friendly reminder that many disorders and diagnoses under the umbrella of neurodivergence overlap with other disorders and diagnoses, so the often parodied “laundry list of problems” isn’t far-fetched
it’s very possible and even likely that your neurodivergent friend doesn’t just have one thing and one thing only as a neuroatypical identifier
i love the statistics on this
the average number of diagnoses for those who have any neurodivergent diagnosis is 2, sometimes approaching 3 in some studies we’ve seen.
especially with something like major depressive disorder, you’ve got like an 80% chance to have some other diagnosis as well. it’s actually sorta unusual to have just depression.
then you’ve got the personality disorders, which are basically all hugely comorbid with each other to the point where some psychologists say that it’s much more useful to think of them as specific traits rather than discrete disorders (e.g. someone might be personality disordered with borderline, avoidant, and schizotypal traits, rather than “having” separate borderline, avoidant, and schizotypal PDs. this is basically what the proposed dimensional-categorical model in the DSM-V is trying to do.) and then on top of that you’ve got the hella ways that personality disorders are comorbid with non-personality disorders.
and then you’ve got more and more research about how so many disorders can be caused by trauma. so, folks who have experienced trauma, especially childhood trauma, might have a lot of comorbid traumagenic neurodiversities: PTSD, borderline, schizophrenia, DID, eating disorders, etc. etc. etc. (some folks profess that recognizing the traumagenic nature of so many mental illnesses is the “solution to the problem of comorbidity”).
– Ace
this does a really good job of illuminating why ‘diagnosis’ itself is such a fluid term. clinicians ‘diagnose’ ppl using the once-medical/technical, now-deliberately-vague language of the dsm bc it’s supposed to be useful in helping the clinician (and other clinicians) help that person figure themselves out and reach some sort of wellness equilibrium. diagnosis in mental health simply does not parallel diagnosis in physiological health.
although, i suppose you could make a case for a comparison using encephalitis, i.e. brain fever, when your brain swells up and your body starts shutting down–there are two main manifestations of encephalitis, with one being ‘viral’ and the other being ‘your immune system is up to shenanigans’, but within those two domains there are a NUMBER of causes and it’s in fact not really common for the physician to identify what the cause actually was. all they know is that YOUR BRAIN IS ON FIRE and also you’re probably dying. this is what happened to me! they tested me for the twenty most common causes of the symptoms i was showing (i.e. encephalitis) and everything came up negative. on my records, in the space where doctors were supposed to write my diagnosis, they just wrote ‘encephalitis.’ a couple enterprising ones wrote ‘meningitis,’ but 1) i’d had the vaccine recently enough that this would be an anomaly in itself and 2) they were still just guessing.
takeaway lesson: diagnosis isn’t about pinning down specific Things That Are Happening to a person. it’s about describing the symptoms well enough that treatment becomes possible. if ppl have more than one diagnosis, it’s a symptom of our diagnostic system, and our attempts to best outline what’s going on so that (IDEALLY) a person’s general well-being can be attended using structured methods.
this is another reason why self-diagnosis and self-treatment are incredibly difficult things to pull off.
i have had people call me a liar and a faker because having multiple actual diagnoses must mean i’m collecting disorders for attention.
i kicked those people out of my life because fuck ‘em. but the point is, no, autism and adhd are very frequently comorbid, and living with those undiagnosed until i was in my 30′s is the reason for the ptsd and social anxiety, and possibly the depression.
nobody thinks i’m making shit up when i explain that having arthritis in my lower back is the ultimate cause of this bursitis in my hip. but when i say adhd causes my insomnia, or childhood trauma from ableist bullying for my autism has made me hypervigilant, people think i’m trying to be a snowflake.
the human body is super complicated, and the brain is the most complicated part. quit thinking like you’re an expert on my medical issues. my doctor’s frequently stumped, and you’re just some schmoe. knock it off.
My therapist causes anxiety/migraines/OCD a neurologic trio because they have such high comorbidity – there’s either some sort of genetic link, or an underlying physiological link, or both, but there’s a pretty big correlation in her experience. She also sees a lot of comorbidity between the above and PTSD, as well as a lot of overlap between the above trio and autism. She’s not sure why, but she’s certainly seen a lot of it (some of that could be sampling bias though, as she specializes in autistic adults and people with complex PTSD)
Tag: important
When people complain about paying/inheriting the mistakes of their ancestors they fail to recognize an important part of it all.
They feel they shouldn’t be accountable for the actions of their ancestors but believe they should be heir to their privileges. They are given inheritance, education, networking, and privilege from their ancestors. They don’t want to pay for the seeds their ancestors sew but feel entitled to the harvest.
I am tired of other people saying that it is bad to glorify Autism.
I am tired of people talking trash about other peoples blogs just because they have the word Autism or Autistic in their url.
Let’s take a look at the word glorify shall we?
A couple of definitions are:
- To celebrate or to adore- Whats wrong with celebrating & adoring ourselves? We are autistic people and we should celebrate & adore ourselves! It’s good for our self esteem!
- To cause to seem more splendid than it really is.- Says who? I don’t have to agree with society’s ablest views and stereotypes. I do not owe anyone an apology for being who I am, most of us have spent too much of our lives feeling like we should be sorry for that and that isn’t okay! I want all of us to unapologetically love ourselves!
If you:
- Glorify Autism and you are not sorry for doing so…
- Are Autistic and you are proud…
- Are tired of people talking trash about Autistic people in general…
Just keep being you, because I think you are rad!!
I’m just very tired on a personal level at the way someone can say “my family died/suffered under communism” and it’s totally accepted that there was a systemic cause for their pain, but when I say “my family in Mexico is suffering from not being able to afford fucking food under capitalism” that does not get to be a systemic issue. We never get to attribute our suffering or our people’s suffering to the economic system that is killing them unless it’s one that is seen as a threat to capital. Thats personally exhausting, infuriating and disgusting to me.
The 5 things you gotta know before you let that cop into your house
The 5 things you gotta know before you let that cop into your house
THIS STUFF IS SOOO IMPORTANT TO KNOW. Seriously. It’s saved my ass before.
What do you do when you look through the peephole and see a badge?
- Remember: You do not have to let the police in the house unless they have a warrant — or probable cause. If you’re having a party, turn off the music, ask your guests to chill, and ask that anyone who’s too intoxicated carry on in another room.
- Go outside to speak with the cops. Close the door behind you. Although some scary precedents are being set these days, police cannot enter your home without a warrant or probable cause. By closing the door, you’re cutting off a visual — or olfactory — line to potential probable cause.
- Be polite. Ask why they are there. “Good evening, Officer. What can I help you with?”
- Where possible, assure them you will take care of the problem. If the police ask to enter, inform them, “I do not consent to any searches.” If a police officer gives you an order and you are confused about your position, ask, “Do I have to comply?” If they continue with questioning, tell them you’ll need to call your lawyer and that you will not answer any questions.
- Ask, “Am I free to leave?” This is especially handy if, say, a group of you’d been too bawdy on the patio and an officer stops by. If he/she is getting a bit hot under the collar, politely ask, “Am I being detained?” or “Am I free to leave?” If the cop has no reason to hold you, quickly, quietly, and politely retreat inside.
The POC’s Bill of Rights when it comes to the Police. Remember. These are your rights.
FLEXYOURRIGHTS.ORG is one of the most informational websites. The videos are extremely enlightening.
Please read and know these things!
PSA: Yes, “Spirit Animals” Are Cultural Appropriation- That Means You
[NB: if you (like me) are non-Native and you reblogged agentotter’s commentary PLEASE read sofriel’s refutation below. “Spirit Animal” as a non-Native phrase is SUPER FUCKED UP.]
Petition to start using “patronus” instead of “spirit animal” because not being appropriative is pretty rad.
Okay let’s go through this one more time. Deep breath.
If you think the concept of “spirit animals” comes from Native American religious practices, you are wrong. Also, you’re probably basing your ideas about Native American spiritualism on movies that are incredibly, extremely, offensively wrong. (Spoiler alert: You cannot actually paint with all the colors of the wind.) You’re also failing to understand that Native American and First Nations people are not a homogeneous group, that they do not now and have never existed as a single people with a single set of beliefs. In short, what I’m saying is that just this once, calling this appropriation is actually the thing that is offensive.
If you think the concept of “spirit animals” is specific to any one cultural or religious practice, you are wrong. This idea of animal guides and related ones — like shape-shifting, people possessed by the spirits of animals, particular interpretations of animal dreams, a certain attitude toward the hunting of animals, etc etc — have roots in all sorts of ancient religions, including eastern Shamanic religions, Celtic religions, really religions of of every description… I could go on. Essentially it’s animism, which is common to the whole of human experience, because there isn’t a culture on this planet that doesn’t have a complex, deep-rooted relationship of some kind with animals. But “spirit animals” as most of us understand the concept? Is a made-up thing. Just like Harry Potter’s patronus. Just like His Dark Materials’ daemons. Just like basically any other “inoffensive” alternative on offer.
Essentially, “spirit animal” is a trope. I happen to fucking love that trope. I think it’s fun and interesting. It’s not a real concept, except possibly for Wiccans and New Agers, both of whom appropriated the concept from — guess what! — their completely wrong ideas about Native spiritual practices. I’m willing to bet that everything you’ve ever learned about Native religions came from a white person. I’m willing to bet that it’s wrong.
For all these people who want to be sensitive to Native culture, you can do a lot better than defending their honor from a concept that isn’t theirs in the first place. (You can start by acknowledging that it’s New Age, not Native. AT ALL.) There are so many ways you can learn about Native culture and the problems that tribes face directly from the people themselves. You could start small. Read some Sherman Alexie. Watch Reel Injun orIncident at Oglala on Netflix. Read up on why exactly casting Johnny Depp as Tonto is fucking horrible. Try actually learning something about what they’re going through (basically a never-ending shitstorm of oppression and erasure) and you can help just by being more informed. Become a social justice crusader foractual social justice issues. Still not sure about the spirit animal thing? These Natives would be happy to tell you all about it. And these ones. And this one. (tl;dr: They’re sick of your bullshit.)
This information about “spirit animals” not being a thing makes sense, but I’m not really clear on how referencing a stereotypical, New-Age misinterpretation of Native American religion is that much less offensive/appropriative than improperly referencing an actual Native American religious concept? Doesn’t appropriation usually involve portraying the original culture(s)/religion(s) inaccurately?
that makes sense to me, and I’ve definitely also read things by Native folks here writing against using the term “spirit animal”, although I can’t find any of them just now. perhaps sofriel or moniquill (or others, I’m not sure who else follows me) might have more input.
No. Nooooooooooooooo. No. God, I would like to make a rule where non-Natives are not allowed to make any sort of statements on the appropriativeness or non-appropriativeness of “spirit animals” ever again.
Fact 1: I am Native. So-called “spirit animals” are part of my spiritual tradition, which is Metis-Anishinaabe. They’re usually called by the Anishinaabe word, which I am not putting on the internet, or “spirit/dream helpers” in English. Natives in fact are not, gasp, homogeneous, and omg some of us have different spiritual traditions than others! (look, I can do the obnoxious patronizing voice too!) And so just because you point to three Native people from cultures that don’t have such a tradition doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist! This tradition is a VERY sacred one, and thanks to colonization it is being forgotten in huge amounts, to the extent that most young Natives don’t even really know much about it—a situation exacerbated by the popular appropriation of “spirit animals.”
Fact 2: Yes, people around the world have and had similar traditions of spirit helpers, who are frequently animals. HOWEVER, the concept of spirit animals in popular culture came from anthropologists’ descriptions of Native American religions (see Durkheim, The Elementary Forms of Religious Life). It doesn’t matter if the ancient Celts had similar practices, because spirit animals are associated in the popular imagination with Natives, not Celts. I and other Natives regularly get asked, “Can you tell me what my spirit animal is??” Irish people, for instance, do not. And “it’s not Native, it’s New Age” my ass.Where the hell do you think the New Agers got it from? They got it from anthropology textbooks and from the hippies who went to the reservations in the 60s seeking Noble Savage enlightenment.
Fact 3: The fact that spirit animals in popular culture are a bastardized form of Native traditions does not mean they are not appropriative or harmful. Why? Because the popular idea of it comes to supersede the original meaning, infantilizing our traditions.Non-Natives start to think that they understand our traditions, and that they are primitive, rather than actually consulting and trying to understand. This gets bad when those non-Natives are the ones with control over our legal ability to practice our religion. Non-Native appropriation of the sweatlodge incorrectly done and causing death, for example, has resulted in greater restrictions on Native sweatlodges, because the non-Native interpretation was assumed to be representative.
Fact 4: Appropriation is a part of Native oppression, not a decoy issue, good lord. This attitude of popular ownership of Native traditions causes people to deny Natives the right to practice our religion, which is tied to the colonization and denial of access to our landbase since our practices are often linked to specific places, which is tied to the situation on reservations. It’s tied to the psychological state of our people, because you try growing up with having everyone making an utter mockery of your religion and see how your self-esteem comes out.
And yeah, I will also say, if calling out appropriation is the only thing you’re doing to help Native people, if you are just shouting “Don’t wear headdresses!” and don’t actually get why it’s a problem, then yes, you’re kinda failing as an ally. But appropriation is part of the violence being done to indigenous people.
You did get one thing right though, we are sick of your bullshit. Very, very sick of it.
Important!!
I see a lot of ppl on my dash reblogging the post where someone else says that “spirit animal” is not a racist or culturally appropriative term because it’s “New Age” and not Native—but that doesn’t erase the v v smart and true response that sofriel explains above: where did the New Agers get that stereotype and how are you acting in concert with their racism???“
Please stop with your weak attempts to justify your appropriation. PSA over
what is transphobia?
there’s been a lot of confusion lately around what is or isn’t transphobic, and a lot of the answers people give are messy so i thought i’d make a post directly explaining it. i hope it helps!
- preferences
- everybody has preferences based on appearance, of course, and you wouldn’t call a straight man homophobic for not being attracted to men. however, if a straight man is not attracted to women that look like men (i.e. pre-transition), then they cannot say that they are attracted to women because they’re ignoring a huge part of that demographic. they are attracted to women with vaginas, not women. to say you’re attracted to women with vaginas is not transphobic; to say you’re attracted to women and then not count women that don’t present in a feminine way is.
- if you’re a straight man and you find a fully transitioned trans woman (male to female) and wouldn’t date her because she used to have “male” genitalia, that is transphobic. as i said before, preference based on appearance is understandable. preference based on whether or not somebody used to be a different sex is not
- to sum up: preferences are okay, but if your preference is only because of the fact that they’ve transitioned, you are being transphobic. you cannot say you are attracted to women and leave trans women out. consider saying you’re attracted to biological women instead.
- language
- unfortuantely, society has a lot of transphobic terms that we use so commonly we don’t realize that they’re even harmful. the first part of this is terms that we use to refer to actual trans people. a common phrase is “tranny.” this is an extremely offensive term and we’ve only ever heard it associated with negative things. please do not refer to people who are transgender as “trannies.” some alternatives: call them by their names. we’re people too.
- if you have to reference the fact that somebody is transgender, don’t refer to them as “a transgender.” doing this is incredibly objectifying, reducing us to nothing more than the fact that we don’t allign with the gender that we were assigned. please refer as us as “people who are transgender,” or “transgender people.” the people part of it is very important to include – we are people too.
- trans girl/trans guy – these are terms people use a lot to refer to transgender people. the gender after the word trans refers to the gender the person identifies as. i’m transgender and i identify as a girl, so i’m a trans girl.
- for a list of things you might ask a trans person that are transphobic, please click here
- transmisogyny and transphobia in feminism
- transphobes are often perpetrators of another type of internalized hate – misogyny. misogyny is the belief that men are superior to women, and in the context of transgender people, transmisogyny is where transphobia is supported by misogynistic behavior
- radical feminism. a lot of radical feminists believe that trans women are not truly women because gender is a binary and therefore trans women deserve to be held to the same standards as men, and treated accordingly. while it is true that gender is socially constructed, the societal pressure put on men and women to be a certain gender is very real, and whether radical feminists like it or not, trans women like myself experience dysphoria when we’re treated like men, especially those of us that are pre-transition. feminism strives to overthrow the patriarchy and do away with all of the effects it has, and one of those effects is dysphoria occuring to trans men and women as a result of societal pressure. to call yourself a feminist and to be against trans people means that you see women as tits and a vagina, which is not only objectifying, but it is also doing exactly what sexists do, and reducing women to nothing more than their bodies. if you do this, you are being transphobic.
- violence against transgender people and your role in it
- when trans women transition, they are seen as women by otherwise transphobic people, and are therefore subject to sexism. a common term for a trans woman is a “trap,” as a lot of straight men believe that they’re being tricked into having a gay relationship, as they still see women as men. as a result, trans women, especially trans women of color, are subject to some of the highest rates of violence in the world. the average age that a trans woman lives to is 30 to 32 years old. that was the average lifespan during the dark ages. the fact that a man believed he was going to be having sex with a woman but found out the woman was transgender has literally been used to win court cases. this is engrained very deeply in our society. trans men face a lower rate of violence against them but they are subject to sexism when it’s found out that they’ve transitioned. because of this, transgender men also have a lower lifespan than cisgender people, on average.
- this is where you come in. as a cis person, you have the privilege of not having to worry about your gender, or at least not to the extreme that a trans person does. you may feel pressure, as we all do, to conform to your role, but you will not face the same kind of oppression that a trans person will for it, especially not trans women of color. that’s why it is your responsibility to ensure that trans people have a safe environment. there are many small things that you can do. as a cis person it’s your responibility to educate yourself. start here, and continue to read and be objective when you take in media. it’s not something that can be easily unlearned, and nobody is expecting you to be perfect overnight. however, we are expecting you to make the effort.
I hope this post helped!! if there’s anything that you find confusing feel free to message me and i’ll reply or add it to this post. thank you for reading!
Hey Trans Kids!
It is totally okay to slip up and misgender yourself sometimes. It doesn’t make you any less trans. You were raised to think you were (male, female) and that you would never be anything other than that. Don’t beat yourself up over it if you misgender yourself!!
THIS IS SO IMPORTANT HOLY FUCK. Especially since people will try to convince you that slipping like that means you’re “not really” what you say you are.
Also, please don’t feel embarrassed if you still have your old name/body/presentation in your dreams. It means nothing, they’re just dreams and everyone knows dreams can be silly buggers! :3
also you will react to hearing your old name for a long time. which doesn’t excuse others from calling you by it; supporting trans people means helping us get used to being properly named and gendered. (trust me: we aren’t. we can all use the practice.)
Honestly, this is one of the most important things for trans kids to hear, PLEASE reblog it. Holy shit.
I can’t even tell you the number of horrible self-hating thoughts that will float into your mind if you’re transitioning but slip up on YOURSELF, and its absolutely reasonable when you’ve been taught to associate yourself with a gender and name you’re uncomfortable with for years, decades even.
“i’m against trigger warnings because you don’t heal by avoiding what scares you. controlled exposure is what works.”
that is literally the point of the trigger warning: to give people a heads up so they can choose how and whether they want to expose themselves to potentially triggering content. controlled exposure only works if you give people the tools to control their exposure. wtf.
psa
if an autistic person is doing something thats bothering you, dont try to avoid telling them. dont be subtle and give hints or try to ignore us in hopes that we’ll realize what we’re doing is bothering you and stop. we won’t. most of us do not pick up on hints like that and will not make a connection between you suddenly ignoring us or being upset with us and the thing we were doing that upset you.
and do not suddenly get fed up and snap at us out of nowhere because your hints aren’t working. we are not purposely trying to hurt you or intentionally ignoring your feelings, we literally are not realizing that what we are doing is upsetting you. snapping at us just makes us feel bad and embarrassed
if an autistic person is doing something that bothers you, tell them directly. you don’t have to be mean or harsh, just let us know that it’s upsetting you and that youd like us to stop. it’s 1000x easier than trying to be subtle and drop hints that we will never pick up on
This Is a Backup Blog 