Stuff That Helps Me As An Autist

Adapting in an allistic world is tricky, but these sensory tools can help.

Photo by Christian Erfurt on Unsplash

In the early 2000’s, I bought a pair of pink-tinted glasses for a costume and was shocked at how it affected my wound-up mind, bringing some peace into that fluorescent-light Claires — I was still in a store, in a mall, so I was far more overwhelmed than I’d have admitted to anyone, but it was like my brain took a sigh of relief. I didn’t know I was autistic at the time, or even what sensory sensitivities are, but I knew I wanted to live with them on, always.

Of course, I was in high school, and feeling like I belonged in my friend-group was kinda core to my identity, so I ran this choice by them first, “Can I wear these all the time?,” and was met with a chorus of giggles. That meant no. But I busted ’em out in college again with new people and called them my “not-so-sober glasses,” they were acceptable at parties (but not every party). I tried sunglasses indoors as a still-undiagnosed still-insecure adult, and a friend asked me to take them off because I was embarrassing her. That last one was in 2007, and I wouldn’t know the joy of defending my eyes as needed until it was forced upon me with the increased sensitivities of autistic burnout and my resulting autism diagnosis in 2020.

If you’re reading this, you’re probably already aware of how sensory issues are related to being autistic, but just in case: autistic people experience the world in a literally different way, our senses (hearing, seeing, touch, taste, smell) being a part of that difference. We can be hyper-sensitive (overwhelmed with little stimulus), hypo-sensitive (need more stimulation), or, so fun — a confusing combination of the two. 😣

There are things, like the aforementioned colored glasses, that can be very helpful to adapting to the sensory world as an autist. (I’ve got some rose-tinted glasses helping me type at this very moment.) The stuff is going to be different depending on what your needs are, but it took a lot of trial-and-error to sort out what I needed so hopefully it’ll be helpful to folks with similar sensory profiles. Being autistic in an allistic world also often comes with a tight budget, and I’m no exception, so most of these items are under $30.

Eye Stuff

• Tinted glasses. As far as prescription tinted lenses go, I was afraid calm-making tints would be out of reach for me financially but I found some on Zenni for about $30 after shipping. I rely on these for screen use and at home, and hopefully, they’ll be enough for brightly light public spaces eventually but now I still need this next bullet outside of the house…
• Polarized sunglasses. They really do make a difference! Maybe you knew that already but I didn’t figure it out until ’21. Obviously they’re great for outdoors, that’s what they’re made for, but right now I still need them in places with overhead lighting (especially fluorescent) and/or lots of sunlight coming in. I was using them with a hat or visor for full overhead coverage but finally found curved ones that do the whole job on their own. FYI: They won’t work for most computer screens but are fine for phone use.
• Colored lights. Sometime in ’22 I discovered that a $10 thing of purple twinkle lights has the power to make my brain take a biiiiiig sigh of relief. I twisted them around a strand of white/traditional twinkle lights and use those during the day, then unplug them and switch to purple once it’s time for rest mode.

Ear Stuff

• Noise-cancelling headphones. This is another one I had a lot of doubts about for the cost, but after having countless meltdowns during COVID lockdown I spent my rent money on a pair of higher-end sound-cancelling headphones and they may have literally saved my life. I’ve heard that many of the $50-$60 brands are nearly as good but can’t personally verify as I haven’t tried them. I’m very interested to know if anyone has found great hard-to-lose sound-cancelling earbuds — suggestions are welcome in the comments!
  - 3/4/24 Update: I got a pair of Soundcore Life Q20’s nine months ago and I like them *better* than the wayyy more expensive Sony’s!
• So. Many. Playlists. I’ve got a playlist for basically every activity/mood, it’s like it helps fuel my brain, giving it a little executive functioning aid, as long as it’s the right music. Lofi rules my productivity, I love lofi music so freakin’ much. I’ve also got playlists for being mellow, getting pumped, cheering myself up, hanging out, working out, sleepy time, and keeping calm in traffic or while dancing/painting/loving. (I don’t know why that last list hits all those needs, but whatever works, right?)
• Earplugs. I use traditional earplugs for sleeping. (Along with my sleeping playlist, naturally.)
• More earplugs. I also discovered soft moldable swimming earplugs and put them over foam ones when I’m trying to sleep but the world is being too loud (specifically a motorcycler neighbor that likes to flex his motor at 7am 🙄) — if you do this, be careful to ensure you aren’t pushing the traditional earplug further down, use it like a lid to seal the sides.
• One last kind of earplug. A friend bought me a pair of Loops, which help filter out background noise while trying to have an in-person conversation. For me, it still needs to be fairly quiet or I need the sound-canceling headphones with no music on, but I keep them with me as an option.

Tactile Stuff

• Thinking putty. This stuff goes by lots of names, it was called silly putty when I was a kid, but there are all kinds of different versions now — it’s a soft moldable putty that helps me with long waits, it can garner annoying looks from strangers, but you gotta do what you gotta do.
• Stimmy jewelry. As much as I’d like to not care about annoying looks from strangers, I often do nonetheless, so I needed a more subtle way to stim it out as well — a medium-length necklace with textured charms hits the spot and is easy to find (or make) affordably.
• Soft and comfy stuff. I’ve never thought highly of the motto society tries to force on us, “beauty is pain,” but now that I know why I have such a hard time with clothing choices my peers find to be just fine I take my needs more seriously. Nothing uncomfy is my strict policy. This applies even in public, if I need to wear my favorite cozy pj pants to get through a dentist appointment, then I shall. I also surround myself with soft blankets, cozy hoodies, my soft lil’ pup (Foxy Queen), velvet pillow covers for couch cozy, etc. The things we wear and surround ourselves with will directly impact our ability to regulate our nervous systems — choose wisely.

Taste Stuff

• Know your “samefood,” and keep it on hand for times when you need to eat but due to problems with interoception you forgot and now you’re so hungry you’re nauseous and all food sounds gross — except for…that’s your samefood. (When deep in autistic burnout we may only be able to eat our samefood.) For me, it’s rice noodle soup with very little seasoning or stovetop popcorn, not a lot of nutrients, but it’s often the gateway to getting my veggies down later.

Smell Stuff

• Carryable good smells. I keep a little chapstick-looking thing of solid magnolia perfume in my purse (~$8, Etsy) to smell after an encounter of the bad-cologne variety. A friend also got me a lavender essential oil that actually helps calm my nerves and distracts my mind when I start to get overwhelmed.
• Face mask. I’m COVID high-risk so generally still wear a mask anyways, but I’ve noticed they help reduce the impact of unwanted smells as well. Score.