WHERE TO GET THE BOOK: http://libgen.is/book/index.php?md5=F6B31A8DAFD6BD39A5986833E66293E6
People have been kind enough to link the audiobook in past posts, so hopefully they’ll do that here, too.
CHAPTER ONE: WHAT IS AUTISM, REALLY?
In this chapter, Dr. Price discusses what the popular perception (read: stereotype) of Autism is, as opposed to what it actually is, and how it is just as much a social thing as it is a medical thing. How Autism often goes undiagnosed in people of color, women, gender nonconforming people, etc. He discusses the concept of neurodiversity and how it applies to ASD and ADHD people, AuDHD people, schizophrenics, BPD people, people deemed “low intelligence” or “low-functioning,” etc. and how neurotypicality is not so much a described set of behaviors as an oppresive social ideal that literally everyone deviates from in some small way at least.
There’s a heartbreaking passage in here where Dr. Price recounts his father tearfully revealing his cerebral palsy and seizure disorder to him as if it was a source of secret shame, how this is tragically rational because if he didn’t hide it it might lead to losing his job or other forms of discrimination that disabled people of all stripes face. How avoiding a label can be a social asset in a world that deems you unfit for public life in many ways if you’re labeled autistic. How even a late diagnosis can open you up to a world of new possibilities, and get rid of toxic shame you’ve had for a long time.
There’s discussion of how the stereotype of Rainman Bazinga Sheldon 
is tied into the roots of Autism’s first descriptions in medical literature, and how Hans Asperger played a role in this with his eugenicist beliefs and willing cooperation with the Nazi regime to exterminate children dubbed Autistic (as opposed to “useful” ones that could be trained to fit in as a lower class of person – essentially “Asperger’s” meant you got to live) and how that harms minority Autistics, causing them to go undiagnosed or forcing them to mask in more fundamental, soul-crushing ways, to avoid social misunderstandings that can literally be deadly for them.
From there we get a medically and socially up-to-date definition and breakdown of what Autism is, a simple explanation of some of the neurobiology involved, the neurological markers like focus on details and diminished ability to prioritize and differentiate stimuli and delayed emotional processing, and the various medical, psychological, and social impacts Autism has on those who are Autistic. There’s a lot in here on neurodiversity, intersectionality, how stereotypes were formed, how to start recognizing them as such. There’s also a lot on how unfairly the medical community and especially health insurance treats neurodivergent people, and so on.
Most importantly, this is where Dr. Price first advocates for the notion of Autistic self-determination. He stresses “self-determination” or “self-realization” over “self-diagnosis” because of the social aspect of Autism, and promises to expand on this notion further, which indeed he does.
So, discussion questions:
- What did you think of this chapter? Is there anything new you learned? Anything that really activates those almonds, gets the noggin joggin’?
- Are there any passages that really stuck out to you? Something you think warrants deeper discussion or really crystallizes something you were struggling to express or share?
- Any certified “literally me” moments that touched you?
- Anything you hope to explore further in upcoming chapters?
Tag post to follow, plus my thoughts in another post.
Sorry for being ultra-late, I just managed to finish the first chapter now. I’ll most likely be able to comment on the, already existing, second chapter thread before the third one is posted. I just want to leave my thoughts registered here.
In general I think this chapter was great. I already knew about most of the stuff talked about towards the end, mostly because of all the research I did when I first suspected I could be autistic, but it was great reading something actually so well written. I also loved the examples of so many stuff in the first half of the chapter, since I go through most of that all the time, but I always find it difficult to put it all into words. It actually helps me to talk about it with my therapist. It also helped me realize more things about myself that I didn’t realize was an autistic thing, and that I also couldn’t put into words too.
“Autistic burnout is a state of chronic exhaustion where an Autistic person’s skills begin to degrade, and their tolerance to stress is greatly reduced.” - I think I might be suffering from this for a long time now, I’m not sure and it’s something I need to talk with my therapist. But it’s great to have such a concise explanation, the very little I’ve searched about this previously always left me kind of confused.
“I believe that Autistic people have the right to define who we are, and that self-definition is a means of reclaiming our power from the medical establishment that has long sought to corral and control us. Our deviance from the norm doesn’t have to be the core part of how we understand ourselves. We can push for social norms to be widened, until we reach the point that Autism is viewed as a neutral fact about a person’s being, on par with needing glasses or having freckles. As we make major gains in public awareness and advocacy, we will begin to occupy a less disabled position in society. But we’ll still all be Autistic. Accordingly, we shouldn’t let the view of Autism as an impediment shape how we see ourselves or determine who belongs among us.” - I think this passage is great in and of itself. The only think it lacks is the tie in with how this fight is intertwined with a capitalist mode of production. But it’s good nonetheless.
There was way to many moments of euphoria where I couldn’t help but genuinely laugh because it was literally me. Though there’s one passage I would like to cite here:
“Autistic people, on the flip side, don’t rely on knee-jerk assumptions or quick mental shortcuts to make our decision. We process each element of our environment separately and intentionally, taking very little for granted. If we’ve never been in a particular restaurant before, we may be slow to make sense of its layout or figure out how ordering works. We’ll need really clear-cut indications of whether it’s the kind of place where you sit down and get a table service, or if you’re supposed to go to a counter to ask for what you like. (Many of us try to camouflage this fact by doing extensive research on a restaurant before setting foot inside.) Every single light, laugh and smell in the place is taken in individually by our sensory system, rather than blended into a cohesive whole. To cope with unpredictability, we analyze our experiences for patterns, and memorize rule sets: if the waiter says X, I reply with Y. When something unexpected happens, we have to carefully sort out how to respond. Too much change may cause us to become really exhausted, or to freak out.”
Mostly how our relationship with trauma usually goes, masking itself, how to deal with it and how to unmask, specially because I believe I’m on the point where I’ve being wearing it for so long I don’t know who’s underneath it anymore, and more detailed examples of the struggles we tend to go through.