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halthemonarch 's review for:
Took me so long to read because I hated it. Once again, reading and digesting new information about Autism and neurodiversity I saw myself in the pages. The book reiterates what I’ve known for years-- that it’s a neurotypical world, that accommodations are possible but asking for them will make certain people think less of you. Asking doesn’t even guarantee such accommodations, and one must go through life with the knowledge that their tribe is out there somewhere-- a unique group of people that may or may not share your past or experiences, who see doing things to help make your life a little easier not as a burden but as a given as your friend or a loved one. That it’s not laziness or worthlessness, but a difference in brain chemistry that makes me the way I am.
This book does its very best to be positive about all this; to celebrate the differences present in the autism, ADHD, queer, and minority communities, but it’s all starting to feel... like fucking Sisyphus on the hill. You go through the motions, you attempt to be understood, you’re humiliated by missing a social cue, you say how you feel but it’s taken completely out of context, you cry, you isolate, and you wake up to either do it all over again or hide in bed all day. Those are the options: misinterpretation or isolation. That’s what life feels like, having masked all my life and now struggling through, like, a four-year-long burnout. This is what Cassandra must have felt like.
Anyway, I hate this book but it’s very informative, optimistic, and well-written/cited. Would totally recommend it to someone who was struggling with something similar. There are plenty of activities to do throughout that urge the reader to reflect on their own life and experiences while reading about the experiences of others in tandem. I felt intense jealousy for all these neurodiverse people in the pages getting their lives together and realized that my own success story could be on the other side of all the fear and depression I carry with me all the time if only I indulged in my hobbies honestly and often enough that I might find like minds or a routine that suited me. I’m not a very optimistic person, so this was a huge light bulb moment despite being a fairly obvious conclusion, but the fear still remains of being badly misconstrued by people who claim to love me or of being mocked for liking what I like.
I bought this book on my birthday in 2022 and it took me a whole year to really crack it open. The exercises in the book are worth going back to and reconsidering/rereading. I can't strain how much I would recommend this book, despite hating it and feeling so defeated and depressed after finishing it. Sometimes wake-up calls are like that, right?
This book does its very best to be positive about all this; to celebrate the differences present in the autism, ADHD, queer, and minority communities, but it’s all starting to feel... like fucking Sisyphus on the hill. You go through the motions, you attempt to be understood, you’re humiliated by missing a social cue, you say how you feel but it’s taken completely out of context, you cry, you isolate, and you wake up to either do it all over again or hide in bed all day. Those are the options: misinterpretation or isolation. That’s what life feels like, having masked all my life and now struggling through, like, a four-year-long burnout. This is what Cassandra must have felt like.
Anyway, I hate this book but it’s very informative, optimistic, and well-written/cited. Would totally recommend it to someone who was struggling with something similar. There are plenty of activities to do throughout that urge the reader to reflect on their own life and experiences while reading about the experiences of others in tandem. I felt intense jealousy for all these neurodiverse people in the pages getting their lives together and realized that my own success story could be on the other side of all the fear and depression I carry with me all the time if only I indulged in my hobbies honestly and often enough that I might find like minds or a routine that suited me. I’m not a very optimistic person, so this was a huge light bulb moment despite being a fairly obvious conclusion, but the fear still remains of being badly misconstrued by people who claim to love me or of being mocked for liking what I like.
I bought this book on my birthday in 2022 and it took me a whole year to really crack it open. The exercises in the book are worth going back to and reconsidering/rereading. I can't strain how much I would recommend this book, despite hating it and feeling so defeated and depressed after finishing it. Sometimes wake-up calls are like that, right?