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Slouching Toward Joy: My Best 6 Phases To An Actually Autistic Relief

johnnyprofane1
ArtfullyAutistic
Published in
8 min readMar 14, 2023
“Maybe I’m Autistic. And Just MayBE, I’m not,” original digital illustration by author. A Renaissance Harlequin jester in elaborate custume, three- pointedhat, and yellow teeth laughs in the foreground of a selfie. In the blurred background, a dark shadow of the same jester frowns.
“Maybe I’m Autistic. And Just MayBE, I’m not,” original digital illustration by author.

Hey, if you were just diagnosed autistic as an adult… or care about someone? Still on the fence yourself… maybe you’re autistic, maybe not?

You gotta wonder what’s going to happen next. So, let’s talk about it…

🚨Content note: brief mention of suicidality, profanity, opinionated…

I got diagnosed at 63. Old AND autistic… Talk about problems with change.

I went through 6 phases. But it was all one… long… surreal… roller coaster ride. Ups. Downs. Sideways…

Now, I’m an analytical, self-reflective kinda guy. So I took notes. Then organized them. I worked with the traditional “6 stages”… but more of a “Relief” than “Grief” model.

Poster: Headline “6 Phases of Autistic Joy.” 6 colorful panels, each with a cartoon figure of a human wearing a black fedora hat. Panel 1: “Disbelief. This isn’t me. This can’t be happening.” Panel 2: “Blame. I blame me. AND eveyone else.” Panel 3: “Arguing. Inside. Outside. More ‘autistic behaviors.’” Panel 4: “Shutdown. I give up. Shut down. Nobody cares.” Panel 5: “Accommodating. A tiny change. Then another… Then…” Panel 6: “Relief. Occasionally. Then more frequently…”
Original illustration by author. All creative commons rights reserved. Use for any non-commercial purpose.

The 6 Phases from My Late Diagnosis to Autistic Joy

  1. Disbelief. Waves of “That’s-Me-That’s-Not-Me.” A year or two.
    I needed reassurance. Read as much as I could. Some brief counseling ended my doubt. But it took a year or two.
  2. Blame. Myself. And everybody else in my life.
    I needed to be angry. I’d been living in a dream state…

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ArtfullyAutistic
ArtfullyAutistic

Published in ArtfullyAutistic

This Publication is for all who are Autistic and for those of our kind. It is for the Neurodivergent, for those on the Spectrum of all Gender Identities, the LGBTQ*, and all others who are justifiably non-conformant to Society’s harmful marginalization and Ableist views of us.

johnnyprofane1
johnnyprofane1

Written by johnnyprofane1

One Voice. Raw. Real. Fiercely Neurodivergent.

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