17/07/2025
🔨 Things I Intend to Break the Glass Ceiling Of — As an Autistic Woman:
Leadership Stereotypes
Shattering the idea that leaders must be extroverted, neurotypical, or emotionally detached. I lead with empathy, intensity, and insight — and that’s not a flaw, it’s a strength.
Professional Assumptions
Smashing the belief that autistic people can’t succeed in executive roles. I run award-winning businesses that centre on authenticity, inclusion, and impact — and I do it while being visibly, proudly autistic.
Educational Barriers
Breaking through the notion that traditional systems are the only path to intelligence or success. I learn in spirals, with depth and fire — and that’s valid.
The Masking Mandate
Tearing down the expectation that I need to hide who I am to belong. I refuse to perform neurotypical. I belong exactly as I am.
The ‘Always Sparkly’ Pressure
Breaking the ceiling of being expected to shine, inspire, or uplift others — even when I feel deeply unsafe. My visibility doesn’t mean I’m always okay. You can be a beacon for others and still need anchoring yourself.
The Normalisation of Trauma, DV, and SA in Autistic Lives
I’m smashing the silent epidemic of trauma, domestic violence, and sexual assault that disproportionately impacts autistic people — especially autistic women and gender-diverse folks. We are not inherently more vulnerable — we are systematically unsupported. I'm here to break the cycle, not just the silence. Safety is not a privilege — it's our right.
The Myth of ‘Too Sensitive’
Dismantling the idea that sensitivity is a weakness. My sensitivity is my super-sensor — it lets me read the energy in a room, feel what others miss, and create deep, meaningful change.
The Productivity Trap
Rejecting the pressure to perform like a machine. I honour my spiky profile, my sensory needs, and my unique rhythms — and I still get extraordinary things done.
Motherhood Expectations
Disrupting the stereotype that being autistic makes you a less capable mother. I’m not just a mum — I’m a fierce advocate, builder of inclusive communities, and a safe place for my neurodivergent child.
Mental Health Misunderstandings
Smashing stigma around trauma, burnout, and autistic distress responses. I speak openly about the systems that harm us and advocate for trauma-informed, nervous-system-supportive care.
The ‘Grateful to Be Included’ Narrative
Breaking the ceiling of settling for scraps of inclusion. I’m not here for tokenism. I’m here to redesign the whole table — or build my own.
Limiting Language
Destroying deficit-based narratives about being autistic. I use real, affirming, identity-first language that reflects the truth: being autistic is not a flaw — it’s a neurological difference.
Health System Invalidation
Cracking open the ableism in how medical and mental health systems treat autistic bodies and minds. I deserve competent, compassionate care — and I will not stop until we all get it.
Cultural Misrepresentation
Challenging the media's flat, infantilising, or tragic portrayals of autistic people. I’m here to show what joyful, complex, thriving autistic adulthood can look like.
Economic Exclusion
Breaking the idea that autistic people can’t be financially successful. I’m building businesses, movements, and legacies — not in spite of my brain, but because of it.
‘One Size Fits All’ Empowerment
Refusing to adopt mainstream success templates that were never made for me. I’m designing my own — radically authentic, deeply affirming, and grounded in joy, rest, and fire.
