Chapter 2 of Miss Molly & Aspergers: Womanhood as a Women on The Autism Spectrum

Hello,
I recently have been contemplating writing a new post here on Miss Molly and Aspergers, yet I have not known or have come to know what to write about. I have asked myself many questions; is this blog still relevant or going to continue to relate to the Autism world and upon asking myself this question I got my answer. of course! I do not want to scare those of you who are still in your teen years, however I am not going to lie, there is a whole other ball game with Autism in Adulthood and Adulthood itself.

I have been gifted upon graduating into the Adulthood a bigger pond to swim in. Below I am going to list the positives and the not so positive and those not so positive points I am going to be using Miss Molly and Asperger's to write for you; my hindsight, experiences and development as a young woman and adult on the Autism Spectrum. I hope to give you some skills to have ready in your kit which can help ease your transition.
P.s Even if you are not on the Autism Spectrum as any young adult or even older adult, if any of my advice is relevant or helpful to you are more then welcome here! So please don't be shy to subscribe!

Independence/Freedom:                                                                                             
Responsibilities/ Library fines - Its on you!

More people/places/options to make friends:                      
More opportunities to be taken advantage of (A sad but true fact and there is no need to be discouraged! There are plenty of kind hearted people out there too. I have a few solid people in my tribe and I wouldn't have found them or been certain of their true natures if I had not have met and been involved with some of the crueler people in this world - you just can't trust everyone and us Aspies are naturally very trusting... more on that to come!)

Live in your own place:
Solely up to you to keep that roof over your head 

Choose when and where to study:
Need to motivate yourself (now you don't have a parent telling you to get out of bed to go to uni anymore)

Can date whoever you like:
The only boundaries in place are your own - so if they are a jerk you haven't got your parent to back you up on why they cant come around anymore.

You can choose whatever you like to spend your money on:                                        
Just remember Rent, Food, Bills come first! You might make a few mistakes here I'm still learning trust me you can't eat that brand new handbag! 

Its up to you when and (IF) you do housework!         
"The house is gross and I swear the clothes in the pile are coming from a vortex because I don't think I even wore those - I might just wear them as they look unworn and I have nothing clean! I can't eat because there is nothing in the whole house which is clean to eat off... oh wait maybe the ice cream container lid under the sink will work for a plate!"

You can stay up as late as you like!                
If you thought meeting Lisa for coffee to work on that assignment the following morning you might be greeting her already having had 3 coffees or you don't show up at all!

Your dog or cat gets sick?                                 
The Vet isn't going to ask for your parents credit card.

You can eat whatever you like for dinner!                   
Be careful here as you may or may not get malnourished or develop a dairy intolerance from only eating a pint of Connoisseur a day with a protein bar now and then for lunch or end up crying over how much Uber Eats made out of you plus five kilograms.

That is all I have for tonight because if I'm not careful I'm gonna struggle getting up to in fact meet my best friend for coffee at teen am haha! 

I hope I haven't scared you, you don't need to be and I don't want you to avoid making similar mistakes because if I didn't make these I wouldn't have learnt from them or be able to give you this post and help you along the way.

Thank you so much for stopping in, speak again soon,

Love Molly

Common Aspergers & ASD Traits

Hi All!

I have been thinking it would be a good idea to refresh people of the traits of Asperger’s and what being an Aspie entails. It has been awhile since I have made a post on the overall aspects of Asperger’s, so I feel a refreshment is in order!

What it means to have Asperger’s/ Common Aspie Traits: (these traits are often disputed in different orders and combinations (no one Aspie will share all of the same traits)

1 . Lack of or too much eye contact.

2. Talks a lot about their interests, loves to share!

3. Has obsessive interests that are a huge part of their life and career aspirations. (I.e. If an Aspie is into computer programming, they will most likely aim to achieve their highest in this area. Thus, making it their career field).

4. Has an extremely good long term memory and a not so good short term memory. This includes things which are of great interest to an Aspie’s mind or caused a significant emotional effect such as bullying experiences. We can remember even the smallest of those details such as the person’s name, despite having experienced this in grade 1. The same applies for vice versa, such as a person who contributed an amazing and gratifying effect on our lives or were an extremely compassionate person that one would be immensely appreciative of encountering. These memories are likely to stick to our mind, being permanently glued to our subconscious and will unlikely be forgotten.

Our short term memory however, is compromised at times. Normally because of ideas and thoughts pertaining to an interest or desire. Therefore, anything that’s not interesting to us at the time will go in one ear and out the other whilst other ideas are playing on our mind.

5. Different sense of humor (can find the strangest of things amusing or funny)

6. Has sensory issues to do with a heighten sense of sound, touch ,feel, taste, and sight.

7. Can have trouble communicating their needs or intentions (a common occurrence is being misinterpreted by other people. Also misinterpreting ourselves, the intentions of others, and their motives.

8. Delayed responsiveness in situations (has a longer processing time)

9. Coordination issues can be common too.

10. An intense need of routine and familiarity. One often becomes distressed when changes are made or are unexpected. As we grow older we can learn to adjust to changes. Compared to NT’s who adjust drastically, Aspie’s tend to require more time to gradually develop the ability to adjust and cope with change. (stepping stones, rather than a large meteorite)

Well, that's a few pointers for now. Thank you for reading as usual! Have a nice weekend!
- Miss Molly x

Get to know me! Facts about me!

16 Facts About Me!
Not many of you know much about me and I really don't want to be known as Anonymous!
So.. I thought it would be a great idea to share some facts about me! I would really like to get to know you too! So feel free to leave some facts about you in the comments! :)

Fact 1: I am a huge animal lover! I love cats and frogs especially!
Fact 2: I love to photograph
Fact 3: I've lived in QLD, WA, NT, NSW and TAS! And visted everywhere else in Australia.
Fact 4: I'm probably one of the nicest people you will ever met.
Fact 5: I actually like school work.
Fact 6: One you all know: I have Aspergers and I am proud of it.
Fact 7: I've lived on an Aboriginal community and I learned part of their language.
Fact 8: I am 16 years old!
Fact 9: I find happiness in the simplest things
Fact 10: I am super shy when you first met me, but I am fun and crazy when I'm comfortable around you.
Fact 11: I am always honest to my friends, and they can trust me with anything.
Fact 12: My mum is my hero. ♥
Fact 13: I want to become a proffessional Jeweller
Fact 14: I appeciate my family and friends very much <3
Fact 15: I have the weirdest sense of humor! But my close friends love it!
Fact 16: I like to make jewellery in my spare time... Made from buttons!

Below is a picture of a necklace I made, and a picture I took of a rose from our garden.

Hand-dyed Rainbow Button Necklace

Its a Personality Type!

Hello again.
I thought this would be a good opportunity to tell you a bit about who I am and my differences.

I believe Aspergers is a personality type. Yes it can affect you with your daily life. This is why its been labelled a condition/disability. However in many cases Aspergers isn't a condition or disability. Aspergers is just who we are and how we are with other people.

My Asperger's/Personality traits:
- I am very literal, I take things as I hear them and I always react before I think.
- I have anxiety when it comes to new people . I can be awkward and shy.
- Because of my little success with making friends I can worry about what I've done and said (more anxiety).
- I am pretty good at school, I can fully focus on one thing at a time.
- I get very comfortable around people I've known along time. My weird and quirky sense of humor and chatterbox traits sets in. In other words I trust them and can come out with my feelings and thoughts openly. However sometimes I do this too much (this is where I need friends who are accepting and understanding).
- I give little eye contact. When I do, I have trouble judging when its time to break from the eye contact. Therefore I either stare too much or not enough.

My traits provide me with a fun, crazy, quirky personality! I am trustworthy, understanding, tolerant, accepting, caring. I appreciative all those who love and support me. I stay true to those who stay true to me.

These are the most important things to understand about me! However I cannot explain this to all the new people I meet. It takes people who are willing to understand and learn to come here and read my blog.

- Molly xo

Difference between OCD and Aspergers Obsessions

Aspergers people can have a tendency to have obsessions.

When I was four I was initially diagnosed with OCD, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
I always wash my hands too much, and get easily upset when things were out of place.
The main reason I washed my hands too much was because I did not like the feeling of food, dirt, etc on my them. (hypersensitive symptom of Aspergers)
I apparently had an obsession over germs. I acknowledge I have a bit of OCD. However the little OCD obsessions I had were confused with my Apspergers obsessions.
This is when treatment for OCD didn't work.

Psychologists tried treating me for OCD only.
A person with OCD most of the time can be reassured which helps them stop what they are obsessing over. From my experience as a child with ASD I would meltdown and get highly upset when I was made to stop what I was doing.

Unlike a person with OCD, who does not enjoy their compulsive behavior.
An Aspie usually enjoys their obsession: Ie: An online game, school work, music, collecting, sport. cleaning etc. (Yes some of us do enjoy cleaning)
At times one obsession will become the full focus of an Aspies mind.
This will be all they want to do and concentrate on. This can be frustrating for their family members and friends.

My experience when I was a child, when I had friends I would constantly want to do this one thing.
I would spend hours doing it if I could. When they didn't want to, I would nag and wing and get upset and meltdown. This is one reasons I could never keep friends.

Overtime these obsessions will change or may never change.

Aspies have the abilitiy to concentrate and spend so much time and energy on one obsession. Aspies can become very successful people because of this. Look at Bill Gates and the scientists of humanities history.

This can be seen as an advantage. However if an Aspie becomes fixated on a negative obsession, things can become difficult and upsetting.
Examples of this are dangers, a risk to their safety/health and/or if an Aspie becomes interested in fashion or their appearance.
When an Aspie becomes aware of their physical appearance negative behaviours can become prevalent. This is because we are perfectionists. When we feel we cannot perfect, our self esteem becomes in jeopardy.

Parents can help prevent these negative obsessions by encouraging positive ones. By encouraging Aspies to concentrate on a positive obsession, positive behaviours come to place.
When we are concernating or becoming obbessive with our obbsessions it is highly important to introduce other priorities politely (Not by yelling or demanding). 
Keep watch and give Aspies guidance. Ask for help if they begin focusing on negative obsessions.

~ Molly xo