I find that I live my life in a routine. Every morning I seem to have the same breakfast, lunch is around 12pm and dinner around 6pm. My other time is usually spent largely on the computer and going to work and trying to cope as best I can. I find a great deal of my communication is through the computer and I often talk to other Aspies either on Facebook or through Skype.
I find Australian society largely unaware of how to relate to the Autism Spectrum. I find a continual push to say "you have something wrong with you is there a cure?". Another such response is just to avoid you as a person with AS and hope that one day I will conform to society's expectations. People just don't seem to get it.
Support in the UK seems to be better but it is still far from perfect. In the United Kingdom for instance there is more support for employment and some areas of services greatly assist in dealing with social isolation and day to day functioning.
In Brisbane we have Dr Tony Attwood but we still have a population of roughly 22 million people and surely with this containable size awareness should be made more available concerning Autism?
Often the simple things in life can be like a major struggle. Communicating with people, getting from one place to the other and just trying to be better understood is just about impossible. People seem to want a cure or a fix to what they consider a problem than to actually try and understand it better. There also seems to be pressure on a person with Autism to comply or conform to society otherwise they are not worth bothering with nor the effort. This is what I find mostly in my own situation. I feel the need to keep writing and raising awareness so that people will better understand. There are a range of different issues concerning different people in society but people need to understand that Autism is a different mindset. An Aspie thinks differently and this should not make us an outcast or to be avoided. Why not try and understand us better and learn from us. We don't expect you to change so why ask us to do so?
People really just don't get me at all. They are often critical of what I have to say or feel it necessary to have nothing to do with me. This is their choice but I seriously think they have the problem and not me. Australians need to be more open minded not just to Autism but to the world around them. Although Australia is remote from the rest of the world it needs to look beyond its shores to other countries. Why not be more accommodating to other nationalities? You may learn from them if you actually take the time to get to know them better. I find Australia has a serious problem with its focus on drinking and sport. What is defined as an alcoholic? What other interests are there beyond sport also? One of the things I find boring about Australia is the constant focus on Rugby League which one friend described as a game for failed Soccer players. People need to open their minds more. I watched the show "Go Back From Where You Came From" and I have to admit that Australia needs to be more open minded to immigration. Why not let the people in who really want to work than to retain the lazy ones or the ones who do not want to work? Surely such a move would greatly increase infrastructure and productivity?
Try to be more tolerant of Aspies rather than ignoring or rejecting us. This applies to the 26-50 generation whom I believe need to exercise more tolerance and acceptance of the Autism Spectrum.
No comments:
Post a Comment