My Personal Experience #4

This week, I wanted to take a more personal approach and talk about my own experiences with ASD in my family. I grew up in a family where ASD has always been a part of my life. I have three brothers, two younger and one older. One of the younger ones got diagnosed at a young age with ASD. A bit later in life, my other younger brother got diagnosed as well, but not as severely. My older brother is not professionally diagnosed, but there are many signs. Because of that, I have seen ASD in many different ways and learned a lot from each of them.

When I was younger, I didn’t really understand what ASD meant. I just knew that one of my little brothers got special attention and that a lady would come into our home and work with him, and he had his own “special toys.” At the time, I did not realize she was likely there to provide therapy and support for his development. I remember hearing the noise from the closed door that they were in. Learning lots of songs and rhymes that are still stuck in my head today.

My little brother went through phases where he became hyper-fixated on certain things. I remember trains were a huge thing, then dump trucks, and the list goes on. It changed every couple of years or months, and he’s still the same now that he is older (right now he is really into F1 and baseball). As I got older, I began to understand that hyper-fixation is a common part of ASD. My older brother is really like this as well, he gets really into something that interests him. It has been really intriguing to see how those deep interests my younger brother had has continued throughout his life and how they have brought him so much joy, and F1 what he is into now brings him so much happiness still.

As I mentioned before, my other two brothers, one older and the other younger, also have ASD, but not in the same way, as they are not as severe, and their needs and personalities are very different. That is something that really stands out to me, the way ASD looks different for every person. Even just within one family, it can show up in lots of unique ways.

Growing up around my brothers has taught me patience, understanding, and how important it is to look beyond first impressions of people. It has helped me realize that ASD isn’t about limitations; it is about differences in how people experience and interact with the world. Now that I am older and learning more about ASD within this project, I can see that those early experiences shaped how I think and how I approach people, always with empathy. It has made me more aware of the support and acceptance that can make such a big difference in someone’s life.

Autism is not a disadvantage; it is a different way of experiencing the world.

Me and my family, The blue hearts🩵 are my brothers and the white hearts🤍 are other family members.