Our main requirement for happiness in new locations: French fries available at all times. (Note: We have scored.) If you go to different places, what is your #1 requirement? #Autism #SameFoods #neurodiversity [image: basket of French fries on a restaurant table.]

There’s a moment in autistic burnout where you stop being able to explain what’s wrong — because explaining is part of what’s breaking you.

New — While some states have received SNAP benefits for November and USDA is supposedly pushing through all federal payments soon, that doesn’t erase the psychological terror of the last few weeks. I spoke with 20+ SNAP recipients in 16 states about preparing for a possible future with no food:

Being on SNAP benefits for 17 years, I've NEVER been told I wouldn't be paid my benefits. NEVER. What is going on is BEYOND cruel. The ppl w/disabilities, ppl w/chronic illnesses & cancer, seniors already isolated, the 16M hh's w/children. WE REFUSE TO BE A NUMBER. WE ARE PEOPLE. WE DESERVE DIGNITY.

This is true, but back to the fact that law enforcement are particularly cruel to disabled people, as they see anything out of the norm as “noncompliance”. 50% of custody deaths are disabled people. The despicable treatment of detainees is unlivable for disabled people. Which is the point.

Bookmark this. It’s a great central point from which to start investigating your neurodiversity. Pick your own pathway and very much take it at your own pace.

Autistic accommodations aren’t a luxury They’re not “nice extras” or “special treatment” They’re ESSENTIAL adjustments that help autistic people exist safely, access what others already can, and live with less pain and exhaustion #disability #neurodiversity

Malnutrition can cause chronic illness & disability If people have to start rationing food, some will end up with chronic health issues. The stress of not knowing if food assistance will be paid is also taking a tremendous toll on people’s health Check on each other & feed those you can

Changelog: Added buttons to take the Comprehensive Autistic Trait Inventory (CATI) and the Monotropism Questionnaires to our “Autism Pathway”. stimpunks.org/pathways/aut...

Changelog: Added a quote from “Psychometric evaluation of the Comprehensive Autistic Trait Inventory in autistic and non-autistic adults, 2025” to “Comprehensive Autistic Trait Inventory - Stimpunks Foundation”. stimpunks.org/2025/03/01/c...

People love to tell disabled folks to “take responsibility”. Take responsibility for what exactly? For being sick? For not getting better? For needing social supports? What they really mean is “we don’t want OUR taxes helping YOU survive”

Quite a few chronically ill/disabled people are freelancers because they can't find full-time remote work. Health insurance premiums rising as work from home gets further rolled back feels extra cruel.

Want to help with autism research? The Social Experiences of Loneliness of Autistic Adults (SELA) Project at the AJ Drexel Autism Institute is forming a Community Council of autistic adults (ages 18–35) to help guide a 5-year study on loneliness and social connection. Info in flyer and alt-text.

Teen Vogue was seriously committed to diverse and inclusive journalism and their disability coverage was extremely good. This is a big loss and someone better snap this column up!!

Still looking! Please reach out.

Disability Visibility at Teen Vogue was such an important way to raise awareness of the disabled experience. Alice’s column was heartfelt, vulnerable, honest and represented our community so well. Gutted (yet not surprised) to hear the Teen Vogue cuts impacted it too.

When you become disabled there’s a few things you notice right away: Ableism is everywhere. People will abandon you. Even those you were certain would stick by you. Just because something is illegal or against human rights code doesn’t mean it’s not happening ALL the time

People often push the disabled to take risks with our health. They think if it’s already “that bad” who cares if it gets worse We care. Our baselines mean everything to us. Whatever limited function we have left is always worth protecting. You don’t get it until you get it.

Let me put it this way. Disability supports are necessary to get disabled people out of survival mode. Because we can't get out of survival mode without help. Without disability supports, we are stuck using desperate, highly ineffective, and often harmful strategies to survive.

It is 2025 - we really shouldn't need a petition for this! Require schools to let children use the toilet at all times in the school day. Do not lock toilets so that they aren’t accessible during certain times of the day. petition.parliament.uk/petitions/73...

So uh. I've spent the last five years working on a book about grief, mourning, who is allowed to grieve and how, and where we go from here, and... you can now preorder it!

“Our movement, however, needs nothing of respectability politics. Accepting — conceding, surrendering, submitting to — that will only erode our movement until it crumbles entirely.” —Lydia X. Z. Brown stimpunks.org/glossary/res... www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRmU...

I’m told almost daily that if I softened my messaging more folks would support me It’s not the messaging that’s the problem It’s what we’re saying Ableism is everywhere & many people want disabled folks to disappear. They don’t want us taking up space. So we’ll take up more!

Such a mystery, what MASS DISABLING EVENT could have happened after 2019 to cause this?

There is a prevalent belief in much of America that should you become disabled there are all these safety nets and assistance programs. This is part of why many people believe that there are lots of people abusing the system, rather than actively trying to get better. This is extremely not true.

Are you an Autistic adult or parent/carer to an Autistic child? Would you or they like to contribute to a free booklet for Autistic children and young people that @gr0ve.bsky.social are creating? Here is my contribution: SUBMISSIONS forms.office.com/e/6Lg2Zx3g3N By 23/11/25

When you equate disabled people with burden, the lives of disabled people are always in jeopardy.

ABA proponents often claim play-based methods are “evidence-based” bc they produce measurable outcomes. The problem is what they measure. Most studies in ABA research focus on short-term behavior change—not long-term psychological health, identity or self-regulation. endseclusion.org/2025/10/31/t...

So much of mainstream education is just neuronormative bigotry inherited over decades. Our systems are rooted in ableism and eugenics. Neuronormative domination is a public health crisis. 100 years of receipts: stimpunks.org/2024/05/10/t...

"Pathology lite complements the now well-known concept of neurodiversity lite. It highlights equally risky ways that scientific discourse and practice can subtly reinforce harm against neurodivergent people" Good thoughts from: @ombretarragnat.bsky.social ombretarragnat.com/2025/11/03/w...

Stimpunks.org Changelog for October 2025 Our website is a living document that is always changing and growing. Here are some changes we made to the website in October. stimpunks.org/2025/11/01/s...

I'm looking to create an advisory group for a project on Monotropism, an attention-based theory of autism and potentially ADHD. If you or anybody you know is interested, please fill out the form below. Thank you! forms.office.com/Pages/Respon...

Changelog: Added “Food Assistance” and “Crisis Hotlines” buttons to the “Give Help, Get Help” lily pad and put the lily pad back on the front page before the Learning Pathways lily pad. stimpunks.org

Who knew saying “no one deserves to starve” would be so controversial. I’ve never received this much hate for an article. Folks are really comfortable saying with their full chest that they’re fine if certain people starve. The disabled. Poor kids. Marginalized people. Immigrants. The elderly.

“Our recent study shows that the language and images large autism charities use mainly portray autistic people as a problem.” Large autism charities are all problematic & ineffectual. Give instead to small, Autistic-led charities like ours. theconversation.com/autism-chari...

Constantly overwhelmed and desperate for help”: Parents’ experiences of supporting their autistic child with mental health difficulties in the United Kingdom. Ashworth E, et al. (2025) Deteriorating parental wellbeing The knock-on effect on the whole family A lack of support doi.org/10.1371/jour...

Stim dancing is bodily survival knowledge that helps us bolster against stress and process trauma. Pass it down. stimpunks.org/happy-flappy/

SNAP isn't about "people who don't work." It's about people who don't get paid enough to live. Of the 40 or so million people who rely on food stamps: * Two-thirds are children, seniors, or disabled * Most working-age adults who receive SNAP are employed—but in jobs that pay poverty wages

Did you know that over 1.3M active duty service members and veterans rely on SNAP benefits to feed themselves and their families? Now you know.

Whenever people complain about the number of folks relying on food stamps, it is worth reminding them that SNAP is, by too large of a degree, a subsidy for corporations that refuse to pay a living wage and their political allies who reject public policy prescriptions to reduce income inequality.

We’ve always been here. Behold the Spectrum. This piece is a little glimmer of joy offered in the spirit of penguin pebbling. stimpunks.org/philosophy/b...

37% of people on SNAP are elderly and/or disabled. Standing in a long line at a food bank may be impossible for them. It would be impossible for me. We need robust networks of community care. If you know someone who’s housebound or has limited mobility, offer to bring them groceries.

If you have it please donate cash to the food banks. $10 in their hands will feed more people than the $10 worth of canned goods you can buy for retail prices. Also check on your elders. Many of them will not admit they rely on these programs so grocery gift cards or a surprise bag of staples

The vast majority of people are one accident or serious health issue away from financial ruin. They judge those who need social assistance without realizing that it could easily be them needing assistance tomorrow. You are closer to being disabled or homeless than rich.

No one should face financial ruin because they got sick or needed medical care. Healthcare is a basic human right. These premium increases will ruin people. It will put people on the streets. It will end lives. It will cause more disability.

If people are hungry, you feed them. If they are homeless, you house them. If they’re sick, you give them medical care. If they’re cold, you give them clothes. It isn’t hard. Far too many people are more than happy to sit in judgement of others rather than helping.

I’ve had dozens of people tell me they cried when they read COLOR TASTE TEXTURE, because they never heard someone say that food aversions are okay. The art director at PRH for the book cried when we were talking about it, because she finally felt seen! Radical acceptance is the way. 💜

A reminder that losing SNAP will be particularly devastating to those whose disabilities require them to have special diets. The disability tax is real. Everything costs more when you’re sick, and special diets are no exception. Boost & donate to mutual aid. People need help.

What makes me saddest about autism grievance parents is why can't they just be kind about their autistic kids. Why can't they center their humanity. Why can't they focus on how unfair it is that there are so few & good supports for our kids to live good lives. Our kids deserve better—so much better.