That sums is up...."trends are temporary and autism is forever. " it does feel like people think it's a trend and cool to be autistic. I have never felt like I am "cool" but actually the opposite. I'm just glad for the diagnosis regardless of what others think about it. 😊❤thanks for another great video and way more than 3 or 4 people watch them!🎉
I actually did go through a period of depression after accepting that I am autistic. But gradually I began to feel more relaxed and free to be myself. To stop my feelings of embarrassment of my true self. And over time I have become more optimistic about life because I've decided there's nothing wrong with me. My brain works a little differently. That's all ! Thanks once again for sharing your thoughts . They are inspiring❤
Yes, I 'lean into' my autistic ways more these days. I've had over 40 years of masking for other people's benefit, so it's time to give myself some room. My brain works differently too - as you said: 'That's all!' And yet people pathologise us and patronise us and forces us to conform. No, no, and no. Autistic people deserve to be appreciated for who they are - people with different and potentially wonderful minds.
I don’t do things that are trendy and everyone is doing/having them. I never wanted to be trendy I’m myself I just wanted to be accepted instead of being “fixed”! Now when I’m looking for help, because I need it, I hear that it’s trendy. “Saying that it’s a trend itself is a trend” - absolutely accurate! Thank you for the video!
I've never really understood why people follow the herd - what about being independent and thinking things through for yourself? They say that autistic people want things to be the same all the time, but it seems to me that neurotypical people often want to actually *be* the same as each other.
@@AutisticNotAlien I heard from a psychiatrist that it’s trendy. I have serious issues managing my emotions and panic attacks but after what I’ve heard from her I’m afraid of any mental health professionals although people from my environment encourage me to go and seek help.
@@Alien_ated-human88 Unfortunately, there seems to be a lot of ignorance about autism amongst medical professionals. I would suggest making sure that whoever you seek help from has received autism training, and also perhaps check who provided the training. The ignorance about autism, autistic people, and their experiences is one big reason why I make TH-cam videos. The more autistic voices are heard, the more likely it is that autistic people will be recognised and accepted.
@@Alien_ated-human88 Oh, that's great! I often wonder what contribution & influence I have in the forum. Apart from my rampant ego, I actually want to help fellow autistic people feel more understood & validated. I'm just a deeply insecure person trying to achieve a connection...from afar. Card-carrying member of the Anti-Social Social Club!
Don't they realise being diagnosed with autism, years ago, was not a trend but a shame in many countries ? Why can't they understand so many undiagnosed people (many adults) ask for an assessment because autism is a little bit better understood now ! This is not a trend, this is a huge delay which has been very harmful to most late diagnosed adults. It's great to be able to diagnose kids early in life, they'll be able to understand themselves much better. People talking about a trend just show how stupid they are on that matter. Thank you Neil ! (I love my old jumper, even if it's ugly !)
You're absolutely right. You make a great point about how autism is seen as shameful in other countries. We should be grateful to be living in places where there is recognition and appreciation of autistic people. However, if the recognition and appreciation was deep and widespread, there probably wouldn't be so many autism TH-cam channels. We have a lot of educating still to do...
Thank you, Helen. Maybe it would be good to be cool for a day, just to see what it's like. Actually, I've just realised that I've just written the least-cool sentence in history. Oh well!
I've had to come to the conclusion that it's in a neurotypical person's nature to adopt trends and fit in even at the cost of intentionally doing it disingenuously or intentionally lying and appropriating something for clout... Thats part of the whole "understanding how to socialize" thing we supposedly lack. And i think if they see a willingness in themselves to do something like that, they can't trust that it's NOT what we're doing... They are projecting that paradigm onto us.
I find myself inherently repelled by labeling myself, so I had a hard time applying autism as a label, and I'm still comming to terms with this new truth about myself. I'm grateful for my diagnosis and it has helped explain so much while helping me strategize further in the interactions of the day to day, but it's been a struggle telling people about this facet of myself. I suppose autism will be normalized at some point and this trend will likely die down. But I have to ask myself, how many autism awareness days/months have passed where I learned nothing about autism? Will the general ignorance of what autism is continue encourage this trend? It was only in 2024 after being diagnosed that I formed a proper impression of autism and that was with a dianosed nephew. So if an autist goes undiagnosed for 40 years and doesn't know about autism, what are the impressions of the ones who have no connection to the condition? I find this really interesting, apologies for the rambling. I look forward to the next one.
I'm also grateful to know that I'm autistic, and I'm still coming to terms with it. I have to believe that autism will be normalised at some point. If people believe it's a trend (and made-up), then autistic people will find it harder to be accepted and find support.
I can’t agree more. It was five decades for me. I don’t “want” to be autistic. In fact, I had to overcome a lot of ableism to allow myself to really accept that I didn’t just “have some autistic traits”. There may be a very small group of people who are claiming to be autistic when they aren’t for some weird social points, but those social points don’t actually exist,, so if somebody is trying to collect them, they are ill in some way and deserve our help, not our scorn.
Yes, I 'want' to be autistic about as much as I 'want' to be short: neither are choices. The social media people using autism as a popularity boost are making it harder for actually autistic people to gain acceptance.
@@AutisticNotAlien I’m not actually convinced they are making it more difficult. I think they are giving people who want to make things difficult an excuse to do so and a message to rally around. They would find a different excuse if that one wasn’t there. I’m sure there are some of them who are convinced I can’t be autistic because I survived into my 50s without knowing I was autistic, so obviously, I cannot be autistic because an actually autistic person would, I guess, be dead. Those people who are policing autism are, ultimately, the problem. If you are claiming autism when you aren’t autistic, it’s either because a lot of the experiences resonate with you (but not enough for a diagnosis) or you have a mental illness. In both cases, these people deserve our support. The former are struggling with many of the same things we are; the latter are struggling with something different, but still struggling, and they’ve found a community that provides some support. And there is literally no way to tell either of those cases from an actually autistic person through a video. “Undiagnosing” somebody through a video requires the ability to diagnose people through a video, and that is patently ridiculous. @autistamatic released a video a few days ago about this. I felt this way before, but he has done a pretty good job summing up my feelings with that video.
I wish i wasn't autistic but i cant change it so it is what it is. Also if i wasn't diagnosed autistic i would just be seen as awkward and weird!! Odd, And all the other slights that have been thrown my way, at least since having this diagnosis people who have labelled me odd , weird, deppressive etc pre diagnosis have backed off a bit! So that is one of the very few benefits for having a diagnosis. Clothes are one of my special interests and living on a council estate and not wearing the estate uniform of a baggy tracksuit with a huge pair of air jordan moon boots 7 days a week! , then i'm going to stand out when dressed like a 60's dandy. But it isnt done to impress anyone or say look at me , look at me!! in fact it brings a lot of unwanted attention, sneers , dirty looks etc. but it is part of who i am , i would rather leave the house and absolutely nobody be around at all to see me that would be a dream. I dress for me not for anyone else at all and certainly not for attention. Good video. Thanks neil.🙋♂️
Without my realisation that I'm autistic, I just thought I was awkward and weird - I didn't need anyone else to tell me. An official diagnosis is certainly helpful in terms of acceptance at work. I know what you mean about clothing and having no one to see you. I usually wear black, navy blue, grey, and/or brown. It's a comfort thing, and also because I don't want to draw attention to myself. This is an odd thing to say for someone with a TH-cam channel, but the difference is that I make the videos and respond to messages at home, where I'm in control of my environment. Being outside means being vulnerable to a range of hazards!
Hi, I just found your channel. Excellent video. I'm baffled as to how you recorded such clean, distinct audio in such a bouncy and boomy looking room?🤔 ps I am now going looking for your house music. 👍
Welcome to the channel! And thank you for your lovely comment. I'm impressed by your knowledge of sound. I separate the audio from the footage and put it through an Adobe sound app to remove background noise and echo.
Great video. I got diagnosed with autism last year by 1 psychologist and I'm waiting on a 2nd and final opinion, which will probably be sometime next year. I've been struggling to accept this diagnosis, but I'm on the side of just accepting it.
Good luck with your next appointment. I've accepted my diagnosis, but I still struggle to accept the timing of it. Knowing much sooner would have made a big difference...but here I am, in my 40s, making silly videos on the internet.
@@AutisticNotAlien Thank you. It's been very frustrating waiting, but I don't have any other options at this point. I wish I would have know sooner, but maybe its better that it turned out this way. I'll never know. Hopefully making the videos provides you some kind of "closure" and pleasure.
Same ... I still feel like lack of fitting is my fault but at least I can explain why its my vault now... and be follow on judgy to those people who are excluding me for being different 😁
I don't think we should think of not fitting in as a 'fault'. We're not going to get on with everyone, and that's fine. However, condemnation/bullying/deliberate exclusion because we're autistic is not fine.
do you have any music on a platform? I have BPD and i had a guilt complex about being born i spent most of my life feeling like i was in the way or a burden. Not the case now but some of the things you mentioned feel similar
Hi Michael. I have a Soundcloud account and some music videos on my other TH-cam channel - the links are under the video. I know what you mean about feeling like a burden, but I think the way out of that mindset is to think about the people who love you and the good times you have had (and will have).
As a woman diagnosed with ADHD at 50 after a lifetime of having ADHD this makes me so angry. I also think these types of people are angry that so many women are now getting ADHD and autism diagnoses.😢
The 'trend' narrative obscures the needs that actually autistic/ADHD people have, and it's so sad. My ADHD is such a battle every day, and for almost 42 years, I didn't even know that I could seek a diagnosis that could lead to support.
Yeah what an unfortunate trend of being a twat. It does seem ironic that a group of often very non trend following types would b accused of following a trend lol. I am also very much not a trend follower, prefer to have my own thoughts than just follow the herd. Ive found that no matter how hard i try i will not fit in and also some of those fitting in types suck, better to b a first rate me than a second rate somebody else
'Better to be a first rate me than a second rate somebody else' - very well said. Society says, 'Just be yourself!' And then when autistic people take that advice literally, we are mocked and gaslighted and ignored.
😂😂 I love your comment "what an unfortunate trend of being a twat". I say something similar all the time. I have never been into any kind of trend ever. I find trends to be such stupid fads. The fact that to "trend" means to be generally favoured by the majority is, in itself, stupid. Popularity for a person, fashion, lifestyle, colour etc does not mean we all have to be a part of it. So what if 'pink is the new black'? I don't like Pink. I like blue and black. To want pink when you don't like Pink, just because everyone else around you is all pink this and pink that, is so silly.
Well, I, for one, have to say that sarcastic humour is right up my alley and that's what I have seen in your videos, my friend. For me, your vids are easy to watch/listen to 👍
That sums is up...."trends are temporary and autism is forever. " it does feel like people think it's a trend and cool to be autistic. I have never felt like I am "cool" but actually the opposite. I'm just glad for the diagnosis regardless of what others think about it. 😊❤thanks for another great video and way more than 3 or 4 people watch them!🎉
Thank you, Jenny. It's frustrating that autistic minds are put on a par with a TikTok trend.
I actually did go through a period of depression after accepting that I am autistic. But gradually I began to feel more relaxed and free to be myself. To stop my feelings of embarrassment of my true self. And over time I have become more optimistic about life because I've decided there's nothing wrong with me. My brain works a little differently. That's all ! Thanks once again for sharing your thoughts . They are inspiring❤
Yes, I 'lean into' my autistic ways more these days. I've had over 40 years of masking for other people's benefit, so it's time to give myself some room. My brain works differently too - as you said: 'That's all!' And yet people pathologise us and patronise us and forces us to conform. No, no, and no. Autistic people deserve to be appreciated for who they are - people with different and potentially wonderful minds.
I don’t do things that are trendy and everyone is doing/having them. I never wanted to be trendy I’m myself I just wanted to be accepted instead of being “fixed”! Now when I’m looking for help, because I need it, I hear that it’s trendy. “Saying that it’s a trend itself is a trend” - absolutely accurate! Thank you for the video!
I've never really understood why people follow the herd - what about being independent and thinking things through for yourself? They say that autistic people want things to be the same all the time, but it seems to me that neurotypical people often want to actually *be* the same as each other.
@@AutisticNotAlien I heard from a psychiatrist that it’s trendy. I have serious issues managing my emotions and panic attacks but after what I’ve heard from her I’m afraid of any mental health professionals although people from my environment encourage me to go and seek help.
@@Alien_ated-human88 Unfortunately, there seems to be a lot of ignorance about autism amongst medical professionals. I would suggest making sure that whoever you seek help from has received autism training, and also perhaps check who provided the training. The ignorance about autism, autistic people, and their experiences is one big reason why I make TH-cam videos. The more autistic voices are heard, the more likely it is that autistic people will be recognised and accepted.
@@AutisticNotAlien thank you for your work! I found the link to your video in the forum and I’m happy that I found your channel!
@@Alien_ated-human88 Oh, that's great! I often wonder what contribution & influence I have in the forum. Apart from my rampant ego, I actually want to help fellow autistic people feel more understood & validated. I'm just a deeply insecure person trying to achieve a connection...from afar. Card-carrying member of the Anti-Social Social Club!
Brilliantly put. I relate so much to not following the trend and also not wanting to stand out.
Don't they realise being diagnosed with autism, years ago, was not a trend but a shame in many countries ? Why can't they understand so many undiagnosed people (many adults) ask for an assessment because autism is a little bit better understood now ! This is not a trend, this is a huge delay which has been very harmful to most late diagnosed adults. It's great to be able to diagnose kids early in life, they'll be able to understand themselves much better. People talking about a trend just show how stupid they are on that matter. Thank you Neil ! (I love my old jumper, even if it's ugly !)
You're absolutely right. You make a great point about how autism is seen as shameful in other countries. We should be grateful to be living in places where there is recognition and appreciation of autistic people. However, if the recognition and appreciation was deep and widespread, there probably wouldn't be so many autism TH-cam channels. We have a lot of educating still to do...
I could not be further away from cool and on trend if I tried. Great video, well said. 😊
Thank you, Helen. Maybe it would be good to be cool for a day, just to see what it's like. Actually, I've just realised that I've just written the least-cool sentence in history. Oh well!
I've had to come to the conclusion that it's in a neurotypical person's nature to adopt trends and fit in even at the cost of intentionally doing it disingenuously or intentionally lying and appropriating something for clout... Thats part of the whole "understanding how to socialize" thing we supposedly lack. And i think if they see a willingness in themselves to do something like that, they can't trust that it's NOT what we're doing... They are projecting that paradigm onto us.
Yes, you've nailed it. I think it's very sad that people lie just to be accepted. By doing that, I wouldn't be able to accept myself.
I find myself inherently repelled by labeling myself, so I had a hard time applying autism as a label, and I'm still comming to terms with this new truth about myself. I'm grateful for my diagnosis and it has helped explain so much while helping me strategize further in the interactions of the day to day, but it's been a struggle telling people about this facet of myself.
I suppose autism will be normalized at some point and this trend will likely die down. But I have to ask myself, how many autism awareness days/months have passed where I learned nothing about autism? Will the general ignorance of what autism is continue encourage this trend? It was only in 2024 after being diagnosed that I formed a proper impression of autism and that was with a dianosed nephew. So if an autist goes undiagnosed for 40 years and doesn't know about autism, what are the impressions of the ones who have no connection to the condition?
I find this really interesting, apologies for the rambling. I look forward to the next one.
I'm also grateful to know that I'm autistic, and I'm still coming to terms with it. I have to believe that autism will be normalised at some point. If people believe it's a trend (and made-up), then autistic people will find it harder to be accepted and find support.
I can’t agree more. It was five decades for me. I don’t “want” to be autistic. In fact, I had to overcome a lot of ableism to allow myself to really accept that I didn’t just “have some autistic traits”.
There may be a very small group of people who are claiming to be autistic when they aren’t for some weird social points, but those social points don’t actually exist,, so if somebody is trying to collect them, they are ill in some way and deserve our help, not our scorn.
Yes, I 'want' to be autistic about as much as I 'want' to be short: neither are choices. The social media people using autism as a popularity boost are making it harder for actually autistic people to gain acceptance.
@@AutisticNotAlien I’m not actually convinced they are making it more difficult. I think they are giving people who want to make things difficult an excuse to do so and a message to rally around. They would find a different excuse if that one wasn’t there. I’m sure there are some of them who are convinced I can’t be autistic because I survived into my 50s without knowing I was autistic, so obviously, I cannot be autistic because an actually autistic person would, I guess, be dead. Those people who are policing autism are, ultimately, the problem.
If you are claiming autism when you aren’t autistic, it’s either because a lot of the experiences resonate with you (but not enough for a diagnosis) or you have a mental illness. In both cases, these people deserve our support. The former are struggling with many of the same things we are; the latter are struggling with something different, but still struggling, and they’ve found a community that provides some support. And there is literally no way to tell either of those cases from an actually autistic person through a video. “Undiagnosing” somebody through a video requires the ability to diagnose people through a video, and that is patently ridiculous.
@autistamatic released a video a few days ago about this. I felt this way before, but he has done a pretty good job summing up my feelings with that video.
I wish i wasn't autistic but i cant change it so it is what it is. Also if i wasn't diagnosed autistic i would just be seen as awkward and weird!! Odd, And all the other slights that have been thrown my way, at least since having this diagnosis people who have labelled me odd , weird, deppressive etc pre diagnosis have backed off a bit! So that is one of the very few benefits for having a diagnosis. Clothes are one of my special interests and living on a council estate and not wearing the estate uniform of a baggy tracksuit with a huge pair of air jordan moon boots 7 days a week! , then i'm going to stand out when dressed like a 60's dandy. But it isnt done to impress anyone or say look at me , look at me!! in fact it brings a lot of unwanted attention, sneers , dirty looks etc. but it is part of who i am , i would rather leave the house and absolutely nobody be around at all to see me that would be a dream. I dress for me not for anyone else at all and certainly not for attention. Good video. Thanks neil.🙋♂️
Without my realisation that I'm autistic, I just thought I was awkward and weird - I didn't need anyone else to tell me. An official diagnosis is certainly helpful in terms of acceptance at work. I know what you mean about clothing and having no one to see you. I usually wear black, navy blue, grey, and/or brown. It's a comfort thing, and also because I don't want to draw attention to myself. This is an odd thing to say for someone with a TH-cam channel, but the difference is that I make the videos and respond to messages at home, where I'm in control of my environment. Being outside means being vulnerable to a range of hazards!
@@AutisticNotAlien Thanks neil you get your message across well in your videos but you also posess a natural comedic delivery and timing as well.🙋♂️
@@jamesnock5572 I'll take this sort of review all day long - thank you very much, James!
Hi, I just found your channel. Excellent video. I'm baffled as to how you recorded such clean, distinct audio in such a bouncy and boomy looking room?🤔
ps I am now going looking for your house music.
👍
Welcome to the channel! And thank you for your lovely comment. I'm impressed by your knowledge of sound. I separate the audio from the footage and put it through an Adobe sound app to remove background noise and echo.
Again! Thank you for verbalising this so poignantly!!! Love it!!!
Thank you for your kind comments - they really do keep me going.
Great video, very funny! And insightful as always.
Thank you very much, Tony. Your comments mean a lot.
Great video. I got diagnosed with autism last year by 1 psychologist and I'm waiting on a 2nd and final opinion, which will probably be sometime next year. I've been struggling to accept this diagnosis, but I'm on the side of just accepting it.
Good luck with your next appointment. I've accepted my diagnosis, but I still struggle to accept the timing of it. Knowing much sooner would have made a big difference...but here I am, in my 40s, making silly videos on the internet.
@@AutisticNotAlien Thank you. It's been very frustrating waiting, but I don't have any other options at this point. I wish I would have know sooner, but maybe its better that it turned out this way. I'll never know. Hopefully making the videos provides you some kind of "closure" and pleasure.
Same ... I still feel like lack of fitting is my fault but at least I can explain why its my vault now... and be follow on judgy to those people who are excluding me for being different 😁
I don't think we should think of not fitting in as a 'fault'. We're not going to get on with everyone, and that's fine. However, condemnation/bullying/deliberate exclusion because we're autistic is not fine.
Thank you - well said, and very relatable.
Thank you very much, Kayleen.
do you have any music on a platform? I have BPD and i had a guilt complex about being born i spent most of my life feeling like i was in the way or a burden. Not the case now but some of the things you mentioned feel similar
Hi Michael. I have a Soundcloud account and some music videos on my other TH-cam channel - the links are under the video. I know what you mean about feeling like a burden, but I think the way out of that mindset is to think about the people who love you and the good times you have had (and will have).
As a woman diagnosed with ADHD at 50 after a lifetime of having ADHD this makes me so angry. I also think these types of people are angry that so many women are now getting ADHD and autism diagnoses.😢
The 'trend' narrative obscures the needs that actually autistic/ADHD people have, and it's so sad. My ADHD is such a battle every day, and for almost 42 years, I didn't even know that I could seek a diagnosis that could lead to support.
Yeah what an unfortunate trend of being a twat. It does seem ironic that a group of often very non trend following types would b accused of following a trend lol. I am also very much not a trend follower, prefer to have my own thoughts than just follow the herd. Ive found that no matter how hard i try i will not fit in and also some of those fitting in types suck, better to b a first rate me than a second rate somebody else
'Better to be a first rate me than a second rate somebody else' - very well said. Society says, 'Just be yourself!' And then when autistic people take that advice literally, we are mocked and gaslighted and ignored.
😂😂 I love your comment "what an unfortunate trend of being a twat". I say something similar all the time. I have never been into any kind of trend ever. I find trends to be such stupid fads. The fact that to "trend" means to be generally favoured by the majority is, in itself, stupid. Popularity for a person, fashion, lifestyle, colour etc does not mean we all have to be a part of it. So what if 'pink is the new black'? I don't like Pink. I like blue and black. To want pink when you don't like Pink, just because everyone else around you is all pink this and pink that, is so silly.
You didn't like Friends, how about Frasier?
I liked Frasier even less - I just didn't find it funny at all. Each to their own, I guess. Humour is notoriously subjective.
@@AutisticNotAlien That is very true.
Well, I, for one, have to say that sarcastic humour is right up my alley and that's what I have seen in your videos, my friend. For me, your vids are easy to watch/listen to 👍