So, I’m not going to sit here and pretend to be and expert on ASD, because I’m not.
I’m 22 years old and have always had the condition, its not like it just appeared one day, it was just always missed. I still don’t fully understand the condition, and neither does my family. were constantly trying “new ways” of avoiding situation, and my “meltdowns” still happen occasionally. The one thing I always try to explain to people is how I can hear most noises all at the same time. When I go to the cinema, I can hear the film, the couple behind me constantly trying to get comfy, the person at the other side of the room eating loudly, the young child at the front slurping their drink, the person trying to whisper to their companion. It can get VERY annoying, and hard work to hear the thing that should be easy.
Family gatherings in a house or a public place, I can have a full conversation with everyone there at the same time.. I once heard my grandma talking to my nana about wanting to go on holiday while I was at the other end of the room talking to my brother about my birthday! No one even realised that I was “listening” to a different convocation until I told my mum later that night.
A lot of people tell me they don’t know much about the condition, so I hope to give you all a little bit of an insight into my life. through different experiences and daily occurrences. so ill start with the one thing I’ve found to help people to understand more. SOUND.
So, imagine you’ve got your favourite music album on, and the CD messes up and plays every single track at the same time, through headphones, on top of each other.. While trying to follow a set of instructions being spoken to you.. Yeah, its just a loud jumble.. well that’s pretty much what my head feels like most of the time. Sometimes, when everything is happening, I just wanna scream and tell everyone to shush for a minuet so I can have some calm time for my head (it is a massive pain in the A but the ones who matter understand) Some people think im “rude” or “ignorant” because im not responding to them, but the honest answer is, sometimes my brain might have that much going on inside it, that it takes a little longer to process, or in the worst situation, I physically cannot hear any more sounds.
So, in future, if you ever come across someone who seems to just be straining to listen to you, or even just not really in a “talkative” mood, don’t just jump to the conclusion that they are rude or uninterested, please give a second thought to the fact that having a person to person conversation may not be as easy for them as it is for you.
Don't call me weird! 