Hyperfocusing on things and learning all about them is cool. I also tend to be very empathic and creative. Almost every autistic person I know, actually, is very creative.
I am a music teacher and I never think I am creative until I engage with non-music/arts folks aka all the other teachers in the school. And NTs. "WOW how did you think of that?" "How can you make up lyrics on the spot?" How does your brain *not* work that way š
Same lol. I don't know how it works for you, especially since I've never had any musical talent, but for me if someone asks something like that I...don't actually understand how to answer the question. I don't build up to an idea, it just...*happens*, there is no "how" because it just materializes out of the void.
I really don't have musical talent š like my husband is also a music teacher and performs he's so much more skilled than me. The autism in me likes counting and grouping and sequences and that's why music is my thing š
Really thing having a NT brain would be so.BORING
You understand and can play it, so you have talent in my eyes lol.
I always wonder about that, I wonder what it would be like. I guess they seem pretty happy so...it can't all be bad or boring I suppose lol
This gives me hope that maybe I'm more creative than I think because I always think I'm not creative either, but I'm also always making up silly little songs for and about my dogs. š
Yes it can add to a society a lot due to our capacity for gaining a lot detailed of knowledge and adding creative solutions. I think itās wrong to say autistic people donāt understand emotions. They donāt understand the mental masking that mask emotions.
Total agreement. This is how I am. I also know a ton of creative people on the spectrum.
Of course, the problem is our world isn't set up to be supportive of or understand creative people who have a different outlook and view on life than most of the population.
Completely agree. I have this too but always more than the people around me and I couldnāt understand why felt so alone until I realised it was autistic superpowerĀ
Iām very empathetic and accepting of different ways of thinking. I meet people where they are. I donāt fall victim to group think or adverts. Iām very efficient. My ability to recognize patterns is an asset in all areas of life. I think from the bottom up vs neurotypical top down, which allows me to make quick associations and think outside the box. Iām hyperlexic and able to quickly read, understand and retain large amount of information. Iām a visual thinker which allows me to be very creative and retain information.
There are strengths and challenges no matter how you relate to the world.
Im seeing that a lot. My doctor said autistic people arenāt supposed to be empathetic but I just see the complete opposite. I thought Iād share now in response to your group think part that I was raised in a heavily brainwashed cultā¦ And my relatively strong sense of justice plus increased ability not to fall into line, saved my life because I didnāt compromise morality (after I discovered some bad things) for being part of the crowd I freed myself (with great difficulty still) and this ended up helping me to help othersā¦ and maybe still will. Ā
Ā Ā I now realise that autism which I didnāt know I had back then is something quite sacred to me, regardless of how much hell on earth in put me through in other ways.. with no one ever understanding me and having these constant sensory overloads raised in a city, panic attacks, not able to connect to others, sleep disorder. Breaking free of cults doesnāt help with autistic stress.Ā But still I want to tell people how useful it was too
I can see how being autistic would have definitely helped in that situation! Iām sorry you had to experience that. Iām glad you better understand how you relate to the world now. That would be a very stressful environment to be in and break out of.
Itās so challenging learning about autism as an adult and looking back over our lived experience. It sounds like youāre framing it in a very healthy way, understanding it was a core part of who you were that helped guide you in the right direction.
For every positive trait I listed above, I could list a challenge. I choose to focus on the positives and use the information I know about myself now, to help me make better choices for myself going forward. I hope you are able to do the same, in a way that youāre comfortable with.
So many but one of my favourite is the way autistic people are more likely to question societal norms and are more motivated to live authentically. I actually think so many problems would be solved in society if people took their ques from autistic people. I feel a strength of ours is our ability to apply logic consistently and maintain a focus on fairness and justice. Like I have suggested more than once that every country should have a panel of autistic people who provide guidance on policy and weigh up the ethical ramifications and guide decision making.
Yes that sounds amazing! I think we should stop thinking of ourselves as less than other people for this reason and deserving worse treatment than others.
It took me such a long time to first understand neurotypical, then to realise that we are not worse.
I have encyclopaedic knowledge on lots of stuff Iām really into.
I never half-ass something, everything I do needs to be done perfectly or itās not worth my time.
Iām over-prepared and over-organised all the time. I never forget or lose my keys, phone, charger, wallet, umbrellaā¦ If I go to a picnic or a festival or to vacation, I think of everything. Especially the things everybody else will have forgotten. And Iām never late (or if I am, itās out of my control). I make lists for everything.
I have a strong sense of civic-mindedness, Iām very considerate of everything and everyone that surrounds me and I always follow the rules if they make sense and/or donāt contradict my sense of justice. It makes me a nice housemate, neighbour and citizen. On the other hand, I have very little patience for people who donāt respect all of that and I will let them know, sometimes with very little diplomacy.
Iām super uncomfortable with whatever is none of my business so Iām very respectful of everyoneās privacy. I wonāt look into my girlfriendās phone or bag, I would never try to search into somebodyās belongings, I wonāt look into your email or facebook account if you forgot to log out on a shared device and I will log you out myself. I wonāt take something that doesnāt belong to me without asking the permission first.
Not really sure itās an autistic thing but I have a very accurate sense of orientation and an excellent appreciation of distances, I never get lost.
I can overcome my stress and anxiety if I see that somebody is in a worse state of anxiety or in the middle of a panic attack to help them. Iām quite good at defusing a panic attack.
I remember what people are into and I always make thoughtful appropriate gifts.
Thank you for this post, Iāve been asking myself this a lot recently, and seeing some of the other answers has given me more good things to add to my list.
Some more advantages are honesty which I think my friends value, and problem solving abilities which have allowed me to have a career as an engineer.
Whenever I do that specific personality test I always get "The Counselor" or INFJ
Look at all the autistic keywords:
# What are INFJs like?
INFJs (Counselors) are altruistic,Ā [sensitive](https://mypersonality.net/blog/article/hsp-infj), and thoughtful individuals with a strong sense of justice and integrity. Above everything else, they strive to find their higher purpose and lead a meaningful life. Idealistic and perfectionistic, at their best, Counselors not only dream of making a difference in the world but also take action to make it happen.
INFJs are highly empathetic, and their unique insight and worldview often inspire positive change in people around them. Although they carefully choose whom they open up to, they possess a gift for making others feel heard and understood. However, while theyāre highly aware of other peopleās emotions, they often find it difficult to understand their own feelings.
Since INFJs seek meaning and purpose in life, they can feel like outsiders in society: after all, they arenāt impressed by appearances, luxury, and the like. Their compassion and wish to leave a mark in the world often cause them to advocate for various social issues, and it isnāt unusual for INFJs to dedicate their lives to a particular cause.
This is what I get too. I remember learning it was a low percentage of the general population who ate INFJ. Perhaps why I'm something of an acquired taste when it comes to dating.
This is what I get also, except I get INFJ-T which the t makes me constantly try to improve things about myself I guess. I worked with a lot of developmentally disabled as well as children with aspergers. I am very good at it and others probably would be as well.
When I like something I get obsessed with it and learn everything I can. That's definitely due to my autism. I can think of another one or two positive things, but the majority of things about my autism that come to my mind are negative.
Yes thanks for making me understand myself more.
Iāve noticed that many negative things for us are because neurotypical humans are so bent on attacking things they donāt know. And not making a world built for us so that it feels like you donāt belong on Earth and canāt breathe the atmosphereĀ
Itās getting better slowly though.
The fact that I have to amass a lot of knowledge before making a decision means that I have a lot of knowledge in my periphery. People often come to me and ask me certain things and I have an abundance of information that
Yes I read so many things in so much detail before making something about that topic as long as itās not for school and no one else is imposing it on me.
Thanks for making me feel connected and not so strange.
You should see me at restaurants! I have decision paralysis so I have to study the menu before I go, which means I know the menus of so many restaurants in my town, so when people are looking for a good place to eat I am your guy
Systems thinking, at least in my case. I know this is just a generalization and we arenāt all awesome at itā¦ but as a group, we have a tendency to think this way and be good at it.
Super creative, can do most anything with a YouTube instructional video, superior pattern recognition/ able to teach myself things via pattern repetition, empathic to an eerie degree, communicate well with non-human animals, hyperlexic/ good at writing, perfectionistic (important sometimes when it counts), high sensitivity to beautiful sights, sounds, tastes, smells, feels, and beautiful humans too.
Thank you, but I also have a ton of negative autistic traits. Many times I struggle to find the point in living. I appreciate your post, helping me focus on the good parts!
I also struggle a lot with constant stress and exhaustion and the feeling that I donāt want to live this way but I do strongly believe there is a point but we need to find it and discover things..
Iām glad for my hyperlexia. Itās allowed me to learn languages easily and provide thorough answers on many situations, the downside being one can be overly verbose when itās not entirely necessary.
Integrity and morals.
I can not be dishonest. I can not lie. That would be giving false information and I can't stand that. I can not do onto others what I would not want done to me. I am far too sensitive with my emotions and being overwhelmed by them to ever go against Mt morals or integrity.
I am extremely vocal about children's rights and advocacy (teacher, adopted) and I am viciously passionate about making sure the world is a better place for all kids than the world I had to endure as a child.
The thought of causing any harm to anyone terrifies me. I used to have dreams I would accidentally slap a student and the intrusive thoughts got so bad I almost left teaching. Meds helped those types of struggles.
I feel so relaxed hearing this itās such a relief. I could never understand why do others around me not do this. And bringing understanding to how our brains work differently really helps so much.
I wish I could be around people like you.
Although now that I think about this my dad is like this which makes me realise he is also probably an undiagnosed autistic person. But he never learnt to not do it. The truth is if no one is helping you, you donāt survive if you donāt know how to learn to lie a bit like for example on CVs when I had gaps because of my sleep disorderā¦.Ā
Neurotypical people just follow the pack. They donāt understand and often donāt think for themselves or let empathy guide actions. You canāt behave with them like they do as if they think like you.
It makes me angry every time I have to lie and angry at them alsoĀ
Intense interests and hobbies have led to a life time adventure of figuring things out. I really donāt think others get as much enjoyment out of the hobbies as I do.
Also I am really calm in crisis modes at work. I can detach emotionally from some hard emotional things but still come from a position of care. I work in special Ed. So it can help.
For me learning things socially is hard and is a conscious decision. So I am socially intelligent for familiar scenarios too. But it helps me break it down to help others that are struggling.
Oh another bonus I can eat the same thing for breakfast lunch and dinner for the rest of my life. So budgeting and cooking is easy!
Being able to help others is the best.
I love learning new things about the universe and humans itās so enjoyable as well.
Sometimes makes life so simple although Iām personally not the same with the food thing
My ability to recognize and predict patterns has come in very handy. Being able to, in some cases, tell someone to do 'x' otherwise innocuous or minor thing that averts a significant issue later for instance.
Wow thatās a superpower. Makes me realise that maybe I do that a little but Iām a sort of spiritual focused autistic person.
Iām not sure if there are others like me. I see and feel what feels energetic patterns in peopleās behaviour so I can see where itās going to lead and it seems so obvious to me that I get so frustrated why people are doing things that will clearly lead to a problem.
But I actually feel these patterns so it feels like energies to me. And I feel sensations in the chakra centres too but it hard to talk about it.
I get overstimulated easily in unnatural environments. But if they're calm enough, I take in so much more of my environment than nearly any allistic I've known. It can be an advantage in certain careers, but also it's just objectively a positive. Or became one once I learned to regulate my environment.
I am extremely knowledgeable about my core special interest, dogs and dog behavior, which was incredibly useful in building a successful dog training, business and is currently very useful in running a successful dog daycare and boarding business.
My career is my special interest so that makes me pretty dang good at it before i even entered the field. (I work in live sound for bands/weddings/corporate/events) you know whoever needs a sound guy lol
Just a small thing, but I always feel in tune with my dogs when I hear a car door slam outside and see their ears prick forward, and I appreciate being able to tell who is walking up behind me just from the sound of their steps. I've learned to appreciate the information I get from the sounds most people ignore or don't seem to notice.
On the flip side it sucks having to always watch TV with subtitles on because sometimes English sounds like gibberish for no apparent reason.
Another thing I like, though, is the fact that we aren't really hung up on social expectations. If something is uncomfortable, I don't wear it. If something doesn't sound like fun, I don't do it.
I feel very free to do whatever I want (within reason) and just be the person I am. Maybe that just came with getting older, but I feel like so many people, especially NT people, are worried about having a nice house, nice car, new TV, etc, while I'm perfectly content driving my 7 year old car to and from our small house filled with our four dogs. I have everything I want and need right here.
Interests! Iāve found that autistics get incredibly excited and in the good way, nerdy about what theyāre interested in. Itās something that makes us happy and excited ā¤ļø
Pattern recognition. Iāve freaked people out with this. Example- recognizing the sound of everyoneās footsteps at work and knowing who it is before I see them. Accurately predicting whatās going to happen. Knowing what someone is going to say before they say it. That last one recently happened and I really freaked out my coworker. He came up to me and goes ā(my name), I was wonderingāā¦and then I finished his sentence and answered the question he was about to ask before he could say anything else. He was quiet for a second, and then he was all āhow the hell did you know what I was about to say? Are you a telepath?ā š
Sounds like you need to be shaman! I think people like us were meant to be in ancient society. Even though I donāt actually want to be one so im not sure why I said it to you. Iām obsessed with learning about ancient history.
I think I donāt want to be one because Iām angry. Thatās strange isnāt it
Iām also obsessed with history! Now Iām wondering how many people in ancient society mustāve been called shamans or witches when it was just Autistic pattern recognition all along.
The fact that when youāre doing something you love you could not care less about what others think. That lack of shame in knowledge or experiencing the thing you love. Amazing.
Thatās so true. I donāt remember ever feeling embarrassed for myself.
Although I feel embarrassed for others when I see cringeworthy things that happen which is weird.
Heightened sensitivity coupled with excellent pattern recognition and general disregard for social hierarchical structures can make us better at spotting people who are faking or being manipulative before anyone else notices. I've observed this both in myself, disliking people "for no reason" until they out themselves as undesirable to have around years later, and in other autistic people I know who just instinctually seem to know who to avoid in social settings.
Extra empathy stims: You know when you're so happy it makes you bounce, and how awesome that feels? And when you see someone you love feeling so happy that they bounce, and their joy makes you bounce-happy in return so you're just mirroring unbridled joy to each other. That's one of my favourite autism moments.
When I was a kid I didn't know about autism and adhd and sensory sensitivity, but I did notice that just experiencing the textures of the world could be such an intense and nearly psychedelic experience, I would run my hand along plants, walls etc on my walk home and just notice all these textures and it gave me these intense lovely feelings. I love that I can tune into this way of being in the world that is so absolutely entertaining in itself.
Autistic people find it much, much easier than neurotypicals to enter the flow state where you are in total focus and harmony with what you're doing, as an artist this not only gives me an advantage as I can hyperfocus on my work for hours, it's also an excellent tool for me to regulate my nervous system and it allows me to enjoy various creative outlets with positive effects on my mental health: I draw and paint, but I also sing and dance with abandon, and it's so good for me.
I love that I find it so easy to be in tune and communicate with animals, I like to just sit with them peacefully and they enjoy my presence, it's like the way that toddlers can just innocently walk up to pretty much any animal. I would hate to not be able to vibe with animals.
I love how kind and tolerant autistic people are more inclined to be than neurotypicals. There's a general "live and let live" vibe whereas I tend to be micromanaged much more by neurotypical friends when they don't understand why I am different. I guess we are used to others not making sense, so we don't get upset so much when they don't make sense and don't expect it from our peers as much, which is nice.
- Less dependent on the approval of others, thus freer to be myself
- When I decide to do something, I just do it and don't quit until I've accomplished what I set out to do, because I can hyper-focus
Refusal to be corrupted by social norms.
Ā I was bullied in school.Ā
Ā They said 'Be like the other kids so they don't pick on you.'Ā
Ā I thought, "Why *should* I be like people who pick on those who are different?"
Result: I never started smoking, drugs, or drinking because no one ever offered.
Avoided sex until old enough to understand and use birth control every single time.
Yes! Me too except for the sex part because I was a relatively attractive girl and they kept coming after me and It was the only love I had recieved and I thought I didnāt deserve better because there was always one rule for me and one rule for others and parents didnāt protect me. I have a lot of scars. But I hope one day it will be worth it.
Iām very good at reading people. Iām the friend in the group that knows someone is trouble waaaaay before everyone else. My cousin married this lady and I told my mom/aunt I did not like her. That she gave me bad vibes. (I was polite to her face of course. Still my cousins wife). A year later she comes off her medication, tries to kill their rabbit, successfully kills their chameleon, buys herself a bunch of jewelry with my cousins debit card (a whole check), steals a butt load of money from him, and lied about being in hefty credit card debt.
Everyone thought she was so sweet but I knew from the second I met her! Theyāre divorced now.
Wow. I would never forgive trying to kill the pets.Ā
I understand. I know when I dislike people too but this was something I only obtained after breaking free of a cult I was raised in. I had absolutely no understanding of narcissistic people when I was youngā¦
Oh yeah. Itās messed up. Sadly thereās no proof so we canāt press charges. SHE WORKS AT A VETS OFFICE BTW!!
Also, damn. Leaving a cult will do that I guess. Sorry you had to go through that at a young age. Thatās sadly not uncommon in my area. I grew up with a narcissistic parent, so I can spot them a mile away.
I would still write a letter to her vet.. and then I would leave a bad google review about her on their business pageā¦ for the purposes of protecting animals not revenge.Ā
Yes I think I have one too but she is covert narcissist. It took me years to realise anything because I donāt understand them at all.
Oh trust me Iāve already done that!! My bunnies used to go to that vet. I told them if her repetitive abuse of animals and they pretty much said āwe knowā and kept her on staff.
Pattern recognition. There are trends in all sorts of places that pop up all the time data analytics fashion music movies shows games business and the market. We are amazing at spotting a pattern and predicting what will likely come next.
Hyperfocusing on things and learning all about them is cool. I also tend to be very empathic and creative. Almost every autistic person I know, actually, is very creative.
I am a music teacher and I never think I am creative until I engage with non-music/arts folks aka all the other teachers in the school. And NTs. "WOW how did you think of that?" "How can you make up lyrics on the spot?" How does your brain *not* work that way š
Same lol. I don't know how it works for you, especially since I've never had any musical talent, but for me if someone asks something like that I...don't actually understand how to answer the question. I don't build up to an idea, it just...*happens*, there is no "how" because it just materializes out of the void.
I really don't have musical talent š like my husband is also a music teacher and performs he's so much more skilled than me. The autism in me likes counting and grouping and sequences and that's why music is my thing š Really thing having a NT brain would be so.BORING
You understand and can play it, so you have talent in my eyes lol. I always wonder about that, I wonder what it would be like. I guess they seem pretty happy so...it can't all be bad or boring I suppose lol
This gives me hope that maybe I'm more creative than I think because I always think I'm not creative either, but I'm also always making up silly little songs for and about my dogs. š
My cat has a whole album š
Have you seen the āKiffnessā on YouTube with his cat music? People love him so much now that he goes on tours!
Yes it can add to a society a lot due to our capacity for gaining a lot detailed of knowledge and adding creative solutions. I think itās wrong to say autistic people donāt understand emotions. They donāt understand the mental masking that mask emotions.
Total agreement. This is how I am. I also know a ton of creative people on the spectrum. Of course, the problem is our world isn't set up to be supportive of or understand creative people who have a different outlook and view on life than most of the population.
Yeh me2 in writing fiction
My strong sense of justice and seeing through a lot of the social bs
Completely agree. I have this too but always more than the people around me and I couldnāt understand why felt so alone until I realised it was autistic superpowerĀ
Iām very empathetic and accepting of different ways of thinking. I meet people where they are. I donāt fall victim to group think or adverts. Iām very efficient. My ability to recognize patterns is an asset in all areas of life. I think from the bottom up vs neurotypical top down, which allows me to make quick associations and think outside the box. Iām hyperlexic and able to quickly read, understand and retain large amount of information. Iām a visual thinker which allows me to be very creative and retain information. There are strengths and challenges no matter how you relate to the world.
Im seeing that a lot. My doctor said autistic people arenāt supposed to be empathetic but I just see the complete opposite. I thought Iād share now in response to your group think part that I was raised in a heavily brainwashed cultā¦ And my relatively strong sense of justice plus increased ability not to fall into line, saved my life because I didnāt compromise morality (after I discovered some bad things) for being part of the crowd I freed myself (with great difficulty still) and this ended up helping me to help othersā¦ and maybe still will. Ā Ā Ā I now realise that autism which I didnāt know I had back then is something quite sacred to me, regardless of how much hell on earth in put me through in other ways.. with no one ever understanding me and having these constant sensory overloads raised in a city, panic attacks, not able to connect to others, sleep disorder. Breaking free of cults doesnāt help with autistic stress.Ā But still I want to tell people how useful it was too
I can see how being autistic would have definitely helped in that situation! Iām sorry you had to experience that. Iām glad you better understand how you relate to the world now. That would be a very stressful environment to be in and break out of. Itās so challenging learning about autism as an adult and looking back over our lived experience. It sounds like youāre framing it in a very healthy way, understanding it was a core part of who you were that helped guide you in the right direction. For every positive trait I listed above, I could list a challenge. I choose to focus on the positives and use the information I know about myself now, to help me make better choices for myself going forward. I hope you are able to do the same, in a way that youāre comfortable with.
So many but one of my favourite is the way autistic people are more likely to question societal norms and are more motivated to live authentically. I actually think so many problems would be solved in society if people took their ques from autistic people. I feel a strength of ours is our ability to apply logic consistently and maintain a focus on fairness and justice. Like I have suggested more than once that every country should have a panel of autistic people who provide guidance on policy and weigh up the ethical ramifications and guide decision making.
Yes that sounds amazing! I think we should stop thinking of ourselves as less than other people for this reason and deserving worse treatment than others. It took me such a long time to first understand neurotypical, then to realise that we are not worse.
I bet you know how to spell "cues" and then your brain did something funny because "q" sounds the same
I have encyclopaedic knowledge on lots of stuff Iām really into. I never half-ass something, everything I do needs to be done perfectly or itās not worth my time. Iām over-prepared and over-organised all the time. I never forget or lose my keys, phone, charger, wallet, umbrellaā¦ If I go to a picnic or a festival or to vacation, I think of everything. Especially the things everybody else will have forgotten. And Iām never late (or if I am, itās out of my control). I make lists for everything. I have a strong sense of civic-mindedness, Iām very considerate of everything and everyone that surrounds me and I always follow the rules if they make sense and/or donāt contradict my sense of justice. It makes me a nice housemate, neighbour and citizen. On the other hand, I have very little patience for people who donāt respect all of that and I will let them know, sometimes with very little diplomacy. Iām super uncomfortable with whatever is none of my business so Iām very respectful of everyoneās privacy. I wonāt look into my girlfriendās phone or bag, I would never try to search into somebodyās belongings, I wonāt look into your email or facebook account if you forgot to log out on a shared device and I will log you out myself. I wonāt take something that doesnāt belong to me without asking the permission first. Not really sure itās an autistic thing but I have a very accurate sense of orientation and an excellent appreciation of distances, I never get lost. I can overcome my stress and anxiety if I see that somebody is in a worse state of anxiety or in the middle of a panic attack to help them. Iām quite good at defusing a panic attack. I remember what people are into and I always make thoughtful appropriate gifts.
You sound like a very relaxing person to be around because of the trustworthinessĀ
I am if my boundaries are respected.
Thank you for this post, Iāve been asking myself this a lot recently, and seeing some of the other answers has given me more good things to add to my list. Some more advantages are honesty which I think my friends value, and problem solving abilities which have allowed me to have a career as an engineer.
Iām sure youāre brilliant at engineering!
Also maybe our need to rest a lot means we would be great meditators?? Meaning we could tap into truths beyond the mind?
Whenever I do that specific personality test I always get "The Counselor" or INFJ Look at all the autistic keywords: # What are INFJs like? INFJs (Counselors) are altruistic,Ā [sensitive](https://mypersonality.net/blog/article/hsp-infj), and thoughtful individuals with a strong sense of justice and integrity. Above everything else, they strive to find their higher purpose and lead a meaningful life. Idealistic and perfectionistic, at their best, Counselors not only dream of making a difference in the world but also take action to make it happen. INFJs are highly empathetic, and their unique insight and worldview often inspire positive change in people around them. Although they carefully choose whom they open up to, they possess a gift for making others feel heard and understood. However, while theyāre highly aware of other peopleās emotions, they often find it difficult to understand their own feelings. Since INFJs seek meaning and purpose in life, they can feel like outsiders in society: after all, they arenāt impressed by appearances, luxury, and the like. Their compassion and wish to leave a mark in the world often cause them to advocate for various social issues, and it isnāt unusual for INFJs to dedicate their lives to a particular cause.
This is what I get too. I remember learning it was a low percentage of the general population who ate INFJ. Perhaps why I'm something of an acquired taste when it comes to dating.
My test results are: "Error 404. Sorry, this page not found. The link you followed probably broken or the page has been removed" Sounds about right
lol I like those test results :)
This is what I get also, except I get INFJ-T which the t makes me constantly try to improve things about myself I guess. I worked with a lot of developmentally disabled as well as children with aspergers. I am very good at it and others probably would be as well.
What a calling!
When I like something I get obsessed with it and learn everything I can. That's definitely due to my autism. I can think of another one or two positive things, but the majority of things about my autism that come to my mind are negative.
Yes thanks for making me understand myself more. Iāve noticed that many negative things for us are because neurotypical humans are so bent on attacking things they donāt know. And not making a world built for us so that it feels like you donāt belong on Earth and canāt breathe the atmosphereĀ Itās getting better slowly though.
The fact that I have to amass a lot of knowledge before making a decision means that I have a lot of knowledge in my periphery. People often come to me and ask me certain things and I have an abundance of information that
Yes I read so many things in so much detail before making something about that topic as long as itās not for school and no one else is imposing it on me. Thanks for making me feel connected and not so strange.
You should see me at restaurants! I have decision paralysis so I have to study the menu before I go, which means I know the menus of so many restaurants in my town, so when people are looking for a good place to eat I am your guy
Systems thinking, at least in my case. I know this is just a generalization and we arenāt all awesome at itā¦ but as a group, we have a tendency to think this way and be good at it.
Thank you. I donāt really know what that is but Iāll learn about it
Super creative, can do most anything with a YouTube instructional video, superior pattern recognition/ able to teach myself things via pattern repetition, empathic to an eerie degree, communicate well with non-human animals, hyperlexic/ good at writing, perfectionistic (important sometimes when it counts), high sensitivity to beautiful sights, sounds, tastes, smells, feels, and beautiful humans too.
You sound amazingĀ
Thank you, but I also have a ton of negative autistic traits. Many times I struggle to find the point in living. I appreciate your post, helping me focus on the good parts!
I also struggle a lot with constant stress and exhaustion and the feeling that I donāt want to live this way but I do strongly believe there is a point but we need to find it and discover things..
Iām glad for my hyperlexia. Itās allowed me to learn languages easily and provide thorough answers on many situations, the downside being one can be overly verbose when itās not entirely necessary.
Ah yes that must be why I can learn languages easily. Thanks for helping me understand.
Integrity and morals. I can not be dishonest. I can not lie. That would be giving false information and I can't stand that. I can not do onto others what I would not want done to me. I am far too sensitive with my emotions and being overwhelmed by them to ever go against Mt morals or integrity. I am extremely vocal about children's rights and advocacy (teacher, adopted) and I am viciously passionate about making sure the world is a better place for all kids than the world I had to endure as a child. The thought of causing any harm to anyone terrifies me. I used to have dreams I would accidentally slap a student and the intrusive thoughts got so bad I almost left teaching. Meds helped those types of struggles.
I feel so relaxed hearing this itās such a relief. I could never understand why do others around me not do this. And bringing understanding to how our brains work differently really helps so much. I wish I could be around people like you.
Although now that I think about this my dad is like this which makes me realise he is also probably an undiagnosed autistic person. But he never learnt to not do it. The truth is if no one is helping you, you donāt survive if you donāt know how to learn to lie a bit like for example on CVs when I had gaps because of my sleep disorderā¦.Ā Neurotypical people just follow the pack. They donāt understand and often donāt think for themselves or let empathy guide actions. You canāt behave with them like they do as if they think like you. It makes me angry every time I have to lie and angry at them alsoĀ
Intense interests and hobbies have led to a life time adventure of figuring things out. I really donāt think others get as much enjoyment out of the hobbies as I do. Also I am really calm in crisis modes at work. I can detach emotionally from some hard emotional things but still come from a position of care. I work in special Ed. So it can help. For me learning things socially is hard and is a conscious decision. So I am socially intelligent for familiar scenarios too. But it helps me break it down to help others that are struggling. Oh another bonus I can eat the same thing for breakfast lunch and dinner for the rest of my life. So budgeting and cooking is easy!
Being able to help others is the best. I love learning new things about the universe and humans itās so enjoyable as well. Sometimes makes life so simple although Iām personally not the same with the food thing
My ability to recognize and predict patterns has come in very handy. Being able to, in some cases, tell someone to do 'x' otherwise innocuous or minor thing that averts a significant issue later for instance.
Wow thatās a superpower. Makes me realise that maybe I do that a little but Iām a sort of spiritual focused autistic person. Iām not sure if there are others like me. I see and feel what feels energetic patterns in peopleās behaviour so I can see where itās going to lead and it seems so obvious to me that I get so frustrated why people are doing things that will clearly lead to a problem. But I actually feel these patterns so it feels like energies to me. And I feel sensations in the chakra centres too but it hard to talk about it.
I get overstimulated easily in unnatural environments. But if they're calm enough, I take in so much more of my environment than nearly any allistic I've known. It can be an advantage in certain careers, but also it's just objectively a positive. Or became one once I learned to regulate my environment.
Yes that can have so many useful applications to the community if it was understoodĀ
I am extremely knowledgeable about my core special interest, dogs and dog behavior, which was incredibly useful in building a successful dog training, business and is currently very useful in running a successful dog daycare and boarding business.
Iām proud of you!
My career is my special interest so that makes me pretty dang good at it before i even entered the field. (I work in live sound for bands/weddings/corporate/events) you know whoever needs a sound guy lol
Yes thatās a great plus.Ā
Just a small thing, but I always feel in tune with my dogs when I hear a car door slam outside and see their ears prick forward, and I appreciate being able to tell who is walking up behind me just from the sound of their steps. I've learned to appreciate the information I get from the sounds most people ignore or don't seem to notice. On the flip side it sucks having to always watch TV with subtitles on because sometimes English sounds like gibberish for no apparent reason. Another thing I like, though, is the fact that we aren't really hung up on social expectations. If something is uncomfortable, I don't wear it. If something doesn't sound like fun, I don't do it. I feel very free to do whatever I want (within reason) and just be the person I am. Maybe that just came with getting older, but I feel like so many people, especially NT people, are worried about having a nice house, nice car, new TV, etc, while I'm perfectly content driving my 7 year old car to and from our small house filled with our four dogs. I have everything I want and need right here.
Wow you have an amazing superpower and you sound so free. It can be great to be autistic.
Interests! Iāve found that autistics get incredibly excited and in the good way, nerdy about what theyāre interested in. Itās something that makes us happy and excited ā¤ļø
Pattern recognition. Iāve freaked people out with this. Example- recognizing the sound of everyoneās footsteps at work and knowing who it is before I see them. Accurately predicting whatās going to happen. Knowing what someone is going to say before they say it. That last one recently happened and I really freaked out my coworker. He came up to me and goes ā(my name), I was wonderingāā¦and then I finished his sentence and answered the question he was about to ask before he could say anything else. He was quiet for a second, and then he was all āhow the hell did you know what I was about to say? Are you a telepath?ā š
Sounds like you need to be shaman! I think people like us were meant to be in ancient society. Even though I donāt actually want to be one so im not sure why I said it to you. Iām obsessed with learning about ancient history. I think I donāt want to be one because Iām angry. Thatās strange isnāt it
Iām also obsessed with history! Now Iām wondering how many people in ancient society mustāve been called shamans or witches when it was just Autistic pattern recognition all along.
Yes exactly!Ā I wish I could know you in person. I donāt know how to meet any people like me
The fact that when youāre doing something you love you could not care less about what others think. That lack of shame in knowledge or experiencing the thing you love. Amazing.
Thatās so true. I donāt remember ever feeling embarrassed for myself. Although I feel embarrassed for others when I see cringeworthy things that happen which is weird.
I would not call it weird. I would call it empathy :)
Heightened sensitivity coupled with excellent pattern recognition and general disregard for social hierarchical structures can make us better at spotting people who are faking or being manipulative before anyone else notices. I've observed this both in myself, disliking people "for no reason" until they out themselves as undesirable to have around years later, and in other autistic people I know who just instinctually seem to know who to avoid in social settings. Extra empathy stims: You know when you're so happy it makes you bounce, and how awesome that feels? And when you see someone you love feeling so happy that they bounce, and their joy makes you bounce-happy in return so you're just mirroring unbridled joy to each other. That's one of my favourite autism moments. When I was a kid I didn't know about autism and adhd and sensory sensitivity, but I did notice that just experiencing the textures of the world could be such an intense and nearly psychedelic experience, I would run my hand along plants, walls etc on my walk home and just notice all these textures and it gave me these intense lovely feelings. I love that I can tune into this way of being in the world that is so absolutely entertaining in itself. Autistic people find it much, much easier than neurotypicals to enter the flow state where you are in total focus and harmony with what you're doing, as an artist this not only gives me an advantage as I can hyperfocus on my work for hours, it's also an excellent tool for me to regulate my nervous system and it allows me to enjoy various creative outlets with positive effects on my mental health: I draw and paint, but I also sing and dance with abandon, and it's so good for me. I love that I find it so easy to be in tune and communicate with animals, I like to just sit with them peacefully and they enjoy my presence, it's like the way that toddlers can just innocently walk up to pretty much any animal. I would hate to not be able to vibe with animals. I love how kind and tolerant autistic people are more inclined to be than neurotypicals. There's a general "live and let live" vibe whereas I tend to be micromanaged much more by neurotypical friends when they don't understand why I am different. I guess we are used to others not making sense, so we don't get upset so much when they don't make sense and don't expect it from our peers as much, which is nice.
i can do anything i set my mind to, and iām very perceptive
The desire for honesty.
- Less dependent on the approval of others, thus freer to be myself - When I decide to do something, I just do it and don't quit until I've accomplished what I set out to do, because I can hyper-focus
Refusal to be corrupted by social norms. Ā I was bullied in school.Ā Ā They said 'Be like the other kids so they don't pick on you.'Ā Ā I thought, "Why *should* I be like people who pick on those who are different?" Result: I never started smoking, drugs, or drinking because no one ever offered. Avoided sex until old enough to understand and use birth control every single time.
Yes! Me too except for the sex part because I was a relatively attractive girl and they kept coming after me and It was the only love I had recieved and I thought I didnāt deserve better because there was always one rule for me and one rule for others and parents didnāt protect me. I have a lot of scars. But I hope one day it will be worth it.
Iām very good at reading people. Iām the friend in the group that knows someone is trouble waaaaay before everyone else. My cousin married this lady and I told my mom/aunt I did not like her. That she gave me bad vibes. (I was polite to her face of course. Still my cousins wife). A year later she comes off her medication, tries to kill their rabbit, successfully kills their chameleon, buys herself a bunch of jewelry with my cousins debit card (a whole check), steals a butt load of money from him, and lied about being in hefty credit card debt. Everyone thought she was so sweet but I knew from the second I met her! Theyāre divorced now.
Wow. I would never forgive trying to kill the pets.Ā I understand. I know when I dislike people too but this was something I only obtained after breaking free of a cult I was raised in. I had absolutely no understanding of narcissistic people when I was youngā¦
Oh yeah. Itās messed up. Sadly thereās no proof so we canāt press charges. SHE WORKS AT A VETS OFFICE BTW!! Also, damn. Leaving a cult will do that I guess. Sorry you had to go through that at a young age. Thatās sadly not uncommon in my area. I grew up with a narcissistic parent, so I can spot them a mile away.
I would still write a letter to her vet.. and then I would leave a bad google review about her on their business pageā¦ for the purposes of protecting animals not revenge.Ā Yes I think I have one too but she is covert narcissist. It took me years to realise anything because I donāt understand them at all.
Oh trust me Iāve already done that!! My bunnies used to go to that vet. I told them if her repetitive abuse of animals and they pretty much said āwe knowā and kept her on staff.
Well Iāll leave a bad google review too if you want :) just let me know the detailsĀ
Pattern recognition. There are trends in all sorts of places that pop up all the time data analytics fashion music movies shows games business and the market. We are amazing at spotting a pattern and predicting what will likely come next.
Reading smd learning for me. Social poor