad, he has to have Special with him for comfort. You can tell when he’s feeling these emotions, because he will hold Special up to his face. He also can’t sleep without the blanket. Ever. If he loses track of Special, he will break down into tears, and not rest until it’s found. We have sometimes spend hours looking for it.
One weird thing: he loves the way Special smells. To everyone else, the blanket is a germ factory, and it reeks. He loves sniffing it and rubbing it on his face. Also, the blanket used to have tags on it that he called “tickle-y tags”. They had a silky soft texture, and he loved they way they felt. Unfortunately, he rubbed them so many times that the tags eventually disintegrated.
My brother never talks to Special or attributes emotions to it, or anything creepy like that. He doesn’t play or pretend with it either. However, he does defend Special if we ever call it a rag or something. Not in an angry, insulted, papa bear way, though. More like in a: “you see a dirty dish rag, I see a lovely blue blanket. To each his own,” kind of way.
Special is just his constant, silent companion. His comfort, his tether. Hope that was helpful in some way!
I will neither confirm nor deny the fact that I myself sleep with a giant aquamarine dinosaur named Dino, every single night.
Not sure if this is useful to you, but he also does something called “stimming” whenever his senses of emotions get overloaded. This could be anything from anxiety to excitement. He jumps up and down, flaps his hands, breathes quickly, and stares off into space. He also has vocal and facial tics. Sometimes this means little grunting noises, gasps, tugging on his shirt collar, or opening his mouth wide for a split second. He’s always developing new tics, and if he doesn’t do them, it makes him feel weird.
id also suggest researching it of course (I’m sure you know this 😉) and I’m sure I have some more advice but as of rn….not so much XD
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AGH
I had a huge…late and probably rambly reply to you five seconds ago and KP just ate it. I gotta go to bed, but I’ll try to answer your question in the morning.
"...I did not say to the seed of Jacob, 'Seek Me in vain..."
(Part of) Isaiah 45:19
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