Autistic Artist

Phobics Among Us

Some, maybe even many, of us autistics are plagued by panic attacks and phobias. Although composer Allen Shawn is not autistic, his description of his phobias match many of my own experiences.

Autism and Daily Pain

I'm still not feeling well after my celiac attack of the past couple of days. I do feel better than yesterday and the night before. I still can't believe I spent most of my life feeling sick like that. Being sick daily was just something I'd gotten used to. No wonder I was always so tired and never seemed to get anything done!

No one can be expected to be at their best when they are in in pain. No parent, teacher, coworker or boss can expect an autistic individual to be the best child, student, coworker or employee when that individual is pain from any number of catalysts -- even if it is a catalyst that may not affect the neurotypical. And there are so many things that may cause us pain, much of which we can mitigate with a little help from our doctors and others around us.

Problem Solving with Temple Grandin

Dr. Temple Grandin, designer of livestock handling facilities and a Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University, gave two presentations yesterday, February 14, at Freeborn Hall at the University of California at Davis here in Northern California. Dr. Grandin's autistic directness made for very lively and and entertaining talks.

Dr. Grandin's presentations overlapped. She described her own history and experience with autism and how autism inspired her work (especially with animals). She also shared ideas and advice to help autistics. The well-attended presentations were sponsored by the MIND Institute.

Here are some of my impressions and reactions to the presentations. I'm sure I could make several long posts regarding many of Dr. Grandin's comments, but I'll keep to three relatively short points here.

Gluten Free

Guess what? I have coffee back in my diet! YAY!

I was desperate not to feel so sick anymore. So I've started a new way of eating.

I've gone gluten free.