The point at which you expressed that you can’t eat under stressful situations and prefer eating comfortably to the point that you avoid eating really resonated with me! It’s so nice hearing that someone has similar experiences. Thank you for sharing 🤗
Omg, Girl...im 39 years old...not diagnosed, and I relate so much to EVERY single aspect that u describe in this 3rd part. The not memorising names, the disordered eating habits (i do the same with my burgers, fries and coke...), the eating alone thing in my sofa watching something I like, the exagerrated facial and even body expressions. Its such a relief to feel less weird, less lonely, less misunderstood. I also enjoy the things i do enjoy so much more than the neurotypical person, frankly to a childlike "glee" degree, where I can act like a little girl, even sometimes when I see someone i really like, Can you please share your experience with intimate relationships...cause I think its part of autism to not be understood by your partner(s). Frankly ive given up on being loved for who i am and i always give too much and receive too little, but also i tend to walk away very quickly and suddenly when things dont work out?
I can’t explain how relieved I am that you mentioned the exaggerated facial expressions!!! This is a quality I’ve always noticed in myself and questioned why I did it while others didn’t, and this is the first time someone has mentioned it. I’m currently suspecting ASD but haven’t gone through the diagnosis process yet. Thank you so much for your videos, been understanding so much about myself through you sharing about your experience 🥲💗
I tend to travel alone and I constantly get asked “are you ok?”. Other times I get asked why am I angry when I’m actually just zoning out. At company events, I get asked why I don’t look happy. I generally don’t have much facial expressions or half the time, the facial expression does not align with my emotions. I also have Alexithymia and I actually need other people to point out my emotions to me.
i relate to this! im often flat toned and people always think im angry or upset, but im actually either just chilling or genuinely enjoying myself! snd then i get self conscious for not looking i should, and it takes more out of me to make sure my facial expression aligns with the context….
The verbal instructions part was very interesting, i related to it so much. I actually realized that i cannot process verbal instructions but i am terrible giving them too. Few days ago some one stopped me on the street and asked where the post office is. I have lived in this area for 4 years now, and i knew very well where the post office was but i just couldnt give him any instructions. I realized i dont remember any street names (except my own address) here. lol
Your visual clues on directions are interesting. I have the same thing. Street names are meaningless, but things to look out for are not. I go hiking a lot, often through the bush with no tracks or markers, and I can formulate the mountains in my mind based off a topographical map that I've studied so that when I'm there it feels familiar to me and I know exactly where to go. I've only gotten lost hiking before (twice) when the sun has set and I cannot see the visual cues of mountains ahead (this also works with auditory cues such as streams and rivers which alternatively are very helpful at night). In comparison, in a built up area, city or houses, I get lost all the time. My partner doesn't understand it at all. After living in the same house for 5 years I still point in the wrong direction when I'm referring to something nearby (the shops, the lake, the park), but in the bush it's always deadly accurate.
Regarding food on the plate etc, I have to eat everything separately. I can't be mixing my food. Every time, and people will always comment on it like it's a bad thing, that I'm missing out on the flavours together, combined. I however want to (or need to) experience the flavours individually so that I can taste each thing properly. I guess it's an taste desensitivity.
Thank you for talking about the eye movement/eye contact thing. I’m not diagnosed (am diagnosed ADHD tho) but more and more of the ASD symptoms that I was sure did not apply to me turn out to apply to me when they are explained in a more nuanced way. I can make eye contact in simple/surface conversions but I definitely look away and my eyes dart around if the topic is complex. I am waiting for someone to do a more nuanced look at ‘lining up toys instead of playing with them’ because I didn’t line them up as a kid but I probably interacted with them in weird ways that I would remember if someone listed a bunch of them. ADHD means my long term memory is junk ; )
The verbal processing is so hard for me too. I just started a job a month ago and its a short term contract in a customer service related field. I cant remember ANY clients names and im hoping i ll last until the end because i struggle and im scared they will fire me over this.. i have to take notes or else i ll forget in one second
Yes I'm the same with verbal processing, if someone gives me multiple instructions it's going to be very difficult for me to keep them all stored and execute them. Somebody giving driving directions is the worst, I will never b able to remember it
When I am processing information, I cannot maintain eye contact. I would stare at the ceiling, wall etc and often people think I’m not interested in the topic.
ive had multiple teachers and professors throughout my life comment on my exaggerated facial expressions - one told me i could publish a picture book of my different expressions! so i totally relate to your first point. for some reason though, it has only been teacher figures and family that have commented on this, while none of my friends have said anything rly. anyways, thank you for sharing this, it's really interesting (and somewhat comforting?) to know that other autistic people also do this! also i love this series in general! if i had exposure to your videos as a resource earlier this year i would have been so much more confident when i was looking into an asd evaluation. keep doing what you're doing! :)
wow this sounds like me so much it's kinda crazy and i have been diagnosed with all the same things but autism it's insane and i really think this is what i needed to hear and watch from someone with autism to go through with finding out if i really do have autism and maybe that might be a big help and step to understanding and helping myself and others understanding me i will try to update if i find out my answer to my question
Yooooooooo, My eyes look like that when I’m having a conversation. I have to force eye contact, it’s something I learned over time to do to fake confidence / work in an office. I hate it though, it makes me so uncomfortable. Wow, I can’t comprehend directions / instructions / names either. I thought I was just a bit slow lol. I get super frustrated. i’m also a visual person 😩 Omg, I hate watching shows because I can’t follow story lines / remember characters 😭 I’ve watched enough of ASD/ADHD videos to realise that I probably have it. I need to go a psychiatrist though… 😩
I relate heavy to the eye movements especially while having intense conversations that require a lot of thinking. I’m a hairdresser and I notice I can make eye contact but I can’t go from looking at the back of their head to their eyes in the mirror it freaks me out and distracts me from being able to actually do what I’m doing:.. lol
Thank you Irene! I could see myself and my tendencies in almost every trait you talked about. It was so refreshing, and I feel like someone else out there gets it. Often I think that maybe I am being too picky, or difficult. But I just don’t process things the way others around me do and you continue to show others that that is more than ok. Thank you for showing your differences. 🌻🌱💕
Moving your eyes around while you're thinking isn't normal? What?? I would just interpret that as you being deep in thought. Everyone I know does this when they're thinking hard, especially while trying to explan something.
Thanks to your videos and the first video in this series, I was just diagnosed with Autism in August. Thank you so much for sharing. I’ve been a heavy cannabis smoker for the last 9 years and thought it would be an interesting video if you had any thoughts about cannabis use, Autism, and mental health.
That would be so interesting! I am waiting on my asd diagnosis results and would love to know what others have experienced with cannabis as I use it medically as well for about 2 years now.
Also I need to SEE the food, I can't eat in dimly lit rooms xD and everything about stress non-eating you mentioned. And most everything else you mentioned :O😮
Watching your series on autism traits really has made me realize these traits I’ve displayed literally since I was a kid. These are all things I’ve been made fun for a lot of life. I’m still on the journey of getting diagnosed but it’s just reassuring that I’m not the only one experiencing this.
Whenever I look at photos where I’m with other people I’m smiling way too hard and I’m always looking back thinking like hmm that’s not how I smile what’s wrong with me? Hearing you explain the exaggerated facial expressions makes so much sense. I had a coworker tell me “you make the funniest faces!” and I didn’t understand what she meant, I’m just doing my job how is my face funny?
Every single bite I take is always balanced with every ingredient in my meal. I never end up with not enough fries 😂 I also keep the best looking balanced bites for last
I realized my extreme difficulty in remembering names when I tried to play soccer in high school. I was expected to memorize every player's name so I could call out their name then pass the ball to them. No matter what tips and strategies I tried to use, I just couldn't memorize their names (it didn't help that I was playing with students a grade lower than mine, so I hadn't grown up with them and had years to learn their names).
NO WAY. Before taking the last bite, there ALWAYS is still a perfectly sized little bit of everything on my plate. I never knew this could be related to autism in some way
Hey, just into the first couple mins of ur vid, but does anyone else do this? I'm not formally diagnosed with autism but I have suspected for a few years now, so I was just wondering if this was weird or common amongst other autistic people. Basically, when I'm eating a sandwich, I do this very uhh 'ordered' ig u could say, thing, where I have to eat in a certain way that I do Every Single Time. Admittedly, it feels off to not do this routine of mine, but I apologize in advance for the unnecessarily longwined description of my process of eating a darn sandwich (prob poorly worded, idk how to explain it well enough). I start with the crust first, biting in the middle for the first bite cuz the first bite has to be good and perfect, then I go to the sides and make my way around until it's bitten into an even square and there is no crust left and I can have a satisfying and clean last few bites... It's a lil more convoluted than how I said it here, but that's the basic gist of it, so I hope y'all get the idea! Is this, like, a sign I should look into? I have other 'weird' habits that I do as well. Like counting the steps every time I go up or down them (I used to do this waaayyyy more when I was younger, like I felt I Had to count em cuz I needed to know how many there were n if they split in my weird division system) and there r other things along those lines too. Oh wait I just noticed how long this got, sorry for the word vomit lol I'll stop rambling now :^)
try to ,look at someones face and talk at the same time, or listen intently, I can't listen to the story, process it and look at the face with all the details moving, processing it at the same time, its impossible.
I can completely relate with exaggerated facial expressions in photos. I almost wish I could share a few of these ridiculous photos but a find a part of it very endearing. I was trying to fit in as well or whatever my idealized version of normal or fitting in was. Ironic that my portrayal of normalcy was a caricature
18:13 Leave food leftover is truly an ASD trait. I remember my brother didn't drink his baby milk and throw it faw away. And when he became young teenager, he would always leave 1 to 3 spoons of food over. My family member had to put them in his mouth to force him to eat the last few spoons. 🤣
Ha ha ! Me too, I need to have all of the ingredients of the plate in each bite !! .. Well I can be a little more flexible now, but as a child, I used to cut everything in small pieces and mix them all together so that every bite could be the same !
my coworkers call my exaggerated expressions "mugging for the camera" because I make sure to be really active facially during zoom meetings since i got criticized a lot as a child for "frowning all the time" which was just my resting face. i'm curious, have you tried putting your fries on your burger instead of taking a bite and then eating a couple of fries? i'm not suggesting that as a possible "solution," i just would like to hear if you've tried that and how you felt about that tactic.
Oh my gosh Irene, I'm really enjoying this series on autism traits! I can relate SO intensely to almost everything that you mentioned. I appreciate how articulate you are in explaining all the nuances! I've never, ever talked to anyone about the specifics of the way my mind works, so I don't really have the words for it (yet). But you describe it so perfectly! Wow, the food thing! As a backstory, I struggled with anorexia for many years in my late 20s and into my early 40s. Thankfully, I am in recovery for around 18 years now. I wonder if there's any correlation between eating disorders and autism? BUT, even though I have no desire or compulsion to starve myself anymore, I still have a lot of very specific behaviors with food. I eat pretty much the same things every day, and I have for years. Not exactly the same, I switch up the types of veggies and protein, but the format of my meals is always consistently the same. It brings me comfort, and I enjoy it! I don't really like going out to eat either, because I don't get the same enjoyment of the food when it's not the same as what I usually eat. I also have very specific ways that I eat my food. It all has to do with arranging each bite in a certain way on the spoon, and the way I chew it. I also have to have a little bit of each thing in each bite, and the last bite can't be only one item. It has to be a combination of everything. I also have been aware for many years that I have OCD, so I don't know if my eating behaviors have more to do with that, or with my (as yet) undiagnosed autism. Pretty much everything I do is done very specifically and methodically, not only with food, but with EVERYTHING! 🤣I've always wondered why I am so specific and particular about every single thing that I do, and what I like or don't like. It all has to do with how it makes me feel. I never do anything just randomly, everything is done in a certain way. I feel like since I discovered your channel last week, Irene, I am understanding myself in a whole new way!
#1 - lol I feel like you can probably tell by how I write how much I exaggerate with my facial expressions 😂 … I’ve had people comment about my exaggerated facial expressions a lot, especially when I was on IG/RUclips making videos 🥹 .. and ughh, taking pictures especially w other people, causes me so much anxiety bc I don’t know what to do. & the social anxiety part about even if you know the person well 😭 Omg!! #2 - I’ve had 2 people point this out in me this year 🥺 I would’ve never known this about myself 🤍 #3 - when I was younger my dad told me to take out the trash, and I didn’t understand, Like take out? So I asked “do you want me to take it out to the garage or outside”, and he was like “cher! Take it tie, take it outside, and put it in the trash bin!” … now I realize why I didn’t understand. 🥺 & yessss to the names part!!! 100%!!! Lmao I’ve definitely asked to see a picture so many times bc I’m like who?! 😂 4 - this is huge for me so it’s so refreshing to hear this 😭 .. when I eat chicken & rice, I have to have a piece of chicken with a certain amount of rice with each bite. And omg the burger & fries thing where you can’t eat the burger alone, you have to get more fries - I DO THIS WITH ANY FOODS that you eat together!!! 😆 I would’ve neverrrr known this was why 😆 … also the part where if you can’t have what you want, you avoid it all together. I didn’t realize this is why I don’t eat when I’m out & prefer to wait until I get home 😭 it’s bc I’m not comfortable! 😭 Omg. Eating & stomach issues has been one of my hardest things to deal with my whole life 😭 now I know how I can help it 🥺🙏🏽❤️ and YESSSSS 😭 about enjoying the things you enjoy more than neurotypical ppl!! As always thank you so much for helping me innerstand myself & why I do the things I do 🥹🙏🏽💖 Xx
one thing i noticed about myself is I always when drinking something, leave an inch of liquid in the bottom of the cup, but i only do it if I don't use a straw because when I drink with a straw I always have to get to the bottom because of that noise the straw makes when the air goes through it. Everytime I notice the inch of liquid left over in my cups I gulp it down in frustration because it feels like I'm wasting so much of my favorite drinks lol I don't think i have autism or ocd but your thing you said about matching your food bites was too relatable in that way. it always feels like im fighting myself too when finishing that last bit of my drinks, but its not strong enough to overpower the will to finish it. its weird.
People have seen my eyes move back and forth since I was a kid. A family friend brought it up to me once like it was a problem. I have even noticed my eyes doing that when I look down at times and wondered if I had a condition. My optometrist had to reassure me that my eyes were okay.
Life changing dx at 59 .... the flat affect probably fits with me as i was/am often told i am miserable, angry, scary, intimidating, resting bitchcface etc. Its anxiety provoking trying to make the face/body right. I find i can't participate/process if i'm worried about how i'm presenting. Its one or the other 😂
The part about the exaggerated facial expressions makes me think of a strange habit I have, that every time I go to the bathroom, I can't help it, I have to watch myself in the mirror and do exaggerated faces, like a hyper-''smile'' that doesn't look like anyone would normally smile.. I don't understand exactly why I do that. Maybe it's because my facial muscle need stretching but I can only do that in the bathroom, where nobody can see those socially unacceptable faces? But why do I need so much to look in the mirror to do it? Is it because it makes me to anxious to not know what I look like? but why?
Awww I do the same thing when I'm happy with my food. I'm still particular with what I eat but not nearly as much as when I was a kid. When I was a child and liked something I was eating, I would always physically show how much I liked it, and my dad would then say, "Mikey likes it." I guess that was based on a commercial? lol but I still physically move around when I'm really enjoying my food :)
Oh my god. I relate to you in so many ways holy shit. Ive watched all three of these and i cant believe it. I keep looking at my phone (you are background noise) and going whaaaat me too!!!
I don't understand how I can relate to this so much. That's crazy. I usually leave a tiny bit on my plate, always. I just can't finish it even if its just a third of a bite sometimes
I also very strongly suspect ADHD and Autism for me combined with the OCD. You put my experiences into words so perfectly, thank you so so much for your videos🙌🏻 Sending lots of love❤
Omg i also do the eye contact thing. I kept forcing myself to look at a classmate when they were talling about technical stuff but i didnt understand a thing. I noticed that i speak better and understand the person more if i look to the side and let my eyes move back and forth and then make some eye contact .
Just now making my way through your videos the rapid eye-movement OK like number one on this check for me number two check for me and when I’m in sensory overwhelm the ability to look at someone and process what they’re saying becomes almost impossible for me to process what they are saying and that’s one of the signs that my system is about to tilt into overwhelm meltdown is if I don’t honor that sign or symptom is that I am maxing out In a sensory overwhelm. And some people perceive this as that you’re not paying attention and will call you out on it especially in the school setting and then that increases the demand and then the anxiety and then there’s no processing of what they’re saying at all. 😢 OK just getting into number three and man you are nailing this so hard to the tree. I can’t see mental pics so then I’m doubly challenged on the verbal learning aspect so I really need the narrative storyline to retain anything so I would need a narrative story about every marker in the directions to retain it😅😅. And when my daughter is talking about her friends and just giving me their names yes what you describe it’s so challenging I need to know something about them in a way something that happened in the past with them like their name has zero meaning to me, Give me something more to figure this thing out. And when you combine the inability to remember names and then the inability to do mental pics to remember faces it is very socially awkward very. I used to always leave a fourth of my food this is absolutely hilarious and my mom is very specific about this food has to go with that and it has to be made a certain way you can’t have this item without that item and if all of these things are not present then it’s not right. Lol. And distracted eating the eating with the video is so critical to developing a healthy eater and an autistic person because if there are environmental challenges then they just will be no eating or there will be developed allergies and aversions and sensory overwhelmed to those items and that’s a problem. The brain will associate the fight flight freeze response to the food and then develop an allergen and then you can eventually eat nothing so eating in a safe zone or watch some thing fun happy distracted eating like watching a video or a happy show happy happy happy happy eating is so critical!!!! Are you simply end up eventually not being able to eat anything at all.😢
The point at which you expressed that you can’t eat under stressful situations and prefer eating comfortably to the point that you avoid eating really resonated with me! It’s so nice hearing that someone has similar experiences. Thank you for sharing 🤗
Omg, Girl...im 39 years old...not diagnosed, and I relate so much to EVERY single aspect that u describe in this 3rd part. The not memorising names, the disordered eating habits (i do the same with my burgers, fries and coke...), the eating alone thing in my sofa watching something I like, the exagerrated facial and even body expressions. Its such a relief to feel less weird, less lonely, less misunderstood. I also enjoy the things i do enjoy so much more than the neurotypical person, frankly to a childlike "glee" degree, where I can act like a little girl, even sometimes when I see someone i really like,
Can you please share your experience with intimate relationships...cause I think its part of autism to not be understood by your partner(s). Frankly ive given up on being loved for who i am and i always give too much and receive too little, but also i tend to walk away very quickly and suddenly when things dont work out?
Omg! I restrict my eating when stressed, too! I wait to eat until I'm comfortable.
I can’t explain how relieved I am that you mentioned the exaggerated facial expressions!!! This is a quality I’ve always noticed in myself and questioned why I did it while others didn’t, and this is the first time someone has mentioned it. I’m currently suspecting ASD but haven’t gone through the diagnosis process yet.
Thank you so much for your videos, been understanding so much about myself through you sharing about your experience 🥲💗
I’m the same way with needing a bit of everything in each bite, and it has to be in an even way so that each bite has the same ratio of each thing.
I also have this same thing haha. People always question me when I leave just a bite of some random food only because it's out of the proper ratio.
Omg- I thought that was my comment because I explain it as every bite needing the same ratio, too!!
I tend to travel alone and I constantly get asked “are you ok?”. Other times I get asked why am I angry when I’m actually just zoning out. At company events, I get asked why I don’t look happy. I generally don’t have much facial expressions or half the time, the facial expression does not align with my emotions. I also have Alexithymia and I actually need other people to point out my emotions to me.
i relate to this! im often flat toned and people always think im angry or upset, but im actually either just chilling or genuinely enjoying myself! snd then i get self conscious for not looking i should, and it takes more out of me to make sure my facial expression aligns with the context….
The verbal instructions part was very interesting, i related to it so much. I actually realized that i cannot process verbal instructions but i am terrible giving them too. Few days ago some one stopped me on the street and asked where the post office is. I have lived in this area for 4 years now, and i knew very well where the post office was but i just couldnt give him any instructions. I realized i dont remember any street names (except my own address) here. lol
Your visual clues on directions are interesting. I have the same thing. Street names are meaningless, but things to look out for are not. I go hiking a lot, often through the bush with no tracks or markers, and I can formulate the mountains in my mind based off a topographical map that I've studied so that when I'm there it feels familiar to me and I know exactly where to go. I've only gotten lost hiking before (twice) when the sun has set and I cannot see the visual cues of mountains ahead (this also works with auditory cues such as streams and rivers which alternatively are very helpful at night). In comparison, in a built up area, city or houses, I get lost all the time. My partner doesn't understand it at all. After living in the same house for 5 years I still point in the wrong direction when I'm referring to something nearby (the shops, the lake, the park), but in the bush it's always deadly accurate.
Regarding food on the plate etc, I have to eat everything separately. I can't be mixing my food. Every time, and people will always comment on it like it's a bad thing, that I'm missing out on the flavours together, combined. I however want to (or need to) experience the flavours individually so that I can taste each thing properly. I guess it's an taste desensitivity.
Thank you for talking about the eye movement/eye contact thing. I’m not diagnosed (am diagnosed ADHD tho) but more and more of the ASD symptoms that I was sure did not apply to me turn out to apply to me when they are explained in a more nuanced way. I can make eye contact in simple/surface conversions but I definitely look away and my eyes dart around if the topic is complex.
I am waiting for someone to do a more nuanced look at ‘lining up toys instead of playing with them’ because I didn’t line them up as a kid but I probably interacted with them in weird ways that I would remember if someone listed a bunch of them. ADHD means my long term memory is junk ; )
The verbal processing is so hard for me too. I just started a job a month ago and its a short term contract in a customer service related field. I cant remember ANY clients names and im hoping i ll last until the end because i struggle and im scared they will fire me over this.. i have to take notes or else i ll forget in one second
Anyway you explained this trait so well i relate to most things but this is the strongest trait …and weakness, for me.
Yes I'm the same with verbal processing, if someone gives me multiple instructions it's going to be very difficult for me to keep them all stored and execute them. Somebody giving driving directions is the worst, I will never b able to remember it
When I am processing information, I cannot maintain eye contact. I would stare at the ceiling, wall etc and often people think I’m not interested in the topic.
ive had multiple teachers and professors throughout my life comment on my exaggerated facial expressions - one told me i could publish a picture book of my different expressions! so i totally relate to your first point. for some reason though, it has only been teacher figures and family that have commented on this, while none of my friends have said anything rly. anyways, thank you for sharing this, it's really interesting (and somewhat comforting?) to know that other autistic people also do this! also i love this series in general! if i had exposure to your videos as a resource earlier this year i would have been so much more confident when i was looking into an asd evaluation. keep doing what you're doing! :)
wow this sounds like me so much it's kinda crazy and i have been diagnosed with all the same things but autism it's insane and i really think this is what i needed to hear and watch from someone with autism to go through with finding out if i really do have autism and maybe that might be a big help and step to understanding and helping myself and others understanding me
i will try to update if i find out my answer to my question
Yooooooooo,
My eyes look like that when I’m having a conversation. I have to force eye contact, it’s something I learned over time to do to fake confidence / work in an office. I hate it though, it makes me so uncomfortable.
Wow, I can’t comprehend directions / instructions / names either. I thought I was just a bit slow lol. I get super frustrated. i’m also a visual person 😩
Omg, I hate watching shows because I can’t follow story lines / remember characters 😭
I’ve watched enough of ASD/ADHD videos to realise that I probably have it. I need to go a psychiatrist though… 😩
I relate heavy to the eye movements especially while having intense conversations that require a lot of thinking. I’m a hairdresser and I notice I can make eye contact but I can’t go from looking at the back of their head to their eyes in the mirror it freaks me out and distracts me from being able to actually do what I’m doing:.. lol
Yes I definitely do this too, if the conversation makes me think too much I will have to look away
Thank you Irene! I could see myself and my tendencies in almost every trait you talked about. It was so refreshing, and I feel like someone else out there gets it. Often I think that maybe I am being too picky, or difficult. But I just don’t process things the way others around me do and you continue to show others that that is more than ok. Thank you for showing your differences. 🌻🌱💕
🥹🫶
Auditory processing disorder is why u struggle with verbal directions
Moving your eyes around while you're thinking isn't normal? What?? I would just interpret that as you being deep in thought. Everyone I know does this when they're thinking hard, especially while trying to explan something.
Thanks to your videos and the first video in this series, I was just diagnosed with Autism in August. Thank you so much for sharing. I’ve been a heavy cannabis smoker for the last 9 years and thought it would be an interesting video if you had any thoughts about cannabis use, Autism, and mental health.
I was just thinking about this today!! Cause cannabis helps me so much with anxiety, sleep, and eating. I think I’m definitely going to make a video.
Would also appreciate a video on that as well!
That would be so interesting! I am waiting on my asd diagnosis results and would love to know what others have experienced with cannabis as I use it medically as well for about 2 years now.
Oh no, for me, the food MUST NOT be mixed, but the fork/spoon must contain everything when I take it to my mouth xD
Also, I know you put it in the video because it's your stim, but the sounds in the background are maddening to me xD
Also I need to SEE the food, I can't eat in dimly lit rooms xD and everything about stress non-eating you mentioned. And most everything else you mentioned :O😮
Dude! I thought I was the only one who has to have a bite of everything at once 😮
I DO THE SAME WITH FOOD 😁😁😁😁😁
Watching your series on autism traits really has made me realize these traits I’ve displayed literally since I was a kid. These are all things I’ve been made fun for a lot of life. I’m still on the journey of getting diagnosed but it’s just reassuring that I’m not the only one experiencing this.
Whenever I look at photos where I’m with other people I’m smiling way too hard and I’m always looking back thinking like hmm that’s not how I smile what’s wrong with me? Hearing you explain the exaggerated facial expressions makes so much sense. I had a coworker tell me “you make the funniest faces!” and I didn’t understand what she meant, I’m just doing my job how is my face funny?
Every single bite I take is always balanced with every ingredient in my meal. I never end up with not enough fries 😂 I also keep the best looking balanced bites for last
I realized my extreme difficulty in remembering names when I tried to play soccer in high school. I was expected to memorize every player's name so I could call out their name then pass the ball to them. No matter what tips and strategies I tried to use, I just couldn't memorize their names (it didn't help that I was playing with students a grade lower than mine, so I hadn't grown up with them and had years to learn their names).
NO WAY. Before taking the last bite, there ALWAYS is still a perfectly sized little bit of everything on my plate. I never knew this could be related to autism in some way
Hey, just into the first couple mins of ur vid, but does anyone else do this? I'm not formally diagnosed with autism but I have suspected for a few years now, so I was just wondering if this was weird or common amongst other autistic people. Basically, when I'm eating a sandwich, I do this very uhh 'ordered' ig u could say, thing, where I have to eat in a certain way that I do Every Single Time. Admittedly, it feels off to not do this routine of mine, but I apologize in advance for the unnecessarily longwined description of my process of eating a darn sandwich (prob poorly worded, idk how to explain it well enough). I start with the crust first, biting in the middle for the first bite cuz the first bite has to be good and perfect, then I go to the sides and make my way around until it's bitten into an even square and there is no crust left and I can have a satisfying and clean last few bites... It's a lil more convoluted than how I said it here, but that's the basic gist of it, so I hope y'all get the idea! Is this, like, a sign I should look into? I have other 'weird' habits that I do as well. Like counting the steps every time I go up or down them (I used to do this waaayyyy more when I was younger, like I felt I Had to count em cuz I needed to know how many there were n if they split in my weird division system) and there r other things along those lines too. Oh wait I just noticed how long this got, sorry for the word vomit lol I'll stop rambling now :^)
try to ,look at someones face and talk at the same time, or listen intently, I can't listen to the story, process it and look at the face with all the details moving, processing it at the same time, its impossible.
I can completely relate with exaggerated facial expressions in photos. I almost wish I could share a few of these ridiculous photos but a find a part of it very endearing. I was trying to fit in as well or whatever my idealized version of normal or fitting in was. Ironic that my portrayal of normalcy was a caricature
18:13 Leave food leftover is truly an ASD trait. I remember my brother didn't drink his baby milk and throw it faw away. And when he became young teenager, he would always leave 1 to 3 spoons of food over. My family member had to put them in his mouth to force him to eat the last few spoons. 🤣
the only way I can remember names is by associating the name with something that rhymes with the name
Omg! I am EXACTLY the same way with food! Exactly! And I’m 54! I’ve been like this my entire life and no one ever gets it!
Ha ha ! Me too, I need to have all of the ingredients of the plate in each bite !! .. Well I can be a little more flexible now, but as a child, I used to cut everything in small pieces and mix them all together so that every bite could be the same !
Definitely a visual thinker.
my coworkers call my exaggerated expressions "mugging for the camera" because I make sure to be really active facially during zoom meetings since i got criticized a lot as a child for "frowning all the time" which was just my resting face.
i'm curious, have you tried putting your fries on your burger instead of taking a bite and then eating a couple of fries? i'm not suggesting that as a possible "solution," i just would like to hear if you've tried that and how you felt about that tactic.
I do that leaving a few bites in the fridge
Oh my gosh Irene, I'm really enjoying this series on autism traits! I can relate SO intensely to almost everything that you mentioned. I appreciate how articulate you are in explaining all the nuances! I've never, ever talked to anyone about the specifics of the way my mind works, so I don't really have the words for it (yet). But you describe it so perfectly!
Wow, the food thing! As a backstory, I struggled with anorexia for many years in my late 20s and into my early 40s. Thankfully, I am in recovery for around 18 years now. I wonder if there's any correlation between eating disorders and autism?
BUT, even though I have no desire or compulsion to starve myself anymore, I still have a lot of very specific behaviors with food. I eat pretty much the same things every day, and I have for years. Not exactly the same, I switch up the types of veggies and protein, but the format of my meals is always consistently the same. It brings me comfort, and I enjoy it! I don't really like going out to eat either, because I don't get the same enjoyment of the food when it's not the same as what I usually eat.
I also have very specific ways that I eat my food. It all has to do with arranging each bite in a certain way on the spoon, and the way I chew it. I also have to have a little bit of each thing in each bite, and the last bite can't be only one item. It has to be a combination of everything. I also have been aware for many years that I have OCD, so I don't know if my eating behaviors have more to do with that, or with my (as yet) undiagnosed autism.
Pretty much everything I do is done very specifically and methodically, not only with food, but with EVERYTHING! 🤣I've always wondered why I am so specific and particular about every single thing that I do, and what I like or don't like. It all has to do with how it makes me feel. I never do anything just randomly, everything is done in a certain way.
I feel like since I discovered your channel last week, Irene, I am understanding myself in a whole new way!
So relatable! Thank you 💗
I relate to this so much. I’m not diagnosed but I’m pretty sure i’m autistic. Is there anything a diagnosis would do for me?
#1 - lol I feel like you can probably tell by how I write how much I exaggerate with my facial expressions 😂 … I’ve had people comment about my exaggerated facial expressions a lot, especially when I was on IG/RUclips making videos 🥹 .. and ughh, taking pictures especially w other people, causes me so much anxiety bc I don’t know what to do. & the social anxiety part about even if you know the person well 😭 Omg!!
#2 - I’ve had 2 people point this out in me this year 🥺 I would’ve never known this about myself 🤍
#3 - when I was younger my dad told me to take out the trash, and I didn’t understand, Like take out? So I asked “do you want me to take it out to the garage or outside”, and he was like “cher! Take it tie, take it outside, and put it in the trash bin!” … now I realize why I didn’t understand. 🥺
& yessss to the names part!!! 100%!!! Lmao I’ve definitely asked to see a picture so many times bc I’m like who?! 😂
4 - this is huge for me so it’s so refreshing to hear this 😭 .. when I eat chicken & rice, I have to have a piece of chicken with a certain amount of rice with each bite. And omg the burger & fries thing where you can’t eat the burger alone, you have to get more fries - I DO THIS WITH ANY FOODS that you eat together!!! 😆 I would’ve neverrrr known this was why 😆 … also the part where if you can’t have what you want, you avoid it all together. I didn’t realize this is why I don’t eat when I’m out & prefer to wait until I get home 😭 it’s bc I’m not comfortable! 😭 Omg. Eating & stomach issues has been one of my hardest things to deal with my whole life 😭 now I know how I can help it 🥺🙏🏽❤️ and YESSSSS 😭 about enjoying the things you enjoy more than neurotypical ppl!!
As always thank you so much for helping me innerstand myself & why I do the things I do 🥹🙏🏽💖 Xx
so excited to watch!
Wow. I have almost all the same habits.
So well spoken! Love all the details!
one thing i noticed about myself is I always when drinking something, leave an inch of liquid in the bottom of the cup, but i only do it if I don't use a straw because when I drink with a straw I always have to get to the bottom because of that noise the straw makes when the air goes through it. Everytime I notice the inch of liquid left over in my cups I gulp it down in frustration because it feels like I'm wasting so much of my favorite drinks lol I don't think i have autism or ocd but your thing you said about matching your food bites was too relatable in that way. it always feels like im fighting myself too when finishing that last bit of my drinks, but its not strong enough to overpower the will to finish it. its weird.
Whenever we have group photos at work (I work in a military medical group), I’m always the one with the “goofy expression”…. Makes sense now.
People have seen my eyes move back and forth since I was a kid. A family friend brought it up to me once like it was a problem. I have even noticed my eyes doing that when I look down at times and wondered if I had a condition. My optometrist had to reassure me that my eyes were okay.
Life changing dx at 59 .... the flat affect probably fits with me as i was/am often told i am miserable, angry, scary, intimidating, resting bitchcface etc. Its anxiety provoking trying to make the face/body right. I find i can't participate/process if i'm worried about how i'm presenting. Its one or the other 😂
The part about the exaggerated facial expressions makes me think of a strange habit I have, that every time I go to the bathroom, I can't help it, I have to watch myself in the mirror and do exaggerated faces, like a hyper-''smile'' that doesn't look like anyone would normally smile.. I don't understand exactly why I do that. Maybe it's because my facial muscle need stretching but I can only do that in the bathroom, where nobody can see those socially unacceptable faces? But why do I need so much to look in the mirror to do it? Is it because it makes me to anxious to not know what I look like? but why?
Awww I do the same thing when I'm happy with my food. I'm still particular with what I eat but not nearly as much as when I was a kid. When I was a child and liked something I was eating, I would always physically show how much I liked it, and my dad would then say, "Mikey likes it." I guess that was based on a commercial? lol but I still physically move around when I'm really enjoying my food :)
Oh my god. I relate to you in so many ways holy shit. Ive watched all three of these and i cant believe it. I keep looking at my phone (you are background noise) and going whaaaat me too!!!
I don't understand how I can relate to this so much. That's crazy. I usually leave a tiny bit on my plate, always. I just can't finish it even if its just a third of a bite sometimes
I also very strongly suspect ADHD and Autism for me combined with the OCD. You put my experiences into words so perfectly, thank you so so much for your videos🙌🏻 Sending lots of love❤
Oh yeah, the happy food dance
Omg i also do the eye contact thing. I kept forcing myself to look at a classmate when they were talling about technical stuff but i didnt understand a thing. I noticed that i speak better and understand the person more if i look to the side and let my eyes move back and forth and then make some eye contact .
All of these make 100% sense now because I have all of these and just thought I wasa weirdo
Just now making my way through your videos the rapid eye-movement OK like number one on this check for me number two check for me and when I’m in sensory overwhelm the ability to look at someone and process what they’re saying becomes almost impossible for me to process what they are saying and that’s one of the signs that my system is about to tilt into overwhelm meltdown is if I don’t honor that sign or symptom is that I am maxing out In a sensory overwhelm. And some people perceive this as that you’re not paying attention and will call you out on it especially in the school setting and then that increases the demand and then the anxiety and then there’s no processing of what they’re saying at all. 😢
OK just getting into number three and man you are nailing this so hard to the tree. I can’t see mental pics so then I’m doubly challenged on the verbal learning aspect so I really need the narrative storyline to retain anything so I would need a narrative story about every marker in the directions to retain it😅😅. And when my daughter is talking about her friends and just giving me their names yes what you describe it’s so challenging I need to know something about them in a way something that happened in the past with them like their name has zero meaning to me, Give me something more to figure this thing out. And when you combine the inability to remember names and then the inability to do mental pics to remember faces it is very socially awkward very.
I used to always leave a fourth of my food this is absolutely hilarious and my mom is very specific about this food has to go with that and it has to be made a certain way you can’t have this item without that item and if all of these things are not present then it’s not right. Lol. And distracted eating the eating with the video is so critical to developing a healthy eater and an autistic person because if there are environmental challenges then they just will be no eating or there will be developed allergies and aversions and sensory overwhelmed to those items and that’s a problem. The brain will associate the fight flight freeze response to the food and then develop an allergen and then you can eventually eat nothing so eating in a safe zone or watch some thing fun happy distracted eating like watching a video or a happy show happy happy happy happy eating is so critical!!!! Are you simply end up eventually not being able to eat anything at all.😢
Honestly, I relate to these so much that, along with some self assessment test, I feel confident that I am autistic as well