Why is it that autistics can all-too-easily end up in exploitative or even abusive situations
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Why is it that autistics can all-too-easily end up in exploitative or even abusive situations?
Giving this some thought, I figured out a couple of possible reasons for this (below).
I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this, too!
️(A short 🧵)
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Why is it that autistics can all-too-easily end up in exploitative or even abusive situations?
Giving this some thought, I figured out a couple of possible reasons for this (below).
I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this, too!
️(A short 🧵)
1. Autistic people have often been conditioned since infancy to regularly go well outside our comfort zones (whether socially or in sensory ways), and to not complain about it.
How is one to then know that *some* of those uncomfortable things are socially not acceptable, or even illegal?
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1. Autistic people have often been conditioned since infancy to regularly go well outside our comfort zones (whether socially or in sensory ways), and to not complain about it.
How is one to then know that *some* of those uncomfortable things are socially not acceptable, or even illegal?
️️2. We're also far less likely to speak to other people, and share information with them about our situations, than neurotypical people.
This means that financial & other kinds of abuse can be going on, often for years, without others knowing about it. And without our awareness that the situations are abusive.
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2. We're also far less likely to speak to other people, and share information with them about our situations, than neurotypical people.
This means that financial & other kinds of abuse can be going on, often for years, without others knowing about it. And without our awareness that the situations are abusive.
️Really interested to hear other people's thoughts on this.
A couple of articles & studies:
New report finds widespread abuse of autistic people, https://www.sunderland.ac.uk/more/news/story/new-report-finds-widespread-abuse-of-autistic-people-1931
Prevalence of Victimisation in Autistic Individuals, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10486169/
Evidence That Nine Autistic Women Out of Ten Have Been Victims of Sexual Violence, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9087551/
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Really interested to hear other people's thoughts on this.
A couple of articles & studies:
New report finds widespread abuse of autistic people, https://www.sunderland.ac.uk/more/news/story/new-report-finds-widespread-abuse-of-autistic-people-1931
Prevalence of Victimisation in Autistic Individuals, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10486169/
Evidence That Nine Autistic Women Out of Ten Have Been Victims of Sexual Violence, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9087551/
️@KatyElphinstone maybe this falls under #1 - there's a kind of naïveté (for me) where it's difficult to imagine or understand that other people may be misleading me or even planning to deliberately harm me. I wouldn't do it so ... no one else would either, right?
️ -
Why is it that autistics can all-too-easily end up in exploitative or even abusive situations?
Giving this some thought, I figured out a couple of possible reasons for this (below).
I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this, too!
️(A short 🧵)
@KatyElphinstone I think neurodivergent people are often gaslighted. They may be pointing out red flags, and everyone is telling them that they're imagining things or what they're experiencing is "normal."
Especially if it's something that would go undetected by someone with different brain wiring -- someone who doesn't notice patterns or detect signs as sensitively.
Even if they feel a situation isn't right, other people continue to tell them that it's fine, and they believe it because everything they've done or said has always been considered "wrong" by others.
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R AodeRelay shared this topic
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@KatyElphinstone I think neurodivergent people are often gaslighted. They may be pointing out red flags, and everyone is telling them that they're imagining things or what they're experiencing is "normal."
Especially if it's something that would go undetected by someone with different brain wiring -- someone who doesn't notice patterns or detect signs as sensitively.
Even if they feel a situation isn't right, other people continue to tell them that it's fine, and they believe it because everything they've done or said has always been considered "wrong" by others.
@Furthering @KatyElphinstone This is a tricky one. My daughter (20) is autistic, but also anxiety-disordered. She genuinely believes that the world is much worse than it actually usually is, and is terrified of what it might do to her.
How do I guide her to follow her instincts and trust her autistic intuition, whilst at the same time push through her unnecessary anxieties, and broaden her horizons and potential for joy?
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@Furthering @KatyElphinstone This is a tricky one. My daughter (20) is autistic, but also anxiety-disordered. She genuinely believes that the world is much worse than it actually usually is, and is terrified of what it might do to her.
How do I guide her to follow her instincts and trust her autistic intuition, whilst at the same time push through her unnecessary anxieties, and broaden her horizons and potential for joy?
Oh, I'm so sorry -- that is tricky. One thing that I've found interesting and beneficial is Internal Family Systems/parts work. Very briefly, the idea is that we all have internal parts that want to help us, but sometimes they work against us. For example, anxious parts may be trying to protect us, and once we show them they don't have to fill that role anymore, they can relax. Of course, parts work should be done with a knowledgeable practitioner, and it may not work for everyone, but it could be one option worth checking out.
The book No Bad Parts by Richard C. Schwartz describes it, though I think it's more beneficial to have it explained/demonstrated before reading the book.
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R AodeRelay shared this topic
