Mind Your Autistic Brain with Social Autie

  Thought Loops, Rumination & Worry  How to use them as a tool for Autistics What is it? Mandall et al defines rumination as the "tendency to engage in sustained, repetitive thinking about negative topics." (Mandell et al., 2014, p. 35). Overall, with variations in definition in psychology research, rumination is a pattern of thinking which is most often, but not always, linked to a negative feeling, experience from the past or future feelings that are anticipated. Example: * Replaying a conversation that has happened * Scripting every scenario for a future conversation Rumination refers to thinking about events in the past . Worry refers to thinking about events in the future . Beneficial Tool vs. Harmful Behavior The harmful affects of rumination and worry can be: *Loss of sleep * Easily agitated * Increase in anxiety & depression * Impact your emotions and can change your world view along with your sense of safety. INSIGHT The brain cannot distinguish easily betwee...

  1. Basic Needs This one has always been a challenge for me.  I tend to get caught up in what I am doing and forget to eat and drink.  I'm better about it in the mornings, but by lunchtime or late afternoon I have completely forgotten.  I've even caught myself "holding it" after a cup of coffee rather than stopping to "go" because I don't want to stop what I'm doing.  Can you relate, do you do any of this as well?   IF so, then it is time for some Self-Care.  One of the biggest hurdles we as autistics face is giving ourselves PERMISSION to Self-Care.  Somehow, over the decades of going unidentified and not knowing we are autistic, we hold this false belief that isn't even conscious that we have to follow the rules and ask permission.  I think it comes from childhood when we had to ask permission to go to the bathroom at school.   Most of us are rule followers to the letter and this new awareness that we are in control and have...

  In this installment of the 2020 Holiday Survival Guide for Autistics you will get insights and tips into: What to do if you are alone on the holidays How to use past holiday events to help you this holiday season 3 Clues you are saying “YES” too much and How to say NO Going places and meeting new people Sensory Challenges and Overwhelm Download the Mind Your Autistic Brain Holiday Magazine along with 3 Gifts & 2 Bonuses including Tips for stressful family events and MORE. There are many reasons we could be alone during the holidays , from moving too far from family to be together, COVID safety protocols, no family and the list goes on. I know how this feels because I have moved far from anyone I knew many times and been in this exact situation. Start by redefining what the holidays mean to you. Not what some Norman Rockwell painting depicts, but what you think and feel the holidays should be to you and how you want to spend them. This can be anything. A cozy day in your...

Autism & Self-Worth By  Maisie Soetantyo of Autism Career Pathways         & Social Autie, Mind Your Autistic Brain You can view the Live Instagram TV Discussion Here: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CHvwBaBA6sG/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link What is Self Worth? Positivepsychology.com definition-Having a sense of self-worth means that you value yourself and having a sense of self-value means that you are worthy. Merriam Webster defines it as…”a feeling that you are a good person who deserves to be treated with respect.”  What does not define self worth: Bank account or social status Job title Attractiveness # of social media followers What are some barriers or roadblocks in the life of an autistic to self-worth? What we have been told from others in our life which has formed or defined our beliefs of who we are and what we can or can’t do. How we view ourselves in the world in relation to others. Comparison trap. “Comparison is...

  With hindsight and all the advances in neuroscience you might have already asked the question why wasn’t this picked up when I was younger? Well, it was and it wasn’t, in old fashioned parlance I could have been described as a ‘problem child’ and back then tragically the panacea for such ills was a jolly good hiding. Thank God we have moved on since then! I realised very early on (around the age of five) that even though we are all different I certainly was more different than most and I certainly couldn’t understand why everyone else didn’t see the world like I did. I was well used to being described as odd, weird, peculiar etc. and there was one incident in my teenage years that summed this up. We were in a physics lesson (with thankfully a great teacher) and he was explaining the meaning of the word ‘anomaly’ and it went something like this: Teacher: An anomaly is something that is in a group but not part of it because it is different. Let me explain: Take Muxworthy here (poi...

Meet today's guest writer, Jason Muxworthy.  He is a big Dr. Who fan as you can see from the great photo of him above.  Jason is also the guest on my podcast, MIND YOUR AUTISTIC BRAIN this week.  Podcast Link  I am celebrating the big "10" today on the Podcast as this is the 10th episode and your 5 star ratings and reviews have been pouring in each week.  I am so excited the podcast is resonating with you and giving you great insights each week.  We are a beautiful community of varied voices and on the podcast you get to meet someone you may relate to and connect with each week.  You are not alone my friend.  Enjoy Jason's article below on sharing his autism diagnosis with the world.  Thanks for this Jason!!! God Makes No Mistakes – Born This Way. Part 1. First of all I would like to thank Lady Gaga for the title of this blog. As a result you may be reading this with a deal of trepidation as to what might be coming next. Some of you might alr...

Overstimulation is something we as adult autistics face on a daily basis. Learning how overstimulation presents, in you personally, is a big factor in being able to identify it early and put protective action barriers into place. Bart and I have both experienced overstimulation and he is sharing his insights and a great graphic to add to your TOOL KIT to help you identify overstimulation in your life. Meet Bart Wapstra, below and be sure to hop back over to Instagram and share your overstimulation thoughts with us on instagram @socialautie under the post for this blog today. Enjoy this amazing article from Bart……. Hi there! I am Bart Wapstra, an autism advocate from the Netherlands on Instagram (@actually_autistic_bart). Recently, I joined ''Mind Your Autstic Brain with Social Autie'' Facebook group. I always like to share parts of my life with people hoping it can help others. I also hope that neurotypicals become more aware about what autism is and isn'...

  Do you STRESS @ How to Respond when someone asks for YOUR opinion? Your best friend, your spouse, your boss...at some point everyone asks for our opinion on something, from “What do you think of my new dress?” to “How can we increase production in your department?” Do you panic?  Do you dread answering because in the past when you have given your opinion it went terribly wrong and the other person got mad or defensive or worse?  Do you cringe and avoid answering at all costs?  You would rather have your fingernails ripped out than answer the question.  If this is you, you are not alone and I have some great tips and insights into this very tricky topic of feedback for you today that will make those days of cringing, panic and avoidance a thing of the past.  Today, you are going to get the autistic insight your brain has been seeking and 3 easy tips to make you a feedback pro.  What is feedback exactly? Feedback is a mutual communication exchange wher...