Neurodivergent on Yik Yak | You don’t “have” autism. You ARE autistic. Autism isn’t an affliction. You don’t “have” the gay. You are gay. Same principle. Remember your autism isn’t an illness. It’s who you are.

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Neurodivergent 4w

You don’t “have” autism. You ARE autistic. Autism isn’t an affliction. You don’t “have” the gay. You are gay. Same principle. Remember your autism isn’t an illness. It’s who you are.

Anonymous 4w

uh actually this is a personal preference there is entire studies about it

Anonymous 4w

I agree with this idea wholeheartedly but I also can’t escape the fact that saying “I have the trans and/or the gay” is very funny to me😭

Anonymous 4w

idk I think policing the self-referring language preferences of people who fit diagnostic criteria that includes social difficulties is maybe not the hill to die on

Anonymous 4w

is it ok that i prefer to just tell people i have autism rather than i am autistic? i feel like they are more understanding when i say i have autism rather than i am autistic

Anonymous 4w

I am autism

Anonymous 4w

no i have gay, too

Anonymous 4w

You aren’t adhd tho idk. You aren’t anxiety. You aren’t Down syndrome. Why’s it just that one

Anonymous 4w

no actually, i *am* nothing. every single thing that you might call part of my identity is actually just a trait that i *have*. theres nothing fundamental underneath

Anonymous 4w

why is everybody upset? i took this as, u shouldn't feel like ur ill or something is wrong w u it's just part of who u are, which for me was a very helpful perspective

Anonymous 4w

I’m a semantics person and I’m with you on this, although I know people just do what’s simple. By nature, telling people that I “have” autism implies that the autism is with me but not a part of me, or it implies that I received it at some point in life. However, we do use the “I have” terminology when it comes to things like cancers or chronic illness too and there’s not much else to describe that either. I have POTS and autism, myself, but only of the two is in every part of my identity.

Anonymous 4w

wish this could be done with all disorders

Anonymous

#1 4w

it is a helpful perspective for sure, however OPs post comes across as though they’re speaking for everyone who has autism when many people actually do not prefer what they stated.

Anonymous

#6 4w

I have big gay, I can’t come into work tomorrow

Anonymous

#12 4w

This feels like a not great mindset to have I’m gonna be so honest😭 It’s one thing to not consider your diagnoses to be part of your identity it’s a MUCH different thing to consider NOTHING part of your identity

-1

Anonymous

#2 4w

why does this have to be a negative thing?

Anonymous

#3 4w

do what you feel comfortable with. there’s no right way to refer to yourself, don’t let this post deter you from that.

Anonymous

#3 3w

Do you not understand that it’s because they implicitly have placed it in a category of afflictions and that is why they are giving you more leeway than if you had not framed it like that , it is because they feel a sense of pity …

Anonymous

#14 3w

"I have brown hair" is not in a category of afflictions, or should people say "I'm a brown-haired person"

Anonymous

#14 3w

if people categorize my autism as an affliction, the words they use are a product of that bigger issue, not a problem themselves

Anonymous

#9 3w

THANK YOU SOMEONE WHO UNDERSTANDS EXACTLY WHAT I MEAN

Anonymous

OP 3w

yeah by saying I “have” autism implies that maybe sometimes I don’t have it or that I can leave it behind at some point.

Anonymous

#5 3w

Autism is already treated like an unfortunate illness, and brown hair is nowhere near the level of relevance autism has to medical disorders and illnesses. How would you explain the difference in treatment otherwise