Autism Resource Masterlist:

 


When I was first diagnosed with autism, one of my biggest issues was struggling to find information about autism that applied to me. Most resources out there catered to parents of five year olds, not adult autistic people curious to learn about themselves. A lot of these "resources" tended to treat autism as a scary thing, something to hide or fix, but once I started finding resources from autistic people themselves, that narrative changed. Instead of hearing that I was broken, I heard that my brain is different, that it needs different things, and that meeting these needs can go a long way for my mental health. I learned that my sensory needs had a big impact on my mental health, that there was usually a reason behind being anxious for "no reason." 

By accepting myself, including my autism, I could better understand why I struggled, and do something about it, whether that meant wearing headphones, remove myself from overwhelming situations, investing in some fidget toys, or give myself grace when I wasn't perfect. This wasn't a cure-all for any anxiety or depression I ever felt in my life, but for some things, I could push pause on my anxiety and gain a foothold of stability, and then another.

This masterlist is the culmination of those efforts to learn about myself as an autistic person, understand my needs, limits, and interests, all of which helped me better relate to other people with similar experiences.

If you're wondering, yes, I have read all of these, and this list has been shortened since it was first made. Links with an asterix (*) are ones that I'd highly recommend for their usefulness in understanding these subjects, but most of them are pretty helpful. Let me know if there are any other links I should add to my masterlist of doom!


What is Autism:

National Autistic Society: What is autism

Autistic Self-Advocacy Network: About Autism | Autistic Self Advocacy Network (autisticadvocacy.org)

Links to Other Websites | Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) | CDC (scroll down to section for “adults with autism”)

*Welcome to the Autistic Community | Autistic Self Advocacy Network (autisticadvocacy.org)

*Guide for Parents: booklet-interior-4.1.pdf (autisticadvocacy.org)

Autism in Women: 

*Why I Fake Being ‘Normal’ — and Other Women with Autism Do, Too (healthline.com)

Girls and Autism: Flying under the radar | Nasen

Autistic women and girls (autism.org.uk)

Is Autistic Camouflaging Really Bad for Your Health? | Psychology Today

Autism in Women Is Misunderstood. One Woman Shows Us Why (healthline.com)

Autism Is Likely Under-Diagnosed in Women Due to Gender Bias | Smart News | Smithsonian Magazine

*Women 'camouflaging' autistic traits suffer severe mental health challenges, study finds (medicalxpress.com)

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/332865043_Supporting_women_with_autism_during_pregnancy_birth_and_beyond

Autism in Adults: 

Diagnostic assessment - a guide for adults who think they might be autistic (autism.org.uk)

Autism in Minorities:

ERIC - EJ822620 - Underdiagnosis and Referral Bias of Autism in Ethnic Minorities, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2009-Jan (ed.gov)

Diagnostic Process: 

*Autism diagnosis criteria: explained (DSM-5) - YouTube

Common Comorbidities:

Anxiety in Autism Spectrum Disorder | Anxiety and Depression Association of America, ADAA

The deep emotional ties between depression and autism | Spectrum | Autism Research News (spectrumnews.org)

https://www.spectrumnews.org/news/overlap-traits-autism-attention-deficit-persists-adulthood/

Autism and ADHD: Neurological Cousins » NeuroClastic

Neurodiversity: 

*Neurodiversity: What You Need to Know | Understood - For learning and thinking differences

Neurodiversity | Psychology Today

THINKING PERSON'S GUIDE TO AUTISM: What the Neurodiversity Movement Does—And Doesn't—Offer (thinkingautismguide.com)

The Concept of Neurodiversity Is Dividing the Autism Community - Scientific American Blog Network

Self-Advocacy: 

Autistic Self Advocacy Network | Nothing About Us Without Us (autisticadvocacy.org)

Double empathy, explained | Spectrum | Autism Research News (spectrumnews.org) (aka: are autistic people bad at communicating, or are neurotypical people bad at listening?)

Foundations for Divergent Minds

*THINKING PERSON'S GUIDE TO AUTISM: Resources (thinkingautismguide.com)

Against Autism Speaks:

7 Reasons To Not Support Autism Speaks (theodysseyonline.com)

AutismSpeaksFlyer2020.pdf (autisticadvocacy.org)

Horrific Autism Speaks “I am Autism” ad transcript | Autistic Self Advocacy Network (autisticadvocacy.org)

Autism Speaks' Electrifying Past - YouTubeWhy I Will Not Light It Up Blue for Autism Awareness, and You Shouldn't Either - GirlsAskGuys

Functioning Labels:

The Fallacy of Functioning Labels | NCMH

Nonspeaking Autism:

*Short film about nonspeaking autistic people (super good): LISTEN | CommunicationFIRST

Autistic activist Jordyn Zimmerman advocates for communication, disability rights (19thnews.org)

CommunicationFIRST - Nonprofit by and for nonspeaking autistic people

Book: The Reason I Jump - written by a non-speaking 13 year old on the spectrum

Rupal Patel: Synthetic voices, as unique as fingerprints - YouTube

Human Voicebank – VocaliD

Identity-First Language: 

*Identity-First Language | Autistic Self Advocacy Network (autisticadvocacy.org)

*Coping Strategies for Autistic People: (Stimming, special interests, sensory needs, etc)

Neurodivergent Self Care | Neurodiversity Network

Stimming | Autism Wiki | Fandom (wikia.org)

https://www.spectrumnews.org/news/repetitive-behaviors-and-stimming-in-autism-explained/amp/

Stimming: What It Is and Why People Do It (health.com)

Common Environmental Triggers for Autism Sensory Overload | Spectrum Disorder

My Anxiety Is Not Disordered — THINKING PERSON'S GUIDE TO AUTISM (thinkingautismguide.com)

The benefits of special interests in autism | Spectrum | Autism Research News (spectrumnews.org)

The Importance of Peer Groups in The Autism Community (differentbrains.org)

Private-Health-Coverage-for-Autism-Services-A-Guide-for-Individuals-and-Families-1.pdf (autisticadvocacy.org)

Against ABA therapy methods

*Home of DIRFloortime® (Floortime) - ama (icdl.com)

Problematic and Traumatic: Why Nobody Needs ABA – Autistic Self-Advocates Against ABA (wordpress.com)

rrb-autism-decisiontree.pdf (aota.org)

THINKING PERSON'S GUIDE TO AUTISM: Why No Autistic Child Should Be in ABA Therapy (thinkingautismguide.com)

Why No Autistic Child Should Be in ABA Therapy (thinkingautismguide.com)

5 Important Reasons Even "New ABA" is Problematic (autisticmama.com)

Anthropology of Autism:

            Autism | Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology (anthroencyclopedia.com)

School/College:

Accommodations in Higher Education | Center for Autism Research (carautismroadmap.org)

IPUL Education (ipulidaho.org) (Parent Education Centers for training on IEP's and others resources; one exists in every state)

https://autisticadvocacy.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/NavcollFinal.pdf

Autism Campus Inclusion | Autistic Self Advocacy Network (autisticadvocacy.org)

Life Transitions:

“Life is Much More Difficult to Manage During Periods”: Autistic Experiences of Menstruation | SpringerLink

How accommodating workers with autism benefits employers -- and all of us (theconversation.com)

Autism and Driving 

Autism and Grief

Disability Community:

Autism and the Disability Community: The Politics of Neurodiversity, Causation and Cure | Autistic Self Advocacy Network (autisticadvocacy.org)

Autism Acceptance Month | More Good Days – Parenting Blog (gooddayswithkids.com)

*THINKING PERSON'S GUIDE TO AUTISM: Resources (thinkingautismguide.com)

Youtube:

Yo Samdy Sam: Yo Samdy Sam - YouTube

TED Talks:

*Jac den Houting: Why everything you know about autism is wrong | Jac den Houting | TEDxMacquarieUniversity | TED Talk

Women and Autism. Towards a Better Understanding | Sarai Pahla | TEDxMünster - YouTube

*My brain isn’t broken | Tashi Baiguerra | TEDxLondon - YouTube

Iilluminaughtii - videos on autism speaks, ASAN and debunking myths surrounding autism

Health Concerns:

https://autismandhealth.org/?a=pt&p=detail&t=pt_hc&s=hc_find&theme=dk&

Autism and Safety Toolkit: Research Overview on Autism and Safety (autisticadvocacy.org)

*Resource Library | Autistic Self Advocacy Network (autisticadvocacy.org)

Extending the Minority Stress Model to Understand Mental Health Problems Experienced by the Autistic Population - Monique Botha, David M. Frost, 2020 (sagepub.com)

Private-Health-Coverage-for-Autism-Services-A-Guide-for-Individuals-and-Families-1.pdf (autisticadvocacy.org)

Education for OT's:









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