Autistic and Living the Dream

Category: LGBTQIA+

  • Trans and Autistic: the importance of online groups

    Trans and Autistic: the importance of online groups

    The internet has become a place in which transgender+ Autistic people can gain access to resources, ideas and language to describe our gender and neurological identities. Using online support groups allows me to find out more about myself and how I relate to others as a late diagnosed Autistic gender divergent person. Having safe spaces…

  • Trans and Autistic: supporting gender diverse Autistic students

    Trans and Autistic: supporting gender diverse Autistic students

    Living at the intersection of trans and Autistic identities is a unique and insightful experience, however many of us who occupy this space have difficulty in gaining support within educational settings. Many of us find it difficult to find teaching staff who are both knowledgeable about, and affirming to, Autistic and transgender experiences. Those who…

  • Trans and Autistic: Where do I belong?

    Trans and Autistic: Where do I belong?

    Group membership and a sense of belonging can improve the physical and emotional wellbeing of gender diverse Autistic people. However, there remains real risks of transphobia within queer spaces. At the 2018 London Pride march which was infiltrated by a small group of anti-trans protesters. These protesters made disparaging remarks about transwomen and shared literature…

  • The switching of the flags: Pride take 2

    The switching of the flags: Pride take 2

    Today,  we take down one pride flag and put up another – Disability Pride. This ceremonial changing of the flags is done by so many of us who are both LGBTQIA+ and Disabled. I wanted to look at Disability Pride flags, their colours and their meanings whilst also sharing the journey it has been on…

  • Another Pride month fades to black

    Another Pride month fades to black

    So, my plan for #PrideMonth was to write something every day. It’s my plan every Pride Month but Attention Hyperactivity, brain fog and life gets in the way! It is so vital that we share our stories, resources, information, love and acceptance all year round but especially in a month where big corporations make rainbow…

  • Trans and / or non-binary Autistic narratives: research poster

    Trans and / or non-binary Autistic narratives: research poster

    In 2020 I started my MRes at University of Portsmouth, researching trans and / or non-binary Autistic narratives. I wanted to make my work free and accessible to as many people as possible. Participants have given informed consent for me to publish this information, all identities will be kept confidential in line with UoP’s ethics…

  • Living at the blurry edges of gender and neurotype

    Living at the blurry edges of gender and neurotype

    I am the odd one out in a lot of rooms. Sometimes I even feel that I am on the outskirts of the marginalised groups I belong too. I belong there but not in the way I used to imagine. I am non-binary but not in a way that people feel is ‘obvious’. I am…

  • What Pride means to me

    What Pride means to me

    Queer pride is a difficult one for those of us who feel things differently. Do I know what pride feels like? Probably not, not in a way I could explain anyways. Feeling and showing pride as an alexithymic person is difficult (read Alexithymia and interoception: what the Hell is going on!?). Pride, and other feelings,…

  • I wish I could dress like a boy

    I wish I could dress like a boy

    I have pretty intense sensory processing differences – I get mega tactile joy from soft, light materials and clothing which flows off me. And I hate stuffy, thick, clunky clothing. Tags in clothing make me want to scratch the skin off my body. I find it difficult to wear full length trousers as I don’t…

  • Doing gender the Autistic way

    Doing gender the Autistic way

    Gender is tricky – it is reliant on the complex interweaving of cultural and social factors, including race, class and disability – for many Autistic people this means our gender is inextricable from our neurology (see Autigender: is autism and gender entwined?). Gender norms are influenced by culturally specific expectations, attitudes and norms, modelled to…