Autism/ADHD Support Thread 🌈

[daringred_]

got a question for my fellow autistic/ADHD people: do you guys ever feel really embarrassed about your special interests?

like for instance, I'm not really outwardly embarrassed about my interest in the Super Mario series (I kinda was more so as a kid but I think at this point most people know I really like it), but I am lowkey embarrassed that my favorite enemies (besides chain chomps) are all the stone guys. like idk, it just seems like a weird thing to be so interested in? and I can't even really justify my interest, I've liked them ever since my interest in the series started! I just don't see other people giving them much attention so I feel weird that I like them so much (whereas, say, my interest in Wario and Waluigi is a thing that a lot of people can relate to so I don't really feel bad abt that).
I've been wanting to buy this one lego super mario set for like two weeks and I can't even get myself to search for it bc I'm so embarrassed it prob seems silly but I genuinely feel so awkward abt it. it's almost like a guilty pleasure, except that I don't feel guilty that I like it, I just feel like lots of people would judge me (including that little stupid voice in my head, most of all). I generally don't care what others think regarding my interests but there's just some part of me that's like "why do you like that so much lol that's weird" and I get embarrassed.

*sorry I'm doing that over-explaining crap again lol*

yes lol. part of that might be down to anxiety, but i've always felt embarrassed and like a weirdo for being so hyperfixated on things; even if they were mainstream. for the last few years, it's been my own ocs/book, and i still get embarrassed if i start rambling about them too much to my own girlfriend. heck, the other night i got embarrassed after i rambled on about something she's also interested in, so.

 

[Croconaw]

I did comment a few posts back that I’m not embarrassed of my interests now, but I definitely used to be. In high school, Pokémon was my ****. I loved it, but I was embarrassed because nobody else shared that interest and in my mind, it was a kid’s game. Someone even said in fifth grade to me that they love Pokémon, but they feel like they need to grow up because they’re too old, but they were flippin’ ten years old?? I’m definitely not into Pokémon as much as I used to be, but I do still like it. Croconaw has been my comfort character for a very long time, too. Even teachers would comment on days where we had to wear something nice, like picture day for example, they’d announce that I can wear my nicest Pokémon shirt. It felt like I was being called out, honestly.

 

[peachsaucekitty]

got a question for my fellow autistic/ADHD people: do you guys ever feel really embarrassed about your special interests?

yes all the time, no matter what it is :s it also doesnt help when my friends always get annoyed whenever i talk about it them lol :(
i have a super strong desire to share my interests with people since yknow theyre important to me but nobody i jnow cares that much lmao

Post automatically merged: May 21, 2022

and to this question i raise another kind of related question: does anyone else feel like they've kind of conditioned themselves to hide or get rid of their autism/adhd behaviours since they're not really acceptable in society?? i definitely have

 

[CoffeeAndCaramel973]

Whatever you do in life, whether you're neurodivergent or neurotypical, remember to be kind to others. Even something as simple as that goes a long way for another person.

@Venti , I could not agree more with these words. I think they are very well said!

 

[Croconaw]

and to this question i raise another kind of related question: does anyone else feel like they've kind of conditioned themselves to hide or get rid of their autism/adhd behaviours since they're not really acceptable in society??

I’m not sure? I’d say no because I just act like myself. I don’t try to hide any parts of who I am. I can’t really name any autistic behaviors that I do off the top of my head, but I’m sure I don’t try to mask them.

 

[xSuperMario64x]

and to this question i raise another kind of related question: does anyone else feel like they've kind of conditioned themselves to hide or get rid of their autism/adhd behaviours since they're not really acceptable in society?? i definitely have

yes, that has a word and it's called "masking." it's when you suppress your autistic/ADHD traits for fear of being judged and/or ridiculed. people who can mask really well are often referred to as the "oh I didn't know you were autistic" kinda autistic people, which isn't a compliment. I wish we lived in a society where nobody had to mask their autistic traits. I'm trying to stop doing it but sometimes I do it without even thinking about it. it's a really difficult habit to break out of.

 

[VanitasFan26]

got a question for my fellow autistic/ADHD people: do you guys ever feel really embarrassed about your special interests?

Well yeah and I prefer not to answer it because its too personal.

Post automatically merged: May 24, 2022

does anyone else feel like they've kind of conditioned themselves to hide or get rid of their autism/adhd behaviours since they're not really acceptable in society?? i definitely have

Pretty much yes. Thats why I close myself off from the rest of the world, if you saw what I posted in the beginning of this thread you'll know why. I just can't trust people these days. I am always cautious whenever going in public. It makes me angry when I see other people who are autistic (like me) getting bullied online for being autistic. Before you ask yes I too was bullied as an autistic because I had these so called "Friends" who were suppose to be there for me just became bullies. Since then I REFUSE to even be around with people.

 

[StarlitGlitch]

and to this question i raise another kind of related question: does anyone else feel like they've kind of conditioned themselves to hide or get rid of their autism/adhd behaviours since they're not really acceptable in society?? i definitely have

I would say yes, when I'm around people I'm not friends with/in public I try to suppress some of what would be considered my ADHD symptoms to blend in. A lot of symptoms get called annoying and I do feel like I am treated differently to an extent already.

 

[Mimi Cheems]

got a question for my fellow autistic/ADHD people: do you guys ever feel really embarrassed about your special interests?

Sometimes ;v;

I have ADHD (it's.. pretty bad. To the point where my memory is down the drain, I've read somewhere that ADHD can cause memory problems) and I'm on the spectrum as well (my mom refuses to believe it though bc I 'don't act like my brother who has it' [autistic females are very different compared to autistic males. I also read that the first study for autism was done on a male brain.]) and... when I talk about my hyperfixations and/or special interests, I tend to get a tad embarrassed because I don't want to sound annoying..? Recently, when I talk about my interests, people listen but I worry they're not interested or as intrigued as I am xwx

Topic change,,,,

I think what embarrasses me the most about my ADHD and autism is my little vocal stims? I say the weirdest things sometimes and people look at me funny. Every week I have a new phrase I say as a stim that... comforts me? This week, for some odd reason, is 'skippy mcdippy' LMAO. It was from a meme I saw and I thought it was so funny, and now I can't stop saying it.

Does anyone else feel this way about their stims..? I don't know what else to call them, sometimes I call them anxiety tics or 'random outbursts', but tics are associated with another disorder, so I try not to call them 'tics' too often. I think the correct word is 'stims'..?

 

[Croconaw]

Does anyone ever feel like the third wheel in a group of people, or a group of friends? I sort of feel like a person that’s just there, rather than being part of the group, if you catch my drift. Can anyone relate?

 

[xSuperMario64x]

Does anyone ever feel like the third wheel in a group of people, or a group of friends? I sort of feel like a person that’s just there, rather than being part of the group, if you catch my drift. Can anyone relate?

yup, this was me every time I would go hang out w friends in college. like I was just existing in the background and nobody liked to acknowledge my presence. I always felt pretty left out even if I tried to make myself included. hence why I honestly haven't spoken to any of my friends since I graduated a year ago. real friends won't let you feel left out.

 

[Croconaw]

yup, this was me every time I would go hang out w friends in college. like I was just existing in the background and nobody liked to acknowledge my presence. I always felt pretty left out even if I tried to make myself included. hence why I honestly haven't spoken to any of my friends since I graduated a year ago. real friends won't let you feel left out.

Glad to know I’m not alone, lol. Any tips to get over this feeling would be much appreciated, if anyone has any. I think it’s fairly common for me to feel that way, but not all the time. It just happens sometimes.

 

[Neb]

Does anyone ever feel like the third wheel in a group of people, or a group of friends? I sort of feel like a person that’s just there, rather than being part of the group, if you catch my drift. Can anyone relate?

I always feel like a third wheel in general. With a few exceptions, I’m the backup friend that’s only talked to once every several months, if that. Half of the time I try to start a friendship I get ghosted after several messages anyway.

I can’t help but wonder if a part of that is because of my autism. All of my social skills were learnt through trial and error since I didn’t pick them up as a kid. As a result I sometimes make social mistakes that other people might find basic.

I also have habits that are hard to break. Whenever I’m excited to potentially make a new friend I send them multiple messages a day. After a few weeks I tend to text at a more normal pace. This is definitely not healthy. I’m sure many people have been turned off by it.

I guess all I can do is keep trying to learn new social skills and try to break my old habits.

 

[StarlitGlitch]

Does anyone ever feel like the third wheel in a group of people, or a group of friends? I sort of feel like a person that’s just there, rather than being part of the group, if you catch my drift. Can anyone relate?

I definitely do but unfortunately don’t have any tips for this. For me, part of it is that I can have a hard time getting the timing right for what I want to say or I'm too busy trying to keep up to add anything.

 

[VanitasFan26]

Does anyone ever feel like the third wheel in a group of people, or a group of friends? I sort of feel like a person that’s just there, rather than being part of the group, if you catch my drift. Can anyone relate?

Yeah I can relate. As an introvert I felt uncomfortable around people. Quite Frankly I don't even want to be around others and nobody ever seem to talk to me which was fine. I was in the mindset of "Oh please let this be over already"

 

[Croconaw]

Yeah I can relate. As an introvert I felt uncomfortable around people. Quite Frankly I don't even want to be around others and nobody ever seem to talk to me which was fine. I was in the mindset of "Oh please let this be over already"

I’m more in the mindset of “I want to be apart of your group” so I’ll just jump in random conversations to feel included. I think I’m the opposite because I want this social interaction. Most of the time, I’ll be the one starting conversations.

 

[Kitsuragi]

after fighting for some testing for about a month now, i was officially diagnosed with moderate-severe combined type ADHD

i haven't really been able to process it cause i had to go to work. i'm not sure what to do with this info now, but my psych believes that this might have to do with my anxiety also and the two of them together might be messing up my world rn

 

[daringred_]

oh, i thought i had already mentioned this here, but my therapist suspected i might be autistic, so she gave me another quiz, and i scored 7/10 so i should be getting referred to an autism assessment center when i next see my doctor. i had suspected it myself before, but i kind of dropped the thought when comments here and there made me feel like i wouldn't be autistic enough and 'didn't understand' and was probably just weird. after doing some research and actually sitting down to think about it though, a lot of my quirks and life make more sense if i am. then again, if it's decided i'm not, i'm going to look incredibly stupid lol, but.

 

[VanitasFan26]

As an autistic, I feel discouraged whenever people often tell me that I'm doing great but then go on to ask me "how long are you going to do this" and suggesting me to do something else that they think works for me. Like come on I don't want to be shamed on and its bad enough that last year I had a huge fight with my liver doctor who decided to fat shame because my blood results while they were great he still had the nerve to call out my weight because apparently that was more important than blood results.

 

[xSuperMario64x]

got a question for my fellow autistic/ADHD people:

are you the kind of person who can't stand little background noises, or do you need constant background noise (not including times of sensory overload) like a fan or other white noise?

I thought about this bc I was recommended a video on yt earlier called "things that people with ADHD may find annoying" and one of the things was "fan/AC noises" but ironically I keep my AC and fans on a lot because I need the background noise. sitting in silence actually drives me crazy (unless I'm in sensory overload ofc) so noises like fans, AC units, TVs, people talking, etc. don't bother me at all unless the noise is really loud or my mind deems it to be annoying (people playing music out loud really bothers me for some reason, and the sound of dogs barking also irritates me).