Autistic Children: Poem Analysis

When most people hear the word “autism,” the next thing they think of how autistic people supposed struggle, how much of a burden autistic children are to their families, and other ideas relating to how so many people “suffer from autism.” The fact of the matter is no one suffers from autism. Rather, autistic people suffer when non-autistic people refuse to make an effort to understand them or try to force autistic people to go against their natural behaviors. Autism is not a debilitating disease that requires treatment or a magical cure. Autism is simply a different way of perceiving the world and should be treated as such: a part of one’s identity. Autistic people are portrayed and thought of as struggling, suffering, even being “taken away” by autism. A common symbol of autism is the puzzle piece. According to an autistic blogger, the puzzle piece was first introduced as part of the logo for the National Autistic Society in April 1963. (Autisticalex) The society decided the puzzle piece was a …show more content…
As an autistic person, my perception of the world is different from that of my autistic friend. A common issue among autistic people are sensory processing disorders, a condition in which certain sensories are painful or are not received properly in the person’s brain, but it still fluctuates between autistic individuals. My friend, for instance, is very sensitive to textures, such as that of pasta, tarp and tent material, and clothing fabrics, but has no problem with most of her other senses. I, on the other hand, am unable to stand in a room with bright lights for very long, artificial smells give me migraines, and many sounds translate into a grating pain in my ears, but I have no problem with any fabric textures. If someone trying to help “cure” either of us of these intolerances, they would only be causing damage and stress in the same way as they would trying to suppress a special