Favourite Things About Being Autistic

[@nozhki-busha]

Love the top! I am an autistic guy and I have a striped cardigan which has strong Tom Baker Dr Who vibes and I love it. Since I realized I was autistic, I found I have allowed myself to be more bold with fashion choices and wear what I like, not what I think society likes.

[@faeriesmak]

My husband thought for years that there was something wrong with him because everyone else in the household, 4 of us, had very strong interests in one or many things. Turns out that he is the only one in the household that isn’t autistic. 😂

[@aaronsmith9209]

Autism is such a double edged sword lol, what makes the world so overwhelming at times also allows me to see things, details and patterns that people around me would never see. In my case, I am really good at analysing things and problem solving, even when words fail me. I seem to see problems and solutions in everything. Also the way you mention about your teacher being impressed with your photography, friends and family always say that to me but to me it's nothing special either, I just notice things others don't seem to. I was so automatic with taking photos over the last decade or so, it's just dawned on me that photography is my stim, I take lots of pictures when anxious or stressed or if somewhere is too busy and loud for me. Somehow it became a coping mechanism and even allowed me to never get lost in my home city. I don't remember street names and struggle to give directions but photography made me remember the places I took pictures of like the back of my hand!

[@jarmoliebrand2005]

I definitely relate to the photography thing. I quite often see people copying my angles. I agree with autism being a double edged sword. It is connected to my greatest strengths and my biggest weaknesses. It’s neither sunshine and rainbows, nor is it doom and gloom. In short: It’s not that black and white (ironic :)). Despite all the frequent struggles and challenges… I wouldn’t change who I am. And despite going through a particularly tough time, I am confident that things will work out. It’s just frustrating that things don’t work out right now.

[@smawrtygowty5269]

My favorite part about myself is I am very accepting until someone push my boundaries.

[@UnvisibleGirl]

I do love our "thinking outside the box" way of thinking, and omg it frustrates me when systems and processes are inefficient, the world is so inefficient. My special intrests is games and I can be like over excited about stuff but on the other hand I Learnt quite early not to show my excitement as I'd get bullied 🙃

[@UncaHyla]

100% agree with the "outside the box" experience! To the hypothetical neurotypical in that situation, allow me to posit that the autistic person is NOT outside of THE box, they are just outside of YOUR box. We are VERY MUCH INSIDE of OUR OWN BOX AT ALL TIMES, peeking with alarm through a gap in the lid, and we do not care to stray outside of it, thank you. And, no, you cannot come in. Cats? Cats can come in -- cats appreciate the interiors of boxes. 🐈‍⬛

[@jarmoliebrand2005]

I think a lot of times when you put autistic people together, you can feel they are in the same box. With similar thought processes. There’s this AuDHD group I go to in every so often. Purely for fun and recreational purposes. We played this game that was about answering certain questions and trying to rank them blindly. So… for example… How many apps do you have on your phone? When do you (usually) wake up? But the question “Who would do best in a zombie apocalypse” caused a storm of question. Everyone wanted clarification on it. First of all, you were supposed to rank it from 0 to 100. That’s hard enough. Secondly… we just all had questions about the zombie apocalypse. What kind of zombies? Are they fast, intelligent, strong? Do we receive a warning? If so, how much time do we get to prepare? Where are we when the apocalypse starts? Do we have food, tools and weapons with us? It took almost fifteen minutes to really flesh out the question enough for us to answer it 😂.

[@lucasallen5792]

Yes let the cats in!!!

[@xenobladefan7440]

I love being seen as quirky and finding joy in special interests, learning is so incredibly fun that you get sad when you start running out of things to learn on a particular subject

[@sejhammer]

My favorite thing about myself is that my first instinct is always to be kind and giving, even though sometimes I can get myself into trouble by trusting someone who ends up taking advantage of me. Even so, I still like the way I am and am proud of myself for being that way. :)

[@nygmasc]

Hey! I just wanted to say that I love your channel and I relate to your experience so much. It's very comforting to listen to you. I'm from Argentina and I feel so alone in my autistic experience here, but it warms my heart to see that there's people out there who are like me ❤️‍🩹 out of all autistic creators, you are the one that resembles my inner self the most. I hope you continue growing this channel, I love it.

[@DanaAndersen]

This is all so kind of you to say! Thank you so much 😭💕💕

[@Cat-dw3wi]

Your jacket is fabulous. And FYI, sensory friendly has been a 'trend' since the pandemic as well asan anything goes post-fashion/refashion vibe so LOL, autistic fashion styles are trending.

[@DanaAndersen]

Ahh thank you! I got it while at the Santa Monica pier so I’m a bit obsessed with it 😅 The thing with trends is that I never seem to see them in real life, just surrounded by people in jeans and plain shirts 😭

[@Cat-dw3wi]

@DanaAndersen lol, I have to study them before I see them. One of my special interests is sewing, so I sometimes read about it or *gasp* watch the fashion channel, not that anyone would wear anything from London Fashion Week or any catwalk in real life.

[@jarmoliebrand2005]

I used to not care that much about my clothes. I’m a guy, so fashion tends to be not that important anyway. I think I have developed my own kind of style. It’s not really something I think stands out, but it’s not… overly neurotypical either. I have both worn mostly dark colours, but also really colourful ones. It’s funny how I don some of the clothing my brother initially rejected. A denim jacket. And this… vest thingy with wooden sleeves I really like wearing when it’s really cold (I must wear a long sleeved shirt underneath otherwise the wool gets itchy). And I really like the ‘bloudy’ (it’s a mixture of a blouse and a hoodie… basically a blouse with a hood… I’m actually wearing it right now). I also like having an accessory. But usually not that many at a time. I have this one leather armband I like wearing in the summer. Sometimes its strings do brush up my arm and I get startled a bit (basically that feeling when you think there’s an insect on your arm).

[@laura.bseyoga]

I'm still working out what my favourite things are about being autistic as I only got diagnosed a few months ago. I love seeing autistic joy in the youtubers I follow when they talk about their special interests! Treating people the same no matter what their social status is one I like, along with the strong sense of justice. Also comfy clothes! 💚

[@Hopie_T]

See you can be nice to yourself! I agree with most if not all of the points as well, they are things I relate with. For me, I like the way I think, the way I go deep into things and take them apart and connecting them to other things to gain higher understanding. I wish I had more people to go on these journey's together.

[@Scarygothgirl]

I think my favourite thing about being autistic is how enamoured I get with art, as well as nature and random moments of beauty. I've met people who say they just don't "get" art, which I think is so sad. I can get lost in a painting. Or looking at a tree. Or a cat. Cats are so beautiful.

[@DJ_Black_Tourmaline]

that green melodica is sweet!!! (it is a melodica, right? the keyboard you blow air into as you play?) Augustus Pablo is my favorite melodica player. every song of his is amazing.

[@DanaAndersen]

Im pretty sure it is, but whenever I’ve looked for melodicas they have a whole tube system mine doesn’t have? I got it from a charity shop as a kid though so I’ll take what I can get 😂

[@walpolekidscomics879]

​@@DanaAndersenI think I've seen Damon Albarn using one like that

[@DJ_Black_Tourmaline]

@@DanaAndersenthe colors are really cool. i hope to hear you play it for us some day so we can hear the sound of it!

[@ThoughtfulSparrow]

Excellent top, I used to have one of those, I loved that top and wore it to bits. Also, I just noticed you have Dogma in the background, love that movie!

[@DanaAndersen]

I’m glad you noticed my prized possession ahaha, i doubt you can tell from my camera quality, but it’s signed by Kevin Smith!

[@ThoughtfulSparrow]

@ that’s so cool! There are a handful of movies that I will watch and watch and watch, and that’s one of them. When we had a video tape player, I wore out copies of tapes.

[@EmilyFPC]

Loving your channel, Dana! Tysm for the phenomenal content! Btw, I know it was a recent video not this one, but I'm so glad your demand avoidance coerced you to create content to spite the pos ex!!! 🤭 You do you girl; it's amazing! 💘💖✨️

[@westrain2]

Love your video can relate to a lot of what you talking about.

[@shmeleu]

Don't get "you think outside the box" often, 95% of the time it's "That is not what I meant." -"Not my fault, be more specific next time"

[@DanaAndersen]

People might just be trying to phrase it kindly for me tbh 😂

[@shmeleu]

@@DanaAndersen when possible I suggest waiting till neurotypicals give up on something - then step in, say something like "that's easy" and fix it in 5 minutes. Then you get "outside the box" response, otherwise we are "weird thinkers".

[@Yuffie13]

The bit you said about having a quirky sense of style, I feel like that's a bit like me. I love wearing funky jewelry with ordinary outfits, and I think if I were NT, I'd feel more self-conscious about pairing a dragon necklace with a "feminine" top or something glittery with my Led Zeppelin t-shirt. Granted, since 2020 I haven't really "dressed up" that often, but I still collect jewelry like a magpie.

[@jarmoliebrand2005]

As much as being autistic does bring struggles, I wouldn’t want to change who I am. I love having special interests and truly being passionate about my… well… passions. I wouldn’t be who I am if I had other, less intense interests. And I wouldn’t want to be anybody else (and yet I still mask… sigh…). Writing (and through that, storytelling as a whole). Lucid dreaming (it’s a great topic of conversation… a lot of people will ask questions about it. It can be so much fun to do). Football (this one ⚽️, Americans). Autism (ever since I really started researching it). MBTI types (Initially was just a way to make my characters consistent, but I’ve learned a lot from it [Im an INFP]). Theme Parks/Coasters (Efteling in particular)… I guess I’m partially fulfilling the ‘autistic person likes trains’ stereotype… I don’t know… Efteling in particular just keeps feeling so magical and despite it being thus big, oftentimes busy place, I just feel comfortable there. I love my friend group. It’s not easy to make friends, but my friend group consists of three friends I ‘picked up’ at different points in my life. I’m eighteen (almost nineteen already… damn…) and I’ve been friends with my oldest friend for twelve years now. And my other friends, I picked up in high school and I’ve been friends with them for five and seven years respectively. One of my friends is an AuDHD’er. So naturally, there’s a general level of relatability. At first, my friends were just *my* friends. But now, they’re each other’s friends as well. it’s a fully realised friend group and I’m proud to have been the catalyst, thanks to my birthday parties. I’m also proud to not be someone who screams for/demands attention, or anything. On the flip side of that is not self advocating enough, but I’m glad I’m generally humble and accepting of most people. I’m not quick to hate or dislike anyone. But if I do, you really did something wrong. I’m glad I’m so creative/artistic. This is related to my special interests. Writing being my biggest interest. But, I’m also a really solid pianist. And back when I was in a band, I even did sing a few songs live on stage. I’m even quite good at photography, I think. My autistic brain just looks at compositions differently to most people and I’ve quite often see people copying my angles (imitation is the sincerest form of flattery). I very much hold the same sentiment as you do. For me, it’s not outside the box thinking. It’s just… me. For me, it’s just obvious. I naturally come up with certain writing ideas. I naturally make certain links between one thing and the other. I am naturally creative with language (hence the [sometimes terrible] puns). I naturally have some flow and improvisation on the piano. It’s not about thinking too hard. It’s about not really thinking at all. I do bear being a lone wolf of sorts with pride. Even though it is hard to make new friends in new environments. Speaking of that… I’ve been going to a(n) (recreational) AuDHD group in the city for a few months now… And it’s such a breath of fresh air that social interactions are just so much easier and less draining. No mental gymnastics of any sort. No weird mind games. No constantly worrying about my eye contact or my tone of voice. Not feeling judged for my actual interests/my actual self and thus not really needing to hide it. It’s just so much easier to be open and have fun without worries. And it can be a decently large group at times. But it feels manageable. Why can’t all social interactions be like that? Sure, it’s not smooth sailing all the time, but it’s infinitely smoother than it usually is. Part of the lone wolf kind of thing is that I love that I’m not mainstream. The other side of this same coin is not feeling understood or oftentimes not feeling like I belong, but I love that I don’t really care about really any sort of trend. I always do my hair the same way (oftentimes the wind decides on my hairstyle when I go outside…), I dress how I want. I’m interested in what I’m interested in and what doesn’t interest me, I don’t give a rat’s ass about any of that. I don’t want to keep hammering on about ‘feeling special’. I’m not really the type to brag. But well… It’s pretty factual for the most part.

[@SebbyPlaysMusic]

Oo, I was diagnosed with autism last year. Through my 20s, I was in a relationship that drained my money (she never got a job). That ended like 5 years ago. I just got a full-time job a couple months ago (was doing college before) and it's like... holy shit, I can actually get stuff just because I want it now, and not just get the cheap thing out of necessity. So I'm looking through all the fabrics and whatnot so I can figure out how to just feel more comfortable existing in daily life. If anyone has suggestions, I would love that! And not just that, but I'm investing in all the accommodations. Bought calmers and loops. I should really get a meetup group or something going for autistic people in my area so I don't keep saying super stuck-in-my-head type stuff trying to connect with people online. Because humans are like two-way projections in the way we process and operate - the way we function within physical reality - so I'm just projecting what I've incorporated when speaking online, and even if I mean well, I still need to get out of those thought patterns by just being present with people in real time and actually feeling safe. I honestly just spent way too much time isolated growing up, which is how it is for a ton of undiagnosed autistic people, right? What we don't notice from hyper-focus can be considered a flaw, but it does also make realizations feel extra brilliant (or perhaps make us feel extra stupid, depending on how we look at it).

[@chuzzbot]

Watching this wearing exactly the same top, with exactly the same coloured hair. I wonder the numbers on gingers and Autism, might explain a some things gingers experience. Gingerism.

[@sejhammer]

Can relate!!