Today I’m BACK with my first long-format-video-essay in over a year. Due to how NeuroDivergent People’s struggles are often used to describe and define us (especially in medical contexts), our weaknesses too frequently overshadow our strengths. Patreon members, Facebook Supporters, and YouTube channel members had access to this video on Wed, Januar…

I am Autistic, PLUS (On Twitter, I typed this out as shorthand Autism+ because of character limitations, and we made jokes it sounded like a video streaming service, like Disney+). This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/05/10/when-i-said-theres-no-such-thing-as-severe-autism-most-people-missed-the-point/…

Often, rather than sorting through all the information required to make a choice. It is much simpler (in that moment) not to choose (which technically IS a choice), or go with a safe familiar option. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/05/08/autism-choices-why-making-decisions-is-hard-for-me-as-an-aut…

On Twitter, there was an interesting discussion I dropped in on recently talking about the medical model of Autism and how, technically (under the medical model), to be defined as an Autistic Person in a medical context, you must be someone whose Autistic traits “cause clinically significant impairment in social, occupational, or other important ar…

NeuroDivergent people’s differences are cognitive and invisible and impact how we interpret the world, process information, and interact with others. Our differences also impact our strengths and weaknesses, what tasks and environments will drain us, and what tasks and environments will invigorate us. This episode is also available as a blog post: …

Our individual brains’ combination of NeuroTypes (because people seldom have only one measurable brain difference) heavily influences our reality, including our experience of time (and space). This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/05/01/neurodivergence-time-hyperfocus-managing-time-hyperfocus-as-an-neur…

I’d been told to listen to these adults and do what they said, and they had said I was “bad,” and I believed them. Since I thought I was “bad,” I felt I deserved all the punishment (abuse) I received. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/28/abused-at-school-why-autistic-kids-may-not-speak-up-when-th…

These “disability hiring initiatives” often put those they’re supposed to serve on display, so organizations can look good by “offering jobs to people with disabilities,” but often leave us behind. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/27/the-future-is-inclusive-by-design-asking-businesses-and-organi…

This week two Substack Community Members have asked me to share advice on how to deal with “huge emotions” or “when emotions are just too big and overwhelming.” This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/24/autistic-people-and-huge-emotions-or-big-feelings-when-emotions-are-too-big-and-overwhelming/ --- S…

If Autistic People are determined “too vulnerable” to know what’s best for us in one area of our lives, what’s to stop them from applying this logic to other areas? This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/20/autistic-trans-adults-are-the-latest-target-of-anti-trans-legislation-but-all-autistics-are-in-…

There is a misconception that, because someone’s NeuroDivergence is identified in adulthood, they struggled less growing up than NeuroDivergent People diagnosed as children. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/18/self-identified-autistics-is-diagnosis-a-privilege-why-some-people-may-self-diagnose-w…

To onlookers it may have seemed that I was “acting more Autistic” since my diagnosis, but in reality I was done with the shame, hiding my Autistic traits, and done acting NeuroTypical. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/17/do-i-seem-more-autistic-to-you-now-why-many-autistics-stop-camouflaging-the…

Stimming is essential, helpful, and necessary, but I didn’t understand it for most of my life. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/14/autism-and-the-wonderful-world-of-autistic-stimming-what-is-autistic-stimming-and-why-do-autistic-people-stim/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.c…

What are three activities that drain you, and what are three activities that recharge or energize you? This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/11/autism-neurodivergence-and-energy-regulation-i-always-seem-to-be-too-much/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/neurodivergentre…

#ActuallyAutistic #AskingAutistics – do you have comfort movies, shows, or songs? This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/10/autistic-insistence-on-sameness-or-comfort-in-familiarity/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/neurodivergentrebel/support…

For me (and many late-identified Autistics), it’s not that the signs weren’t noticeable or didn’t hinder my life previously, but that many were overlooked, ignored, dismissed, or unrecognized. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/07/hints-signs-i-was-autistic-why-my-autism-was-missed-growing-up-2/ -…

Understanding Autism & Meltdowns: Meltdowns, elopements, shutdowns, and other types of overloads are MEDICAL EVENTS. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/05/meltdowns-elopements-shutdowns-and-sensory-overloads-oh-my/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/neurodivergentreb…

I believe the world is horrible for Autistic People we need to fix the world so Autistic People can be properly included. The world is inaccessible and cruel. Autistic People are NOT the problem. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/03/the-autism-problem-nonautistics-treat-autistic-people-like-were-…

Awareness can be helpful because it can point us at problems, helping to gain sympathy for causes that may be underserved. However, Autism and Autistic people ARE NOT a problem. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/02/autistic-wishes-for-world-autism-day-2023/ --- Support this podcast: https://podca…

Autistic People live Autistic lives year-round. We’re not here for “just a month” – we are ALWAYS Autistic every day. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/04/01/autism-month-autism-tourists-and-autistic-demonization-all-in-the-name-of-awareness/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/…

“You’re NOT Autistic! Late-onset Autism isn’t a thing!” She said, quickly shutting down any conversations about my late Autism diagnosis. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/03/31/late-autism-diagnosis-generational-trauma-when-loved-ones-dont-accept-that-you-are-autistic/ --- Support this podcast: htt…

Visibility is intentional defiance when people hate you and want you to make yourself small. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/03/31/international-transgender-day-of-visibility-visibility-is-defiance/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/neurodivergentrebel/support…

Despite what is represented in media, Autistic People don’t vanish at the age of 18, and we don’t become “less Autistic” as we age either. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/03/29/autism-doesnt-end-at-18-what-happens-when-autistic-adults-age/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/p…

I was almost 30 when I found out I was Autistic. The diagnosis, presented to me in the fall of 2016, became a guiding light in my life, illuminating and clearing confusion that I’d been living in. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/03/28/autism-isnt-something-i-take-with-me-it-is-me-i-am-autistic/ --…

Learning I’m Autistic, and making the choice to learn who the most authentic version of myself could be is the reason I discovered I’m nonbinary. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/03/27/neurodivergent-nonbinary-neuroqueering-neuroadventures/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/p…

Many Autistic People have co-occurring health conditions, in addition to Autism. I am no exception. When I became burned out, these conditions flared, leading to my diagnosis at the age of 29. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/03/24/autistic-burnout-saved-my-life-is-how-i-learned-that-im-autistic/ -…

The missing generation is Autistic/NeuroDivergent adults, typically growing up in the 1990’s (or earlier) who were missed, not discovered to be NeuroDivergent as children. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/03/22/the-missing-generations-of-autistic-people/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters…

Unfortunately, though I was excited to share this new, life-affirming information with others, MOST of the people in my life were NOT as enthusiastic, as my friend had been, when I attempted to share my Autism diagnosis with them. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/03/21/autism-understanding-rebirth-…

I’m Autistic, but I didn’t know this fact about myself for the first 29 years of my life. This not knowing had a huge, mostly negative, impact on my life. Finding out the truth about myself, a few months shy of my 30th birthday, was life changing to say the least. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/0…

David & Lyric Rivera talk about Autistic Differences – Food Sensitivities and Friendships This is Pt 8 (the final part) of the interview with David. Stay tuned for a NEW interview next week!!!! This episode is also available as a blog post with transcription on my website: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/02/22/askingautistics-david-lyric-river…

David answers: What’s hard and How do you stay so positive? This is Pt 7 of the interview with David. Stay tuned for pt 8 next week. This episode is available as a blog post on my website (with transcription and CC): https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/02/15/askingautistics-david-rivera-whats-hard-and-how-do-you-stay-so-positive/ --- Support this …

Patreon and other monetary subscribers had access to this video on January 10, 2023. The video’s public release will be February 8, 2023. This is Pt 6 of the interview with David. Stay tuned for pt 7 next week. This episode is available as a blog post with transcription and CC on my website: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/02/08/askingautistic…

Lyric and David answer: How is RV life different from non-RV life, for you, and possibly other ND folks? This is Pt 5 of the interview with David. Stay tuned for pt 6 next week. This podcast is available as a Blog with transcription and CC on my website: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/02/01/askingautistics-david-rivera-autism-neurodivergence-…

Lyric and David answer: “How do you maintain a healthy relationship while on the spectrum?” This podcast is also available in blog format (with transcription) on my website: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/01/25/askingautistics-david-rivera-maintaining-a-healthy-relationship-while-on-the-spectrum/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.s…

Lyric and David answer: How do you work through clashing NeuroDivergent traits? This podcast is also available in blog format (with transcription) on my website: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/01/18/askingautistics-interview-david-rivera-what-do-you-do-about-clashing-neurodivergent-traits/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.…

#AskingAutistics – What Gives You Sensory Euphoria and Relaxes you? This podcast is available as a blog post, with transcription on my website: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2023/01/11/askingautistics-interview-david-rivera-what-gives-you-sensory-euphoria-and-relaxes-you/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/neurodive…

I’ve been thinking about the direction. I want NeuroDivergent Rebel to go in the new year, and I’ve built up with the help of all of you, this platform that I think is really awesome, but I think it has the potential to be even more awesome. And as many of you know, the reason I started asking autistic is because I never want my voice to be the onl…

If you would have told me at the beginning of 2022, that by the end of the year I would be the author of a best-selling business ethics book (Workplace NeuroDiversity Rising) that would be praised in Forbes as “an excellent ‘how to manual’ based on lived experience and professional competence” I’m not sure I would have believed it. This episode is …

There are a lot of obstacles that Autistic and NeuroDivergent People face, from sensory challenges, communication challenges, and misunderstandings with NeuroTypical people, and sometimes even other Autistic and NeuroDivergent People. There’s also the challenge of not having people respect and understand the way you process information. With all of…

According to understood dot com: executive functioning is a set of mental skills that includes working memory, flexible thinking, and self-control. We use these skills every day to learn work and manage daily life. Trouble with executive functioning can make it hard to focus, follow directions, and handle emotions among other things. This episode i…

Something that we tend to agree upon, when talking about Autistic burnout, is that it is the result from having to force ourselves into a society that wasn’t designed to take our needs and considerations into account, whether that is our sensory processing differences, our differences in the ways our bodies move and the ways we communicate. This ep…

I, like many Autistic People, experience stomach issues and stomach distress. There are a multitude of reasons, and triggers, for my tummy troubles. Today I’m gonna share about my experience of being Autistic and having problems with my stomach, and digestion, and why I think so many Autistic People also struggle with this. This episode is also ava…

I feel my emotions very intensely, and because of that intense internal emotional experience, sometimes that results in me having a very intense outward emotional expression, that can be seen by other people around me. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2022/11/30/neurodivergent-emotional-differences-my-a…

First off, there are various types of energy a person can feel, or experience, in one’s body. There is emotional energy, when you get really excited, happy, angry, or scared, energy rises in your body… or if you are feeling down and depressed, you may have energy drained out of your body. Those are emotional energy fields. There is also sensory ene…

One of my main stims, since I’ve been a very, very, young Autistic Person, has been revolving around music: singing, humming, dancing, rhythmically making up lyrics to things- rhythmic stimming. A lot, throughout my entire life, has been stimming with music, which is literally one of the main reasons I picked the name Lyric, because music is such a…

Hi, my name is Lyric, and I am a late discovered, NeuroDivergent adult, meaning I’m Autistic, but I didn’t find out I was Autistic until I was 29, and the ADHD wasn’t diagnosed until I was in my mid-thirties. I went a large portion of my life, falsely, believing I was a NeuroTypical. Because I did not have the autism or ADHD labels for myself growi…

As I’ve said, I’m openly Autistic, and I’ve been openly Autistic since I started this blog, almost six years ago now. At this point I can’t “put the cat back in the bag”, so to speak. It’s now forever out on the internet. If you Google my name, you will find out that I am Autistic, ADHD, trans, and all of these other details, that I can no longer h…

I’m covering a reader question: “wondering if you could cover the topic of connecting with other people, and building friendships while on the spectrum.” Something else that’s incredibly important, for me, as an Autistic Person, and my relationships with other people, is: I need people in my life to be willing to accept me for the whole person, my …

As an Autistic Person, I find that my brain is constantly processing a lot of information on overdrive. I don’t tend to have filters that allow me to filter out distractions and background noise and other sensory things. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://neurodivergentrebel.com/2022/10/12/autism-sensory-overload-my-autistic-exp…

Some of the meanest, and cruelest, things that were done to me, as a young person, by other young people, were people tricking me into doing things, because I thought they were my friends, but really they were trying to trick me into doing things that would get me in trouble, or that would amuse them. When I was very young, I didn’t understand, yet…