Recovering from Social Functions | Autism Experiences

[@johnwilkinson5425]

I've ordered a mug ☕, can't wait to be part of the mug club.🎉

[@WoodshedTheory]

Yay can’t wait for you to get one

[@kasanebaxter3064]

"Research is very important to autistic people." May be the most underrepresented understanding of many of us. I research the heck out of things - like look through the literature for highly cited articles and metas. I sometimes wish I didn't have this need to know what is known - but I'm trying to accept that part too. Porch coffee cheers. ☕☕

[@T.T.M.60]

Research is my middle name!

[@T.T.M.60]

Looking forward to seeing your garden!…ours has been my life of late. Our beans our starting to grow as is everything else and it’s very exciting! I’ve been going to a number of concerts and movies lately and that has been fun. This week is more yard work but that’s mostly the garden so it’s fun stuff. Hope everyone has a great week!

[@WoodshedTheory]

You are right, perhaps I did understate. I love to research and learn. My favorite part of grad school was the footnotes

[@WoodshedTheory]

@truetomyself yay for your garden!

[@T.T.M.60]

@@WoodshedTheory thanks!

[@ivylemkus7436]

What I really really like about you that you are real, original and authentic. 🎉

[@T.T.M.60]

Well said!

[@WoodshedTheory]

Thanks Ivy I am glad you like the videos

[@whitneymason406]

Love your hat with your hair, great color combo! Had a rough weekend, so I'm trying to stay positive about this week. Take care, Claire and friends! 💞

[@madberry]

Sorry to hear you had a rough weekend Whitney hope your week will be better.

[@whitneymason406]

@madberry thank you I appreciate it!

[@WoodshedTheory]

Sorry you had a rough week

[@cupofteawithpoetry]

❤

[@ivylemkus7436]

The best combo, coffee and Claire. ❤

[@WoodshedTheory]

Thanks Ivy!

[@SuzetteMorganStudio]

After being hit with chronic fatigue I've had to severely curtail my socializing time. I've learned that even pleasant things like a cup of coffee with a dear friend in my studio is a use of energy. I can never leave a black flowering plant behind at the garden center, they are so dramatic. I love the combination you chose for your planter.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Happy to have you for coffee :)

[@lwentz5510]

... riiiiing the bellllllll........ Got my fix for Monday.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Ring that belllll

[@ivylemkus7436]

You communicate so well! I wish I would be so good at this like you are. 😊

[@WoodshedTheory]

Ivy it just takes practice

[@ivylemkus7436]

@@WoodshedTheory You have a precious gift. 💕

[@sueannevangalen5186]

My husband and I went to a wedding on Saturday with our three autistic kids. It was kind of a relief that the bride (our "niece" -- Patrick's brother's foster daughter) wanted us to bring the kids. She took a fancy to our ten-year-old son (the only one of our kids who's non-speaking) and wanted him especially to come. So we didn't have to find a babysitter, which is super stressful to me. On the other hand, we had three kids to mind at the wedding. The ceremony was (happily) only about 15 minutes long and outdoors in a beautiful wooded area next to a stream. We had to watch for mosquitoes because our five-year-old is allergic but he got away without getting bitten by some miracle. The reception was tougher on us because our oldest has no tolerance for a crowded room, so somebody had to watch him in the outer area at all times. The younger two basically ran wild, all through speeches and everything, and they can't be left to their own devices because they tend to wander. Does anyone have any tips on managing autistic kids in that situation? I always feel like my kids are the only ones who are out of control and I know there are people in the family who think we overindulge them and don't discipline them enough. We were warned when they were diagnosed autistic that people would look at their behaviour and blame it on our parenting. But they just aren't good at sitting still or knowing that they're being disruptive or even knowing how they're supposed to respond to what we're saying to them. Especially my oldest and youngest can't even show that they know they've been spoken to. Maybe it's just something we have to bear. Anyway, I am still all worn out after the wedding (it was on Saturday evening). Yesterday, I could barely function. Today's been better because the oldest two went to school and I had a quieter morning. I felt really strongly yesterday that we can't attend weddings with the kids. But there are times when I want to go to these things. It's a difficult thing.

[@WoodshedTheory]

That sounds like quite the outing. I’m afraid I don’t have parenting advice.

[@whitneymason406]

We're at the stage with Zac we can't go to events. He's nonspeaking and so sensitive to sound it would be too stressful for him. He also self harms, so I fear we'd be such a disruption to events that are meant to be special. It's very isolating. I hope that as he gets older, things will get better, and he'll learn to tolerate ear defenders. I applaud you for going! 💞

[@alexs4446]

I am here for all the plant updates, don't stop them😅🤣

[@WoodshedTheory]

Yay! I love them

[@passaggioalivello]

Hi Claire, this weekend I was a Disney Princess, "for the first time in forever". I'm happy but also drained. I used more spoons than I actually had. I need a few days to recover.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Same my friend. Glad you seemed to have fun this week

[@whitneymason406]

😊👏 happy for you, friend! Take it easy 💞

[@passaggioalivello]

@@whitneymason406 Thank you my friend.

[@ironfirehorse]

I just love all your gardening endeavours! There's one thing I learned long ago about garden hoses and that is to put the money out on a good one and it will last for years. Best to go to a hardware store and talk to someone. Also, keep your receipt in case it doesn't live up to what they told you. Have a nice week, Claire ✌️❤️⚔️🔥🐴

[@WoodshedTheory]

Great tip! I ordered one of the metal ones this time

[@ironfirehorse]

@@WoodshedTheory Oh I haven't heard of metal ones. I've been using the same plastic or rubber one for 9 years but it's finally breaking down. Metal would be great. I really don't like buying plastic if I don't need to. Thanks for letting me know about them 👍❤️

[@ecpetty]

We have a lot in common! Fiber arts have been a special interest of mine for more than a couple decades now. I knit and crochet, but I'm a much stronger knitter. One aspect of fiber arts I got into during the pandemic was spinning my own yarn on a spinning wheel! I think it brings me even more joy these days than knitting. All this is culminating to my debut for four dates of our local farmer's market this season. I'm very nervous but so excited -- this is the first project pretty much since childhood that I have self-directed, designed, planned and executed myself from start to finish. I also love gardening. I'm in New England, so our growing season is pretty short, but this year I'm trying berries (strawberries and raspberries), as well as the usual tomatoes and green bell peppers, and so far it's a pretty great season! Hearing you talk about growing things that can be used as dye got me thinking: Have you ever had an interest in dyeing yarn? I've dipped my toe in those waters as well, and while it doesn't hold my interest like other aspects of fiber arts, I've found it a type of artistic expression that seems to tickle my brain more so than painting on a canvas or other types of colorful expression. Also wanted to send gratitude to you for sharing your experiences and yourself with the world. Because of you and other autistic women and femmes on KZbin and elsewhere, I've finally become confident enough in my self-diagnosis that I have put myself on the waiting list to be assessed for ASD next year! Also just recently went on ADHD meds, and already I'm seeing so many benefits. Anyway, sorry to blabber on about myself so much -- wishing you further gardening success and fiber enjoyment!

[@WoodshedTheory]

I am happy that you blabbered on about yourself :)

[@benjaminhays6156]

Depending on the type of hose and where it broke, you can sometimes get new ends at the hardware store and end up with two smaller hoses. It’s like a hammerhead flatworm that got cut in half and just multiplied out of spite. At least that’s how I like to think of it.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Yeah it’s not a fixable issue unfortunately

[@samanthamoon8051]

I’m still adjusting but I’ve added a daily 20min walk to my routine to make sure I get outside. We are going camping this upcoming weekend which I’m hoping will help even more! I haven’t been out in actual nature in so long I can absolutely use some tree bathing time! I have started working on my crochet blanket again, still having issues with adding back stuff I used to like (I think I may also be dealing with burnout) but the blanket is easy and repeatable so I don’t have to think to much but I still get to have one of my hobbies back. It’s slow going and absolutely not linear but I’m hanging in there. I managed to save one of my plants! It has a sprout! So I’m hoping that we’ll both get back to thriving together.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Sounds like things are starting to show signs of change, that is amazing!

[@courtney9212]

Glad you are enjoying your hobbies again🎉 It was/is a challenge for me to "work" at allowing myself to enjoy things that aren't essentials, but I think it is so good for our brains.

[@ejcook4]

You've had such a productive week, Claire! I love hearing about your projects. So many fun things on the go! I'm on leave this week so I'm focusing on writing my thesis and enjoying time with my fur family. I hope to finish the whole draft by 28 June but it might be a stretch. Still, I'll give it a go. 👍 I've never seen black flowers so am intrigued! Have a great week Claire and friends!!😊

[@WoodshedTheory]

You got this!

[@ejcook4]

@@WoodshedTheory thanks! Okay, let's go!! 🤩🤓

[@irisl7817]

I haven't been coping with my stress fatigue shutdown cycle lately. I have had to push myself so hard for months. And, I have needed to switch doctors for... well, it's been a year now. So I have been left unmedicated: the unmedicated ADHD has been tough. Committing to a doctor is hard, finding a local one is hard, making appointments is hard. But that's also all the product of conditions I need treated. I have been trying to care for my mental health with my special interests: music, yoga, gardening and writing, in that order of mental effort of least to greatest. So I haven't gotten much writing done in months and my plants are only just getting by, but I've learned a good bit of new music theory and techniques over the past year. I play piano.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Iris I recently saw a service where you can get adhd meds via an online service, maybe that could help in the future? I bet not taking the meds was really hard

[@samanthamoon8051]

Man do I feel this! It took a long time to find a new doctor for me too. Cold calling was the worst part and then having faith issues when it came to them prescribing things because of the last bad experience was a feat. I haven’t drawn in months (freelance illustrator) it seems to be the most taxing at the moment sensory wise which makes me sad. Hopefully we can both get our art back after healing ❤ stay strong friend

[@irisl7817]

@samanthamoon8051 thank you. I'm sorry that you are struggling so much with your art. Writing is very fulfilling for me but I just can't manage to write anything right now. My previous two doctors couldn't get my meds right and always doubted me when I reported the negative side effects they told me to watch out for. So I've really lost a lot of faith in doctors.

[@irisl7817]

@@WoodshedTheory thank you. I will look into that.

[@9crutnacker985]

I get the day/s needed to recover thing. I'm going to car meet this evening (in my Ford StreetKa - sod the trike, it's still in bits.) Black hanging garden of Babylon - go Goth girl! Had to look up your Butterfly Pea to see what it looked like. Wiki said this: Butterfly pea is a common name for several plants and may refer to: • Centrosema, a genus of plants native to the Americas • Clitoria ternatea, a species native to tropical Asia, and cultivated as an ornamental. Which did you get ?!!! Here's some unexpectedly fantastic news. My friend (whom I mention often) sourced a new home for Joey (the tortoise) with one of his oldest friends. We moved him there the next day (Saturday). He's only c. 10 miles away & I can visit him anytime I like. So he is now living in a big house in the country - & get this - with his new girlfriend, Tamara. She's not seen another Mediterranean tortoise in 30yrs or more if ever (I think they said she's about 40) & I know Joey hasn't seen another tortoise in on over 70yrs. I never dreamed I'd ever get to witness him meeting another tortoise! He's also got 10 times more space to frolic in. Heaven knows he's waited long enough for this! It's also taken a lot of stress off me as I was struggling to look after him properly & I knew it. I'm so pleased for him though!!! Have great wk Claire.

[@madberry]

Sometimes we need to love our animals by letting them go. Great to hear he has a girlfriend and a bigger place now.

[@9crutnacker985]

@@madberry It was in his best interests, it was in my best interest, it's benefited Tamara & his new custodians love him. Win, win, win, win. Doesn't get better than that.

[@madberry]

@@9crutnacker985 I totally get it at one point I had way to many aquarium’s I reduced back to one large aquarium better for me and the fish. I gave most of the other aquarium’s away to new young fish keepers. Some of those kids got fish they would never had a chance of getting because of the rarity.

[@WoodshedTheory]

I got the Asian plant - my dream is to have the a tortoise

[@madberry]

I went to a concert Saturday Behemoth(black metal for those interested) was playing. I have a cousin on the spectrum so I went with him and his girlfriend. We didn’t like the two bands playing before Behemoth so we went in as the band was setting up. This made a difference it makes a four hour concert only an hour and a half. I was in recovery mode yesterday and will probably continue it today I have a tendency to go okay I’m fine and they ending up having to rest up the whole week instead of a few days. I had two disappointing discussions last week. One was with a anti-vax autism mom we exchanged 60+ messages about heavy metals in vaccines you really can’t change their mind when they’ve drank that koolaid. She’d rather get her ten year old daughter a dangerous “treatment” FMT(Fecal Matter Transplant) common side effect of this is an eating disorder. You have to hope they actually also get the child the help they actually need. Another was also about “treatment” this time it’s a person recommending neurofeedback therapy. The person he was recommending this to was ASD Level 3. The “treatment”, as per research that they therapists using it did, is based on the individual being treated believing that it will work. There is no scientific proof that it works or that there are any long lasting effects. The research that is done in relationship to autism is poorly designed(no double blind, very specific selection of autists). The person who this was recommended to was asking if his mental illnesses had the ability to become better even though he is ASD Level 3. I recommended a mental health professional and possibly mediation. I have a dangerous week a head of me. I have therapy on Wednesday but usually I have another appointment in the afternoon but the guy helping me clean my house is on holiday. The place my therapists office is in is also the place my favorite seed bank is located in. So I’ll probably be shopping plants in the afternoon instead. I’m currently getting into herbalism. The doctor can only offer doctor dope for my joint pain now. I don’t need a painkiller addiction so I have refused this up to now. I’m currently studying up on what plants can help with pain relief. Being based on science myself the research isn’t always great, loads of animal experiments and stuff but not many research with people involved. I have books on order to learn more. I found out about the Spilanthes acmella oleracea commonly know as the eyeball plant or the toothache plant because if you chew on a leaf or flower your mouth will go numb. I already have some seeds I’ll have to see if I can get one to flower so late in The season. We had a wet spring and cold nights so everything is delayed here when it comes to the garden. More patience is needed. My sister had one of those hoses no outside faucet the so when the hose burst the kitchen got flooded. I need a new hose myself the current hose is a cheap one which isn’t thick enough and it pops out of the connector. So I’m researching hoses. Can’t wait for the garden tour. Have a good week Claire and friends.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Thanks for the update! I filmed the tour now to edit!

[@gregofthedump]

Planning to visit a monastery soon. They have a herb garden that smells amazing. I suppose monasteries and nunneries were where autistic people used to go. They could learn writing, gardening, beer making, etc. It's a ruin now, like most monasteries in England. Henry VIII's doing.

[@WoodshedTheory]

That sounds like a relaxing trip to me

[@courtney9212]

I used to daydream about becoming a nun when I was little and what an injustice it was that there aren't any baptist nunneries 😂🤣

[@cupofteawithpoetry]

I was in Lewes today, home of one of his many wives! Anne of Cleeves. Scary husband that one!! Henry reminds me of that 'Meet, Marry, Murder' series! 🤣🤣

[@Kriszee4]

I love your idea of a macabre black flower hanging basket

[@WoodshedTheory]

Thank you it’s amazing 🖤

[@cupofteawithpoetry]

Definitely a lovely community here on your channel Claire ❤

[@WoodshedTheory]

Thanks my friend

[@whitneymason406]

💞

[@justlease37]

Hiya, Claire. Good to see you with that light back in your eyes. I think when we talk about our special interests we twinkle a lit bit, or maybe it's just my imagination. :) This summer I told all my clients I was taking a month off (I needed it SO bad), and that started last Friday. My spouse and I spent that week in a tiny house AirBnb in Vermont and the peace and quiet and the freedom to not have to be responsive to emails/etc. was amazing! Also, knowing when it was over I didn't have to instantly go back to work really worked wonders for being able to actually really and truly relax for a change. Today I spent leisurely working on finishing a sweater I've been knitting for two months and that was also marvelously relaxing. My sister recently sent me some flower seeds she harvested from her flowers last year, so tomorrow I'm going to spend some time digging around in the dirt and getting some of them planted. I definitely don't have a green thumb, so tonight I'll geek out on researching the best way to do that, and that's also super fun for me too. I enjoyed your 'reaction' video and was so pleased for you for how proud you were about how far you've come since that very first video. Big hugs!

[@WoodshedTheory]

Yes there is some twinkle back!

[@sarahleony]

Hi Claire! I’m excited for my travel mug. I normally don’t mess with “hand wash only” either. I have international travel coming up this week and moving houses in the fall which is all really hard to handle, but also positive. Eek!

[@WoodshedTheory]

I’m excited for you to get it

[@Fer-De-Lance]

Thanks. I went to my uncle's celebration of life a few months ago. I spent a few hours the next day walking around a huge art gallery, which I needed. Even though it was crowded it was quiet.

[@WoodshedTheory]

What a nice idea to spend time at the museum. I will keep that in mind for the future

[@courtney9212]

Glad you had a good week😊 we went on an overnight trip with friends and had a great time, but I'm fatigued. I'm in a really good place and was feeling confident and relaxed and shared about one of my special intrest🖋️ and even asked them if we could go to a pen shop in the city we were visiting. Crazy huge for me, I normally would rather die than ask them to do something I know they have no interest in. But it was good and I enjoyed myself and only later that evening had a few sharp dips of self loathing and hate but was able to let go of it pretty quickly. Just huge!😊 you have been a big motivator for me to open up and be me❤️ thanks again

[@WoodshedTheory]

I’m so happy you are getting to be yourself more :)

[@pandalove9844]

I love that you don’t do the “KZbin song and dance.” I’m a preschool teacher and it’s exhausting. I want to shut off part way through every day, but I also want to be the teacher none of us had. I desperately need quiet alone time and your calm honest videos help me feel validated in my own journey.

[@WoodshedTheory]

This is so encouraging, thank you, so many times I feel like giving up and this really helps

[@samamsterdam4301]

You said, "Click the like....Click the like." The problem with that is if you hit the like button an even number of times it undoes the like. I can click the like button more than once but it has to be an odd number of times so that it stays on there. Could you maybe say Click the like button 3 times instead of 2? I'm totally kidding. Have a great week! Love your videos. I'm still in the first five months since my Autism diagnosis. I learn a lot here.

[@WoodshedTheory]

I love this comment lol

[@GummyBear1972]

Sorry to hear about the hose. I know how crappy that feels. I'd also love to see your dog, if s/he isn't camera shy. I'm still recovering from COVID, but slowly doing better. My husband's Lyme disease is also seeming to get better, thank goodness. We have a native garden (all of our front and back yards is native plants) and it is thriving, even though we've been sick, because it is well established (19 years) and the only upkeep we need to do on it is weeding out invasive species and baby trees and mowing the path every month or so. I was finally able to enjoy our garden yesterday, after a month of being sick, by sitting outside to paint rocks to hide around the neighborhood, which I enjoy. Among our native shrubs is an Allegheny Serviceberry which grows these fruits that resemble red blueberries. The robins, cardinals, and cedar waxwings all fight to get as many as possible and feed their babies these delicious berries. I got to enjoy the show yesterday while painting, which was great. Glad you're doing better and doing well with socializing in moderation. I am still a bit of a hermit by choice, but, as you know, it's really hard to make friends on the spectrum. People just don't get us! We do have a few that we see infrequently but when we do get together it is a bigger deal and we spend a lot of "spoons" on the visits. I'd say they're worth it, though. Looking forward to your next video!

[@WoodshedTheory]

I did a video about my dog for Halloween making him a costume

[@GummyBear1972]

@@WoodshedTheoryHooray! I wil check it out!

[@julie_uk_]

My days have been 50% plants & 50% pets 🌿 Good news: only pumpkin seeds growing... Strawberry plant doing well,bad news: my poor 15yr old Monstera (indoors) is not looking good. I've changed up the pot and soil 😢

[@WoodshedTheory]

Sorry about your monstera I killed mine

[@Mikeyboi699]

2:49 i did love the reference to the Woodshed Theory jingle. Im loving the progress ive made in learning Japanese and it's continuing to be fun. I really love the writing system, it looks pretty to me. Also been having fun playing on my Xbox, specifically some of the older battlefield games.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Sounds like a fun week!

[@TheDarkjudge1]

Last Week: work, heading to Divine Liturgy for the first time in a bit. Good to see everyone again. This week: The usual stupid work arguments over the same things I’ve been explaining since the beginning of the year. I haven’t felt good since I went back to work a couple of weeks ago. Probably a correlation there. In better news: My copy of the Anti-planner arrived today. Considering my brain and planners don’t mix (Bullet Journal definitely makes me less of a train wreck…) maybe I can find some additional tools to take care of stuff I want done. Plants… does roasting coffee count as plant care?

[@WoodshedTheory]

I think roasting coffee must count lol

[@anjachan2]

Love your green hair 😁

[@WoodshedTheory]

Me too! Thank you

[@CajunCraft24]

Isolation is great as needed- it was always my default setting but it can really snowball on you, too. Then it gets ugly. Socializing always took a lot out of me, but the less I do it, the harder it becomes, like an atrophied muscle. After I quit working my people stamina started going down but wow since the pandemic I can barely do it at all. Like I forgot how to put my make up on because I didn’t do it for like 2 years? Excursions are short and very draining. I’m not sure if I can build my people tolerance back up? If that makes sense. I look forward to seeing your pumpkins!

[@WoodshedTheory]

I completely understand where you are coming from

[@jmaessen3531]

The pumpkin yayyy!! I love seeing my houseplants grow and thrive. No garden for me just yet. I'm back at work after vacation and it's a tough re-entry! Yikes! But I've been cross stitching and loving it. Making a pattern for pride month which is very bolstering for my spirits. Shy queer here and I definitely relate to Hannah Gadsby saying the sound of her pride is a teacup finding its place on a saucer 😂 All that said, I'm excited to get my earplugs, hat, sunglasses, and a boatload of fidgets ready for my first pride parade ever next weekend. Very much looking forward to that 🎉

[@WoodshedTheory]

That sounds so fun

[@nephistar]

Happy to hear that your meds are working well. I also feel much better back on mine. I went to a pride march (called Christopher Street Day in parts of Europe) with a bunch of colleagues and we had a barbecue after that. I came back exhausted though it was nice and fun.

[@WoodshedTheory]

That sounds like fun

[@julie_uk_]

Re upcycling, I'm waiting for some fabric dye to arrive, to pimp my hammock fabric (it's gone a bit grotty...), the dye is the same colour as your hair! I think it will be nice and bright for the garden.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Oh that sounds nice I love a green garden

[@ghill8587]

I’m intrigued by the mention of the new outfit. 🤓. I hope it works out if you feel up to it.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Fabric has been purchased!

[@saxabass]

Got my diagnosis! Just need me a mug.

[@WoodshedTheory]

No pressure

[@BCSchmerker]

+WoodshedTheory *Three models Porch Coffee mugs.* BtW, what finish your tips?

[@WoodshedTheory]

lime crime unicorn hair color in sea witch

[@BCSchmerker]

@@WoodshedTheory I's actually referring your nails.

[@michelelovesbooks]

Hi Claire, It’s so good to see you! Sorry I haven’t been around for the last few videos, I’ve been having some health issues but I’m back and going to catch up on your other videos.

[@WoodshedTheory]

I am just happy to have you back, take care of yourself!

[@PoliticalGamer420]

🥰

[@WoodshedTheory]

❤️

[@roybirch4141]

I am seei g psych next week. Hopefully with ASD diagnosis. Not sure if i am ready to ask for AdHD test????? I am coming to terms that l can be myself and l dont have to fit in any boxes, l am me and l dont care of others opinions.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Good luck next week

[@rockstarjazzcat]

💜🌱👍🏼

[@WoodshedTheory]

Morning!

[@FirstmaninRome]

I grew some pumpkins one year, but later hit them with a lawn mower, I was just gonna.shoot em anyway.

[@WoodshedTheory]

Yeah sounds about right lol

[@whitecatgarden373]

My interest is piqued. I need to look into butterfly peas now.

[@WoodshedTheory]

They are really cool