dheadley @dheadley@learningdisability.social

“How A Screen Reader User Surfs The Web” by @smashingmag with @tink and @brucelawson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUDV1gqs9GA

Are you interested in Mayflower history and genealogy? Are you applying to the Mayflower Society? I have over 200 blog posts related to the Mayflower Pilgrims, families, stories, and photographs. The list at this link will take you to most of them: https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/p/mayflower-400th.html #genealogy #mayflower #familyhistory #history #geneadons

Do you have ancestors who settled or passed through Nutfield, New Hampshire (now the towns of Derry, Londonderry, Windham, and Manchester)? Are there Scots Irish in your family tree? Check out my page with "Frequently Asked Questions" for Nutfield research. There are lots of links to genealogy resources. https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/p/faqs.html #history #Histodons #genealogy #FamilyHistory #geneadons #ScotsIrish

As a historian and genealogist I am deeply honored to be recently elected as one of the 200 Resident members of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts. The organization was founded in 1892 and publishes the scholarly journal The New England Quarterly. Their majestic headquarters are located at 87 Mount Vernon Street in Boston. Thank you to all the members who supported my candidacy for membership. #Histodons #Geneadons

Are you interested in the genealogy and history of Nutfield, New Hampshire (now the towns of Londonderry, Derry, Windham, Chester, and Manchester, New Hampshire)? This blog post has important information about research in this region https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/p/faqs.html #genealogy #FamilyHistory #geneadons #history #histodons #histodon

As some of you may have heard, Tweetbot is currently unable to authenticate with Twitter which currently has a huge impact on our business. Only mentioning this because we are going to be busy putting out fires and trying to get Ivory on the App Store ASAP. So it will be harder to answer your questions. However you can read our current roadmap for Ivory here: https://tapbots.com/ivory/

Also, here are 1000 more testflight openings for now. Thanks for all of your support! 🙏

https://testflight.apple.com/join/HiTBauI3

@middlecground
Top 3 indepth books by Autistic authors:

1. Ten Steps to Nanette by Hannah Gadsby, incredibly indepth, traumatic, honest, I’ve never felt so seen.

2. But You Don’t Look Autistic At All by Bianca Toeps, Bianca runs through the DSM from an Autistic POV, lots of personal stories I could see myself in.

3. A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicoll - not scientific but such a powerful read, v. emotional.

@bookstodon @actuallyautistic #ActuallyAutistic

Apple Music and Apple TV apps are finally arriving for Windows —but only for Windows 11 and in preview versions. https://www.pcmag.com/news/apple-music-and-apple-tv-apps-finally-released-for-windows

@Furty @actuallyautistic

Good recommendation. I have that on my Autism-101 Goodreads list.

https://bit.ly/autism101-GRL

@Supposenot @autisticbookclub @actuallyautistic honestly? Finding something that is compatible with your kid's needs and desires, regardless of your own expectations and vicarious dreams for them.

I was "gifted", right up until I wasn't anymore because I couldn't cope.

My mother continued pushing me to "achieve more", with tales of how "you will never get anywhere in life without a degree". So I did what she wanted, and dropped out after 6 months, with multiple suicide attempts to my name by that point.

I did not have the benefit of knowing I was autistic, and I did not have a parent who would cut me slack to figure out what would work for *me*.

She is a narcissist, so perhaps a little different to your situation.

I eventually figured out a life that I could cope with, and managed to fall into a career despite not having a degree.

Is this what I wanted from my life? No.

Did achieving "success" come at increasingly large cost to my health and ability to operate successfully? Yes.

Does your kid actually want to go to college?

Does your kid actually want a career?

Are they only saying yes because you expect them to achieve these things as a projection of your "type a personality"?

It's a doozy, but what they want and what you want may be two very different things. You can either support them in achieving what *they want*, in whatever format achieving it looks like, or, you can arrive at a burnt out kid, who wants to turn the world off after failing at something they never really wanted anyway, and potentially, a kid who never talks to you again (my mother falls into these latter categories).

If your kid's loftiest goal is to make coffee or work in a library, and that screams failure, please learn to celebrate them for it.

If their goal is a life of research, celebrate that too.

If they don't have any idea what they want, accept that.

But let *them* choose a path of harm reduction within capitalistic exploitation.

When #ActuallyAutistic humans first become self aware, get dx, or even begin to really explore the autistic community and the concept of #neurodiversity we begin to ask questions. Who am I? Is my autistic self who I’ve always thought I was? Am I masking? 

It can be lonely. Discovering other people who know what it is to be #autistic, having your voice heard and your self seen, for the first time, is powerful. For so long we were living in a sort of alternative universe and now here are people who know what we mean.

It’s no small thing. Most autistic people go thru life never getting to know that feeling. And once you’ve made that realization you start digging in me. Learning more. Growing more. And when you do that, the community is better for it. Do you know your #AutisticSelf?

On Tuesday, Jan 3 I’ll be starting up my next 5-week program which uses my specialized autistic life coaching methods to help you get in touch with not only other autistic adults like you, but with your Autistic self. Your true self. Plus you’ll gain some useful tools for preventing meltdowns, shutdown, and burnouts. And self regulation techniques. And much more.

Sound cool? If you want to join check out the link below, message me, or reply below! Hard on money now? Talk to me, no one will be left out due to finances. So let’s go. Come meet your autistic self on Jan 3 and take the next step in your autistic journey.

https://www.theautisticcoach.com/autistic-group-coaching

Did you know? #Microsoft has a support line just for Persons with disabilities. It can be very helpful for people that have limitations with written communication.

The #helpline is only for persons with disabilities or, help with accessibility accessories. They seem to be working to #EndAbleism in this regard. The response time is not too bad either. What's the longest that you've waited on hold.
The number is: (800) 936-5900

#MicrosoftAccessibility constantly seems to be developing innovation, with the #DisabilityCommunity in mind. Thier #accessability page is user friendly, dividing links by #DisabilityAccessories and need. Tools for people with mobility, visual and hearing impairments, are only a small part.

Among the many disability-specific links, are pages to assist those with #InvisibleDisabilities. #Neurodivergence and #MentalHealth pages, along with some #DisabilityGaming accessories game changers. Limb Difference accessories for Xbox, well... Guess who could be a gamer with EA #NHL, again. #GoBolts

Thanks for thinking of, and accommodating our community MS. Other companies that just fire their Accessability Team, could learn from your example.

Microsoft #DisabilityOnly Tech Support Helpline - (800) 936-5900

#Neurodivergence:
https://support.microsoft.com/topic/accessibility-tools-for-neurodiversity-6dbd8065-b543-4cf8-bdfb-7c84d9e8f74a

#LimbDifference Gaming!:
https://www.xbox.com/en-US/community/for-everyone/accessibility

#MentalHealth:
https://support.microsoft.com/topic/accessibility-tools-for-mental-health-76629671-3fc3-4f06-bf65-7ee02d03f540

MS Accessability Home:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/accessibility/

#Microsoft #mobiliy #LimbDifference #disabilities #TBI #InvisibleDisabilityRights #PSTD #ActuallyAutistic #tech #DisabilitySolidarity #GamingAccessories #T
echSupport

@librarianknight @actuallyautistic I had to look up what Loops are. I recently bought some over-the-ear bluetooth, noise-cancelling headphones at Five Below that are so helpful to me. For one, I'm studying for some professional development, and any noise my husband makes is distracting. But I honestly would like to wear these all the time. I suppose something more subtle like Loops would be better for work.

Happy autistic burnoutmas to all who celebrate, I am sending you an invisible helmet of quiet and chill for when the people you love talk at you too much, and your fave snacks, and cosy times xx 🎄#actuallyautistic

@actuallyautistic

What I've figured out that I need is:

- Lowered expectations and demands on me and my time, emotionally, mentally, and physically
- To be able to have private, quiet time as needed
- To be able to turn down the volume on everything around me
- Everyone that I interact with to understand and respect my needs when I declare them

I started to be open, honest and blunt about how I’m doing and feeling with my loved ones.

I’m saying no to things when I don’t have the energy for it.

I take breaks and naps when I need them.

I’m asking for help with things that raise my anxiety.

I’ve asked my team at work to be careful with language when bringing problems to me as I’m super sensitive to frustration right now.

I’m wearing my noise cancelling headphones while I’m awake and earplugs when I’m sleeping.

I ask my wife to lower her volume if she’s excited (she has echolalia and kinetic ADHD) and give me space when I’m feeling overwhelmed.

I’m thankful that everyone in my life has been understanding and respectful of my boundaries.

I’m doing my best right now to keep my stress levels and anxiety low and after today I’ll be able to take a week off for just me time to rest and recover.

I’ve been feeling better this past week and I plan to keep up with these boundaries and self-care so I continue to get back to myself.

2/2

#autisticburnout #Trauma #Boundaries #MentalHealth

A post about #AutisticBurnout, #trauma, #Boundaries and #MentalHealth

I'm physically and emotionally burned out and I picked up some trauma from the events of the past year. I was burned out from work at the start of it and then some mental health emergencies exploded into our lives.

I had to dedicate my everything to my wife from December 2021 to September 2022. There were weeks where I had to be by her side or within earshot of her to be sure of her safety, and yet, I still had to work and run a business.

Neither of us knew what was going on and I was (at the time) the only person she had in her life that knows her well enough and she trusted to get through even the worst darkness.

I worked with her doctor, her therapist and I took notes and journaled about what she was going through. I was a there for her to share her thoughts and feelings, and I was the recipient of them as well at times.

This was a non-stop, high stress situation for me until we figured out what was causing the emotional turmoil and it re-triggered my hyper-vigilance which is just starting to abate.

Once we got her the right help and got her stable, which she has been for over 2 months, I was able to start to relax, but... my brain and body didn't know how to anymore.

I was exhausted, I would have random panic attacks over benign texts before I even read them, I would "overreact" to something someone said that I would normally brush off or process different, and my sensory issues are through the roof.

I haven’t been able to take any “me” time off work.

I had to get on the path to healing and that meant that I had to set some boundaries.

1/2

@actuallyautistic #actuallyautistic

@autisticbookclub @TheOtherness @Vchat20 @Pathfinder @loops @actuallyautistic This is so very true, and I'd add that "success" as it is defined in this era is rife with misconception. Autistics often elude this kind of success.

Parents (and society generally) need to realize that what I call the "autistic success model" that media and journalists and filmmakers like to push is nice as a marketable story for their audiences but not at all reflecting how autism really works with most in the real world.

And true savantism is rare, and even those who are championed as having genius or special abilities are not what they seem (just look at the real history of Elon Musk). Success as people are deceived into thinking as part of being autistic is not at all something most autistics will experience, often through no fault of their own, but is due to how the world pushes them out of the way.

To help #Neurodivergent people find each other, I created an online form to add your new Mastodon address and your old Twitter one.

https://forms.gle/i5EgVXcLUyPpWZ3c8

You can then view the associated spreadsheet of names and download a CSV file to import into your Follow List.

For newly diagnosed and self-identified autistic people and for those who think they might be, I built a resource website for you here:

https://linktr.ee/autism_101. Just click on the first link.

#ActuallyAutistic #ADHD #AuDHD

@matt @actuallyautistic The older I get, the less I enjoy Christmas. I am a married parent to two children and I am the one who does all the shopping and organising in my house. It usually takes me 2 months to get everything done (I have to pace myself to avoid anxiety and burnout). That’s a big chunk out of my year. I used to enjoy it when they were very small but I’m over it now. Even with a very low-key Christmas planned this year I feel exhausted.

Modeling accommodations requests to my students by telling them my ADHD can’t handle adding another email inbox to my list of Things I Have To Check and asking them to email my personal account instead

Also modeling self-care by telling them I don’t check email on weekends and encouraging them to do the same (they have the option to text me if something truly cannot wait til Monday)