07/01/2026
This following post from 2023 (I think) was one of my first ones that blew up when I first switched from a weight loss page to an Autistic "advocate" page...
"This is inspired by a post I saw the other day about some of the problems with the main character from The Good Doctor, Shaun? I think that's his name anyway I only watched one episode and couldn't watch anymore, because to be honest watching someone who isn't autistic play a hollywood stereotypical autistic was not a fun experience for myself as an autistic.
Now what do I mean when I say a hollywood stereotypical autistic? You know that character you always see, Sheldon Cooper, Sherlock Holmes and Rainman, social outcasts who are complete savants and geniuses in thier own way or own fields of expertise. Whilst also a lot of the time coming across as either intellectually inferior/superior or sociopathic/psychopathic in nature.
Now some may say surely the depictions of these characters on mainstream TV and film must be a good thing right? But are they really?
If someone's expectations of an autistic person is for them to be incapable of romantic relationships, only focused on one certain subject, with an ability to work out problems within a blink of an eye, can you see how they may be let down by meeting someone like myself who can barely remember how to defrost chicken most the time? Or confused by how I'm able to maintain a long term relationship with my wife? Or the fact that I actually have many areas of special interests but I'm not actually savant level on any of them?
I once got asked why I wasn't good at maths in a maths class because "I thought you people were all good at maths". In reality I'm absolutely dreadful at maths, autism doesn't come with a free calculator level brain attached.
Also another problem being most autistic characters are white male depictions completely missing the fact that female Autistics and Autistic POC do in fact exist.
Now it's okay to watch these shows and enjoy these shows and maybe even to think ooh look there's characters who's brains work differently to others. But please do not use TV as your only source of the autistic experience. Because we are so much more than these characters.
We aren't always rude, we often do understand other people's feelings, many of us do have to work hard to learn new things, we can't all work things out in our special mind palaces, we don't all have obsessive habits, we are able to form real friendships and relationships given the right circumstances and support, it isn't always as simple as mute or not mute, we aren't all sociopaths, we aren't all geniuses...
Then again some of us will relate to the autistic stereotypes and that's okay too. Because everyone is unique and everyone is beautiful in their own way.
We are autistic, we are people, we are sons, daughters, mother's, father's, lovers, friends and everything else anyone else can be.
Don't let stereotypes dictate who you think we should be. We are who we are."
