Unmasking Autism: The Power of Embracing Our Hidden Neurodiversity

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Unfortunately, this coping mechanism often comes at the expense of one's mental health and with "Unmasking Autism" Dr. Price offers a surprisingly straightforward and accessible path toward unmasking with exercises that encourage self-expression including celebrating special interests, cultivating Autistic relationships, reframing Autistic stereotypes, and rediscovering one's own values. Dr. Price is both extremely critical of the racist, classist, and prejudiced science inside the field of psychology and the specific field of Autism research, while also writing from a place of great compassion for the confusion felt by Autistic people trying to navigate a world that often doesn’t make sense. They go OFF on the ableist, racist, and eugenicist history of Autistic diagnosis and research, and on organizations that purport to embrace Autistic people while seeking to “cure” Autism. I have been embarking on this journey for over a decade and it has involved plenty of ups and downs. In my book, ‘Taking off the Mask’, I have described some of the techniques I have found useful. I also included the lived experience of other autistic people to create a collection of resources that help improve the mental health and wellbeing of those who mask. Crystal’s story is common among Autistic people. They experience the world differently, but their parents and teachers don’t believe them when they say they are struggling. They push the label away, and tell their child to stop making such a fuss. Price’s work on Autism has appeared on NPR and PBS, in Slate and Psychology Today as well as a variety of academic journals. (He also wrote a Medium post explaining his capitalization of Autism as “an identifier I am proud of, a mark of community membership rather than a condition I have been saddled with.”)

Self-awareness is the first key, from that follows self-compassion and kindness to rid ourselves of all the stigma we have internalised. The worse we feel about ourselves the more we mask, and the more we mask the worse we feel. By learning how to change the negative thoughts and feelings we have of ourselves from masking, we may even find the need to mask less. Most, though certainly not all, of us autistic adults asked do prefer “autistic person” over “person with autism.” I prefer it not only for the reasons @Suleikha Snyder prefers it, but also because it is less awkward and reflects how we use adjectives in English. For example, if I call myself a “blonde person” instead of a “person with blondeness,” that doesn’t mean that I think I am nothing beyond my hair color, or that I have to remind people to see past it! Blonde hair is one of many traits — woman, wife, daughter, American, white person, romance reader, coffee drinker, knitter, college graduate, etc. — that make up me. And my hair color is a far less important trait to my identity than my autism! I can imagine who Redheaded Me or Brunette Me or Pinkhaired Me might be like, but Neurotypical Me? I can scarcely imagine the kind of person she is. Hi Reddit! I’m Dr. Devon Price (he/him), and I’m a social psychologist, professor, Autistic person, and the author of Unmasking Autism: Discovering the New Faces of Neurodiversity.Unmasking Autism is at once a most deeply personal and scholarly account of the damage caused by autistic (and all) people leading masked lives, and how unmasking is essential to creating a self-determined, authentic life. It provides a unique and revealing perspective on the sensory and social-cognitive experience of autism. It provides practical guidance and exercises for neurodivergent people to learn to be comfortable in their own skin and dramatically change their own lives, and it details the necessary changes that society needs to make to honor neurodiversity. This is a remarkable work that will stand at the forefront of the neurodiversity movement.” —Barry M. Prizant, PhD, CCC-SLP, Visiting Scholar, Brown University, author of Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism Even as CODA wins prizes at the Oscars, three new novels represent a breakthrough for Deaf stories — or, rather, a big and important next step. Try to go an entire day without controlling what messages your facial expressions or body language is giving off. May be highly self educated, but will have struggled with social aspects of college or their career. Crystal’s grandfather, who was Autistic, did not want to diagnose his granddaughter, because he feared the consequences of having a disabled grandchild. He hid her condition from everyone, including Crystal, until his death.

Give yourself permission to actually offend someone," Price says. "Obviously, you don't want to go around saying offensive, hurtful things, but accept that you're not in control of other people's emotional reactions to you." Can socialize, but primarily in shallow, superficial ways that may seem like a performance. Struggles to form deeper friendships.However, for us autistic folk the strategy is often much more ingrained and harmful to our wellbeing and health. Because our social norms are different to others around us, we often experience greater pressure to hide our true selves and to fit into that non-autistic culture. More often than not, we have to spend our entire lives hiding our traits and trying to fit in, even though the odds of appearing ‘non-autistic’ are against us. This week he shares the results of his research in “ Unmasking Autism,” a book that presents a clear definition of Autism and the anatomy of masking, which in Price’s formulation is the suppression of Autistic behaviors out of desperation to conform to neurotypical society.

A remarkable work that will stand at the forefront of the neurodiversity movement.”—Barry M. Prizant, PhD, CCC-SLP, author of Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism A deep dive into the spectrum of Autistic experience and the phenomenon of masked Autism,giving individuals the tools to safely uncover their true selves while broadening society’snarrow understanding of neurodiversity Lay out your home or workspace in a way that suits your own needs rather than in a way that pleases allistic, or non-autistic, people. For one designer Price spoke with, it made a world of difference.In our COVID era we wear masks which are claustrophobic and annoying and we wish to be rid of them. This, symbolically, is done to Autistic people, those with ADHD and even upon those who suffer from PTSD and other neurodiverse identities. They are squelched and forced to mask their stimming, and so on, as if they are a virus to be contained and hidden, so their condition won't spread and embarrass others. That’s a common issue with people trying to be sensitive. One academic style guide I read said that you should describe people with what they can do, and not with what they cannot do. Coming in reaaaal late here, just to add my two cents as a person so autistic I’ll always need to live in a support home.

The best solution to reducing the need for autistic people to mask is to spread awareness to non-autistic people of different neurodiverse behaviours and thinking patterns. When non-autistic people know someone is autistic, they seem to judge them less harshly. However, this strategy is not an easy one and will take years of effort before it is fully ingrained in our society. If you're a girl, if you're a person of color, if you're gender nonconforming," Price says, "you're more likely to be seen as a problem to be contained."

The Positive Side of Unmasking

Autism is a neurological condition that is developmental in nature. It is largely genetically heritable, but it is also multiply determined, meaning it has no single cause. Every Autistic person’s brain is unique and exhibits its own distinct patterns of connectivity.