Autism (or rather autisms) is different for each person in terms of trajectory, personality types, information processing, environment and mental health. The very individual challenges and strengths are highly personalised, specific and may the platform to stay away from is comparison which is easier said than implemented in the people’s lives but can be an opportunity for connected growth, internalised understanding and the earthly resolve seeing people beyond the rhetoric.

That is my next point what are I am really saying when I say personhood first? It’s not a denial of the autism or unconscious shame that I am either projecting on to myself or to others, no it is seeing people as such we can look at the challenges in an open-minded and diligent fashion as much as we can look upon the strengths with all the multiple nuances and context that one can garner.

The person’s condition isn’t the totality of “them” it rides along with other factors that build up the patchwork quilts of being human and that can be a mindset, ethos or otherwise.

If I make this personal for a moment, I am a human being that is what I want to be seen as, the path to balance means putting all the interchangeable factors into to their respective realities be it positive, negative or otherwise let’s look at things from that angle.

Objective reasoning is part of the package let’s see how that can work in real life, within communities that are socially bindings, meaningful and personal. Maybe that is where the underpinnings of acceptance resides.

Today is autism awareness day and what does that mean? I suppose it’s as diverse and as nuanced as the condition itself, it isn’t one size fits and one must be diligent enough that we cannot represent all but maybe we must give paving for other realities beyond our own.

Realism and objectivism is the route forward in which we aim for the direction of balance, the direction of looking at autisms in the plural and that it is a condition made up of conditions – if we can advocate, empower and educate from that angle then maybe people’s systems will be looked into and acknowledged.

I break down the different aspects that can be within and ride along with someone’s autism “fruit salad” it can be

– Agnosias (sensory, language and social perception)

– Apraxias (co-ordination, movement and communication)

– Aphasias (language processing)

– Collagen (hypermobility, tissue, organ and muscle connectivity, cardiovascular conditions)

– Metabolic (macro-nutritional anomalies that impact on health systems)

– Gut (allergies & intolerances)

– Auto-Immune (impacting various systems, diet, white blood cells and risk of infections, pain , dizziness, brain fog for example)

– Seizures (impacting the development and electroactivity of the brain)

– Mild brain injury (impacting on development and associated information processing challenges)

Conclusion

So let’s look at these aspects with an open mind, see them as people first as opposed to defining one completely “their condition” for being seen as human, a valid meaningful member of society is the start.

Other factors such as mental health conditions, personality types/disordered extremes, adjustment and attachment can all become a part of someone’s presentation.

Paul Isaacs 2023