it takes time

Autism is a developmental disorder. With most autistic children there is development. Sometimes it is amazing and sudden but more often it happens in very small if not tiny steps. So tiny that it is almost invisible to the untrained neurotypical eye. But not only because the progress is so slow or the steps are so small but also because of the way neurotypical people perceive the world. Their perception is based on what they have experienced so far and also on what they expect. Their experiences and expectations are based on how they see and understand the world. Seems to me that autistic people sort of confuse or even interrupt that system. Don´t get me wrong it is a working system. Society could not function without people being able to behave socially adaquate which is made possible by the perception being based on experiences and expectancies. I feel that this is what keeps us apart. What stops NTs from being able to understand autism. What stops autistic people from being able to fit in. It´s a perception problem. It´s not what we see, hear and feel but what our brain does with the incoming information. So it´s back to the brain again. Autism is a neurological disorder. But the brain can be trained and retrained. Stroke patients prove that every day. The brain seeks and finds compensation strategies. Amputees prove that every day. With autism the brain is the problem but also the solution. Not at all easy to find but not impossible either. So let´s keep looking! No matter how long it will take!