Sup? My name's Elie. I have PhD in Psych & I'm a postdoc. I'm new to Bluesky and need to follow. Things I'm into: #neurodivergent/ #MentallyIll / #MadStudies content that is not constructed purely through an anti-psychiatry lens; lived experience research (I'm #AuDHD + #Bipolar); anything #Pokémon

I wrote this book (it's available on Amazon), and check out this interview I did with Thinking Person's Guide to Autism!

The House Ag Committee released its breakdown of the spending cuts made under the reconciliation bill (h/t @jamiedupree.bsky.social). It puts work requirements on able-bodied adults between 19 and 64. Reducdes the federal share of administering SNAP from 50% to 25% docs.house.gov/meetings/AG/...

Coolest couple in the neighborhood. Photo from my collection, 1937.

The Ag Committee's part of the Reconciliation Bill raises the SNAP work requirement age for able-bodied adults without dependents from 54 to 64. It also changes the definition of "dependent child" from under 18 years to under 7 years old to determine "Able-bodied adult without dependents."

My #INSAR2025 talk - expertly tweeted by @thinkingautism.com & @aimeespeaks.bsky.social - is now available to watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=9n4c... Focus: How I share power with lay Autistic people - including those with learning disabilities and who are non-speaking - and what they think of it /1

Everyone in the past was neurotypical, which is how we got things like this single-author, eight-volume encyclopedia of ferns

Check out Lavender’s Nonspeaker Library — it is a collection of posts, writing, art, poetry, researcher, and more by and about nonspeaking people and people with communication disabilities. www.tumblr.com/nonspeakerli...

Writing on the back of this photo from my collection says “General Nuisance. Summer 1954”.

I honestly don’t eat a lot of seafood, but I *love* looking at the art on tinned seafood.

It's no coincidence that someone who argues that autistic people lack epistemic authority feels the need to warn about this too.

The goal of this project is to put that important and actionable information in a cute-as-hell delivery system, so people feel excited and empowered to take those first steps. We don’t drown them in details, just give them an action plan, emphasizing that doing anything is better than nothing.

The zine gives an overview of ACTIONS people can take to support biodiversity here in Philly. It includes information specific to the region, from plant species to city stormwater management programs. It can be overwhelming to know you’re supposed to do SOMETHING but not know where to start.

This project is ~$2k over budget, bc... well, I paid artists & printed 3000 copies. "MY BAD" (not bad, good actually). I've distributed ~10% of the zines. I want to have a broader footprint in the city! Want to help get zines to more neighborhoods? 🫣 Donate here: givebutter.com/phillybiodiv...

One important avenue for discussing autistic people’s autonomy in depth is exploring the Supported Decision Making Movement. Autistic Self Advocacy Network offers some helpful material on this subject, including some material in an Easy Reading format.

Blasko: We talked for a long time about the barriers to inclusion for autistics with HSNs. Researchers need to develop the skills to do it. We need less gatekeeping, and to dismantle that power imbalance. Researchers needs to provide better access. I hope we are patient with each other. #INSAR2025

Blasko and Jaswal: Why is this panel happening? Well, some people here don't understand how autistic with HSNs can participate, and don't understand the #neurodiversity paradigm. Previous panelists talked about how to include autistic people with HSNs successfully in research. #INSAR2025

Sutherland: Sometimes communication difficulties were due to staff's normative assumptions about communication. So if someone could speak a bit they assumed they should be able to speak more, instead of trying to use AAC or other communication methods. #INSAR2025

Sutherland: On Fear and Control: Some staff would lose their curiosity about appropriate support techniques and ended up "running through the motions." #INSAR2025

Ryan: Always be kind and respectful. Allow autistic people to say yes, and also to say no. Be mindful of deficit-based and dehumanizing language that contributes to stigma. #INSAR2025

Ryan: There is currently not a tool for helping staff/caregivers to clearly communicate with autistic people with high support needs. So Ryan's team created a toolkit/tip sheet. #INSAR2025

Ryan: A crucial component is creating in-the-moment choice-making tools that support immediate decisions for autistic people with HSNs. #INSAR2025

Ryan: How do we design a toolkit of practical resources that staff/caregivers can use to promote autonomy for autistic people with high support needs? #INSAR2025

Ryan: The #neurodiversity movement advocates for all autistic people to exert autonomy, meaning feeling in control of your life. It's a fundamental human right, and key component of well-being. Autistic people overall experience decrease autonomy, per research. #INSAR2025

And please remember that most autistics have a history of being shamed 4 dysregulation. I suspect many of us, particularly elders, know on some level when we r becoming dysregulated, but go into denial or push through anyway b/c of the shame we have internalized over our dysregulation. #INSAR2025

Most people use a lens hood to manage glare and lens flare. I need mine to protect my lens from sheep and goats. 😆

I love our official provincial flower, the trillium! So happy to know where there is an easily accessible patch close to home. #trillium #Ontario

Really grateful to everyone who participated in the #AutINSAR chat yesterday. You can continue to participate and respond to Qs about autism research priorities until 1PM Pacific on Monday May 5th. Thanks! #INSAR2025 #INSAR

#AutINSAR A6 intersectionality; masking paired with code-switching; media representation; diversity of Indigenous Autistic experiences; factors causing school to prison pipeline; impact of cultural biases in diagnostic processes; Teacher interpretations of Autistic “behaviour” of BIPOC students

Impact of lifelong misunderstanding and misinterpreting what we say/do etc at work and by family (unaliving, burnout, etc)

This!! The #AutismIndustrialComplex needs to be disrupted and dismantled. At the very least, DENTED DAILY!

Today in autistic people saying "I told you so": Nearly 90% of researchers who develop robots for autistic people **didn’t bother to ask autistic people if they need the technologies**, per UCSD autistic researcher Naba Rizvi: today.ucsd.edu/story/comput...

@draimeegrant.bsky.social “It’s ok to have brain fails” views of autistic adults (inc. those with high support needs) - Menstruation to Menopause. - Power sharing. Autism research seems behind disability research. A history of tokenism. It’s not surprising that there’s mistrust. #INSAR2025

The neurodiversity movement and autistic people with high(er) support needs with @drstevenkapp.bsky.social at #INSAR2025 - Folk with higher support needs have been involved from the beginning of the neurodiversity movement. - Neurodiversity movement recognises disability & support needs

A 1 I want research things that keep us out of institutions or other abusive treatments. I want reseach that helps us keep our autonomy and freedom #AUTINSAR

Lots of urban coyotes come here looking for wifi.

There are still 48 hours (until 12:30 Pacific time Monday?) to complete to @thinkingautism.com’s #AutINSAR chat.

The Introduction to the Science and Lived Experience of Autism (ISLEA) training program is now enrolling! Live sessions start Friday, February 28, 2025. This program costs $975 per person (although we do have group rates). Register for ISLEA at: bit.ly/ISLEARegistration #ActuallyAutistic

A7 #AutINSAR gatekeeping information is not fun. And makes so autistics don’t get have access to importantly information

*Tacking on a statement at the end like “though we only focused on changing autistic people, we intend to address the rest of the landscape on X issue vaguely at some undefined point in the future” is not helpful at all.

Enjoying #INSAR2025 while happy to say our new paper on disability disclosure dilemmas of disabled higher education students is now out! www.tandfonline.com/eprint/WZABN...

Bunny!

Now: Neurodivergence-Affirming and Inclusive Research Practices for Autistic People with High Support Needs. Chaired by @drstevenkapp.bsky.social & @dianatan.bsky.social, featuring Drs. Teresa Girolamo, Aimee Grant, Jackie Ryan, Holly Sutherland. Discussants: Grant Blasko & Vikram Jaswal. #INSAR2025

A5: Trauma #AutINSAR #INSAR2025

A5 Eating disorders often co-occur with autism. ARFID (Avoident Restrictive Food Intake Disorder) in particular. Adult onset ARFID is rarely diagnosed at all, but when it is it is rarely discussed in the more typically developing population, but more often recognized among autistics. #AutINSAR

A7: Dr. Botha IRL says too many researchers are writing for their peers. Because terrified for their jobs. It causes a toxic culture of writing for the wrong people. #AutINSAR #INSAR2025

A8 #autinsar I think we need more research that debunks Mental age theory and show the harm of that theory and how it used to restrict rights.

When they don’t have accessible information in plain language for people with intellectual disabilities and make it hard to take notes that most accessible.