OGSF5.9G: Time to meet my true self

[Shannon]

Regarding autism... be careful not to fall into the traps most people fall into when it comes to things like this.

First, remember that it is a diagnosis, a "this is what we think you have happening," and it may or may not be an accurate diagnosis.  Diagnosticians are not perfect.

Second, even if you are autistic, it is a state of being, not an identity. I have seen so many people be diagnosed with various things and then make that their whole identity, and when you do that, it's basically you doubling down on it and focusing into it in ways that make it stronger.  A lot of people also dio this so they have an excuse to stop trying, escape personal responsibility, etc.

You may have autism, but you are not autism.  You are someone who is dealing with autism.  And it will only limit you as much as you let it.  They may tell you what they think they know concerning autism, but again, modern science seems to think it knows everything, even as it is continually proving itself wrong by constantly making new discoveries.  As such, peopl are often told, as if there is absolute certainty, that "[pick your diagnosis] is X, and Y can never happen, and yada yada."  The fact is, this, if accepted as true, becomes true because you treat it as true and respond as if it is true, even when and if it is false.

In a lot of cases, it is false and you can make changes and improvements that disgnosticians say you can't, because they haven't seen those changes, and that's because nobody has tried to make them.  In many cases, this becomes a vicious circle and self fulfilling prophecy: they conclude that group of factors A is part of disorder B and because they have only observed C they conclude that C is all that is possible.  So they tell people with factors A that they have disorder B and that only C is possible.  Then people who believe this (because doctors are infallible, of course) give up and just accept that C is what they will experience, or worse, they actually double down and focus into C and make it worse because it gives them an identity that makes them [different, special, not responsible for themselves, yada yada].  In many cases, that same person can choose to do things that will lessen or possibly even mitigate or remove C entirely, but they can only do this if they understand that doctors/diagnosticians are not infallible, and neither is their knowledge flawless. 

So if you are autistic, don't assume that you must always deal with XYZ because someone told you that's just the way it is.  Maybe that's true, and maybe it's partially true and maybe it's not true at all.  But you always have the choice to find ways to improve yourself and your life, and in many cases, that means you can learn to handle things differently or adjust yourself in various ways that may help or even eliminate weaknesses or issues from situations like having to deal with autism.

You always have the choice to work in the direction of making yourself better and stronger.  And as someone who has been in your shoes, I respect your efforts to do so.  Keep going!