Callum Stephen (He/Him)(@AutisticCallum_) 's Twitter Profileg
Callum Stephen (He/Him)

@AutisticCallum_

Autistic ADHD’er 🧠 | LGBTQ+ 🏳️‍🌈 | Writer ✍️ | Dreamer ✨ | IG and TikTok: @ autistic_callum_

ID:1369019115818606597

linkhttps://linktr.ee/autistic_callum_ calendar_today08-03-2021 20:16:20

9,6K Tweets

68,7K Followers

559 Following

Callum Stephen (He/Him)(@AutisticCallum_) 's Twitter Profile Photo

Stimming isn’t exclusive to autistic people, but we may be commonly associated with it, because we experience more dysregulation and thus need to soothe ourselves more often, and our stims may be atypical and stand out, whilst others’ stims are so common they hide in plain sight.

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Callum Stephen (He/Him)(@AutisticCallum_) 's Twitter Profile Photo

Many autistic people find it hard to control their tone of voice. The tone we aim to use might not be the tone we end up conveying. E.g., when I answer my phone (a rare event to be fair), I try to make my “hello” sound warm and inviting, yet I often sound irritated and/or scared.

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Many people think of stimming as hand-flapping and rocking back and forth, but it can also be: singing/playing a song on repeat, clicking a pen, stroking one’s chin, twirling hair, pressing/biting lips, scalp scratching, cracking knuckles, pacing/running, jiggling legs, and more.

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The autistic urge to draft messages 10+ times, because some drafts don’t sound warm enough, some contain so many niceties they sound sarcastic, you want to include the elusive ‘right’ amount of detail, and you need to iron out any ambiguities so it’s 100% clear what you mean.

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Autistic me when people cancel plans I’ve been nervous about:

1) Woah, that’s one less stress to deal with today.

2) Oh no, might they reschedule?! If we’re postponing, that’s just prolonging my stress.

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Autism and dating is like:

- Wait, you’re mocking me to be playful, not to be unkind?

- You want me to respond to your message in a few hours, but not right away because that’s ‘desperate’?

- You want me to get to know you, but we can’t discuss anything personal at this stage?

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Navigating life as an Autistic ADHDer can feel like driving a car with a volatile gear stick and half a map whilst people who have an automatic car and Sat Nav keep complaining that you’re always getting lost and arriving late.

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Callum Stephen (He/Him)(@AutisticCallum_) 's Twitter Profile Photo

Many autistic people remember the lyrics to an unusually high number of songs, and we may often burst into song (in our minds or aloud) when someone says words that match the lyrics of one of the many songs we remember. A lot of us share a strong connection with (certain) music.

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The autistic experience of getting into trouble because you did exactly what someone asked you to do and not what they supposedly wanted you to do (which was something different to what they asked of you and something they hoped you’d somehow intuit, which you didn’t).

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Callum Stephen (He/Him)(@AutisticCallum_) 's Twitter Profile Photo

Autistic me: *is calm when a major crisis occurs (like a bereavement)*

Also autistic me: *falls apart if my socks aren’t on correctly, I receive a confusing email or my safe food gets discontinued*

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So many celebrities I adored as a kid are now announcing that they’re Autistic and/or ADHD. E.g, Holly Madison (Autistic) and Paris Hilton (ADHD). It makes me smile, because: a) I find relatable representation validating; and b) it explains why I was (and still am) drawn to them.

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Autistic and ADHD math is needing 6 hours to watch a 90-minute movie, because you’ve got to allow for: the extra pausing you must do when you’re losing focus or want to google an actor, the rewinding you must do when you realise you’ve drifted off, and research time afterwards.

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Part of my autistic experience is finding that hurt, disappointment, confusion, anger and other tough emotions can make it hard for me to speak or make eye contact. When this happens, I’m often misread as being passive aggressive when actually I’m too overwhelmed to communicate.

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Something I really struggle with as an autistic person is surprise guests. I feel very anxious if someone shows up to my home or to an intimate social gathering I am attending with little/no warning - even if I like them. I need time to mentally prepare myself to see each person.

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@Mollys_ADHD_mayhem(@Mollys_ADHD) 's Twitter Profile Photo

Things that have annoyed me today as an AuDHDer:

• Walking behind slow walkers
• People chewing obnoxiously LOUD
• When People TALK AT ME
• When people watch videos on their phones out loud when they are in public spaces Trains, cafes or waiting rooms
•LONG queues

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The autistic urge to either take what someone says wholly at face value or spend hours dissecting it and uncovering a million possible meanings.

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