All Posts

Photo by Volodymyr Hryshchenko  on Unsplash Some autistic people experience differences in executive functioning. This article explains what this means and shares some supportive strategies. What is Executive Functioning? Executive functioning refers to the set of mental skills that help us to manage daily life. These skills include planning, staying organised, and completing tasks. Autistic people’s brains often need to process more information than their non-autistic peers

Photo by Headway  on Unsplash This article is for autistic adults in the workplace; it explores your rights in Guernsey and how to identify support that helps you work at your best.    Understanding Support at Work    In Guernsey, the Prevention of Discrimination (Guernsey) Ordinance (2022) provides a framework for people with disabilities, including autistic people, to request reasonable adjustments. These are changes to the work environment or the way a job is done that hel

Photo by Stefano Bucciarelli  on Unsplash Some people—including autistic and other neurodivergent people—process social information differently. This short article expands on this idea, explains what Theory of Mind is, and shares some supportive strategies.   What is Theory of Mind?    Theory of Mind is a social processing skill. It is the ability to understand that other people have their own thoughts, feelings, and perspectives that may differ from yours. It involves using

Photo by Breno Machado  on Unsplash Autistic people often face stress and overwhelm when navigating environments or expectations that do not accommodate their needs, and this can sometimes result in meltdowns or shutdowns. This article explains what meltdowns and shutdowns are and how to manage them.    What Are Meltdowns and Shutdowns?    Meltdowns and shutdowns are intense, involuntary responses to overwhelming sensory, emotional, social, or informational input. They reflec

Welcome to our very first podcast episode. Your host, Martine Ellis, interviews Julia Watts, the Service Manager and CEO at Autism Guernsey, to REALLY talk about autism. They talk about what autism is and is not, and explore common misconceptions. Martine gives Julia a magic wand towards the end of the episode, and Julia explains exactly what she would do with it in order to make the world more accessible to autistic people. We hope you enjoy the episode. Find out more about

Photo by Baruk Granda  on Unsplash Some autistic people experience social interaction differently. This article explains what those differences might look like and shares some supportive strategies.    What is Social Interaction?     Social interaction is how we engage with others and build relationships. For autistic people, the “unwritten rules” of socialising can feel confusing or exhausting. This isn't a lack of desire to connect, but rather a difference in how social sig

Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters  on Unsplash Some autistic people can struggle with social communication. This article explains what social communication is and shares some supportive strategies.     What is Social Communication?     Social communication is how we use language and gestures (including body language) to share meaning with others. It involves not just the words we say, but also how we say them and how we interpret what others say to us.     Autistic people can ha

Photo by Vitaly Gariev  on Unsplash Research suggests that up to 95% of autistic people experience sensory differences. This article describes our eight sensory systems and explains the terms sensory processing, sensory overload, and sensory seeking. Some suggestions for managing sensory needs are included at the end of the article.     Sensory Systems    Most people are familiar with the five external senses: sight , hearing , smell , touch , and taste . However, we have th

Photo by Kaleb Nimz  on Unsplash Some autistic people can experience social imagination differently. This article explains social imagination and shares some supportive strategies.     What is Social Imagination?     Social imagination is the ability to understand and predict other people’s behaviour, even when it isn't stated out loud. It helps us imagine “what if” scenarios and understand abstract concepts.     For autistic people, this doesn't mean a lack of creativity—man

Photo by Mick Haupt  on Unsplash We know that lots of people with different backgrounds and experiences read our articles. If you happen to be fairly new to learning about autism, this article is a great place to start. In it, we aim to answer the following questions:   What is autism and the autistic spectrum?  How many people are autistic?   Is autism a disability?     What is Autism and the Autistic Spectrum?     Autism is a neuro-developmental condition. It is not a lea