17/03/2026
For many of our autistic young people, other people’s behaviour can feel incredibly stressful…especially at school.
Firstly, many autistic young people rely on clear rules and predictable environments to feel safe.
Rules create order 👍🏼
So when a teacher says “No talking” but others are chatting, or when a rule is broken and nothing happens…
It feels confusing, unfair and unsettling 😕😖
Secondly, misbehaviour brings sensory chaos…👂💨😣
Sudden shouting 🗣️
Chairs scraping 🪑
Laughter 🤣🤣
Teachers raising their voices🗣️
For a nervous system that is already working hard to filter noise and activity, this can quickly push things into overwhelm🤯
And then there’s justice…⚖️
Our autistic young people have a very strong sense of fairness.
They notice inconsistencies others might ignore, or let go.
So when someone breaks the rules and gets away with it, it can feel deeply wrong ❌
Not just mildly irritating, but genuinely distressing 😰
The difficult part?
Sometimes when our young people speak up about this, they’re labelled as:
“Bossy.”
“A snitch.”
“Too serious.”
When in reality they’re simply trying to make sense of a world that suddenly feels unpredictable 🤷🏻
Understanding this changes how we respond.
Instead of saying
“Just ignore it,” which they can not do, we can recognise what’s really happening and why.
If you’re in a position of authority, enforce those rules, otherwise, what’s the point of having them? 🙏🏼
If they do need to be flexed for any reason, explain why 🙏🏼
Their brain is trying to restore order, fairness and safety in an environment that suddenly feels chaotic- no mean feat in classes of 30+ 😣
Patsy x💜💙
