Tina J. Richardson Quotes & Sayings

Some days just being awake is too much input. — Tina J. Richardson

Autism does not have a look. Autism cannot be cured by discipline. Autism is not a disease. Autism is a way of being. Autism is a neurological difference. Autism is a unique way of viewing the world. — Tina J. Richardson

She had not been herself for weeks, yet no one noticed. She knew this feeling, it creeps up like sliding slowly into the darkness. Some days she clung on, other days she let herself slip further. — Tina J. Richardson

She may do things differently to you, but who says you are doing things right? — Tina J. Richardson

She was a book worm she escaped her life and became her novels. — Tina J. Richardson

Can you accept me, can you love me? Without conditions ? Can you nurture me, can you respect me? Without conditions ? Will you embrace me as my own unique autistic self? — Tina J. Richardson

I like to know what's happening to prepare myself. I make up scenarios in my mind about what may happen. This helps me cope. — Tina J. Richardson

She has walked a sombre path.
Retreating to her cocoon,
during the darkest hours.
Her body going through,
the motions of life automatically.

But being there was where she
found herself.

She emerged,
Shedding her disguise,
Now her true form.
She knows who she is,
She embraces her true self.
She is free. — Tina J. Richardson

As a child with Autism, I experienced life my own way. I could sense colours/sounds/objects as beams of intense sensations. — Tina J. Richardson

As a child she was unique, she was a dreamer, she lived in her own world. Where it was safe. — Tina J. Richardson

I can't speak anymore, I open my mouth but nothing comes out. So many things to say. I wonder if you really want to hear it anyway?

Instead, I leave my heavy mind exploding with unfinished thoughts. — Tina J. Richardson

Autism is not something I "have" it's not an add on. This is why I call myself autistic. Not person "with" autism. — Tina J. Richardson

As an autistic, I have thoughts and ideas of my own. Not all people on the spectrum think the same. — Tina J. Richardson

I find some things difficult to grasp. I need to be shown or taught a few different ways sometimes before I figure it out — Tina J. Richardson

I may look like I'm not listening but trust me I'm memorising everything . — Tina J. Richardson

I guard my existence, sheltered by distance. Hidden and masked I parade, everyone oblivious to the grand charade. — Tina J. Richardson

Being autistic doesn't make me any less human. It just makes me who I am. Just like you are. — Tina J. Richardson

My fear is if i lower my mask will people accept me? — Tina J. Richardson

It's time to cure society, not autistic people. — Tina J. Richardson

She was the girl growing up that other girls stared at, making her feel different and inadequate.

She was the woman that stared at them, she made them feel inadequate, as she could be her own true self. Free from the social conformity, that imprisons them.

They were now jealous. — Tina J. Richardson

I might not say much but I'm a watcher
and a thinker. — Tina J. Richardson

They were not brave enough to accept her as she came.
She made her own path where she found herself,
she followed it to her own people. — Tina J. Richardson

She became an illusion of herself. It was easier to cope with people that way — Tina J. Richardson

Autism is what makes me, me. You can't 'cure' Autism out of me. It's intertwined into how I perceive the world — Tina J. Richardson

The World can feel like a strange and confusing place for an autistic person. Lights, sounds and smells are extremely intense and overwhelming sometimes. People also can be confusing and overwhelming to me. It can help me if you are consistent with what you say and do; please say what you mean. Also provide me with a safe, quiet place to recover when I'm really overwhelmed. Please speak quietly and calmly and give me time to de-stress. — Tina J. Richardson

I am a whole person. I'm not a neurotypical person with an 'autism' part. I'm not a disabled neurotypical. I am a whole autisic person!. — Tina J. Richardson

Sometimes. In busy places. I may need to escape. I'm not being rude. I'm helping myself. — Tina J. Richardson

I am an actress of life, the world is my stage. Trained to fit in and yet I still fail. — Tina J. Richardson

Autism. STOP sugar coating it to make it easier to swallow. I don't have a superpower, sparkles or rainbows. I'm me. I need to be accepted for being me. In the world I live in, I have a disability — Tina J. Richardson

I look in the mirror and see a person. This person puts on another person's face when she goes out. She uses other people's expressions and sayings. She is a mimic. She prefers to be who she is, tries her own person out gradually, testing the waters so to speak. She fails most of the time. But the more she does it the better she feels. No more hiding behind the mask. Accept me as I am — Tina J. Richardson

Social media helps me a lot. It also causes a lot of shutdowns — Tina J. Richardson

She felt everything deeply,
soaking up the world like a sponge.
While slowly squeezing out her soul, leaving her drained. — Tina J. Richardson

My 'pieces' all fit and they are not missing. I'm not a puzzle to be solved. I'm not a mystery. I'm a WHOLE human. — Tina J. Richardson

I look past your eyes so I can comprehend your words. — Tina J. Richardson

Years of people pushing and demanding that she conform left a scar on her soul that kept her own self from emerging — Tina J. Richardson

I'm not ignoring you, I just can't look at your eyes anymore. — Tina J. Richardson

All autism is real it's a spectrum. — Tina J. Richardson

I want you to understand I'm not lost in my own world, I'm just hiding from yours — Tina J. Richardson

Music can enter my soul like none other. It can reach me and awaken my being — Tina J. Richardson

Sometimes I don't have enough energy to be social. I need time alone to recover from the last time I went out. — Tina J. Richardson

For many people virtual friends are as important as physical friends — Tina J. Richardson

Words do hurt. They eat into my being and don't leave. They are always there just waiting to pop back up in my mind like it happened yesterday — Tina J. Richardson

I'm not damaged, I don't need fixing. I'm just different. Embrace different — Tina J. Richardson

people confuse me, with what they say and do. They rarely say what they mean,then they get mad at me for believing what they have said. Telling me that they didn't mean it that way or that they were joking. — Tina J. Richardson

I'm always on guard around most people. They do not realize how exhausting that is to keep up. That is why afterwards I really need my space. — Tina J. Richardson

She kept her feelings close. Filling her up inside. Days passed. Then without warning they expelled from her, washing the pain, hurt and anguish of unresolved thoughts and emotions over her being. As if being struck by lightning. — Tina J. Richardson

I carry all the thoughts and feelings Ive ever had. Conversations, smells tastes and visions. Yet you. Wonder why I am always so tired?!? — Tina J. Richardson

Sometimes i feel upset but don't have the word to explain what really is wrong. Because most of the time I'm not sure what is actually wrong. I have trouble recognizing my emotions and feelings. — Tina J. Richardson

Being autistic does not mean I don't have empathy. Stereotypes are harmful. If anything I hyper feel everything and have to try to shut off to cope. — Tina J. Richardson

She felt lost and misunderstood. She felt like she was drowning. Overwhelmed. Unaccepted. Alone. — Tina J. Richardson

Autism - a different way of thinking. — Tina J. Richardson

I wish people would see us as people first, I really dislike it when people just see 'Autism' with me and thats all i hear all the time. I'm autistic, yes. But think of me as a person always, a human like you. — Tina J. Richardson

In the mirror the brow furrowed in confusion, this was not her soul that she saw in the reflection. The eyes filled with tears of anguish. The face aches with despair.
Then the being retreats to her solitude, deliciously succumbing to the dissociation — Tina J. Richardson

Sometimes I think I want to run away and disappear but what I really want is to be understood. — Tina J. Richardson

I don't have to look at your eyes to listen that's what
my ears are for. — Tina J. Richardson

I wonder if the World would feel differently about me if they could see how life feels viewing it like I do, through my eyes. — Tina J. Richardson

YES, I look like everyone else.
NO! I'm not like everyone else. — Tina J. Richardson

I'm happy being me, you will just have to get over it. — Tina J. Richardson

I wish people could read my thoughts instead of having to put them into words. — Tina J. Richardson

I don't particularly like explaining being autistic to bewildered people. I might as well say I'm an alien as they probably would understand and accept that more. — Tina J. Richardson

I am now a faded image of my former being,
I let that persona go.
I like myself for who I am and I choose to be, me. — Tina J. Richardson

I have an aspergers diagnosis and I don't give a shit what you people think. My friends are on the internet. — Tina J. Richardson

The person who said 'time heals all wounds' never met an aspie — Tina J. Richardson

At times i am so focused like i have been taken over by a remote controlled computer, although not user friendly. — Tina J. Richardson

I don't HAVE Autism, I am Autistic. It doesn't mean I see myself as a 'disability' first and a person second. I'm me, you cannot separate 'the Autism' out of me. I'm wired this way. I was born this way. I am this way — Tina J. Richardson

Thinking differently means you can work out problems in an unusual way. Just because we may do things differently it does not mean it is wrong. — Tina J. Richardson

If people could see my soul without judgement. See my image as a mirror, viewing my uniqueness as the gift it truly is. — Tina J. Richardson

Do not tell me what i should identify as. That is my choice not yours. — Tina J. Richardson

Sometimes there are not the right words for my thoughts. Speech feels like it's not a natural way to communicate. This is when typing the words makes my thoughts come out easier. — Tina J. Richardson

I'll always be there for you.
I promise to protect and nurture you.
Hopefully one day soon, true Autism acceptance will be
something that just is. — Tina J. Richardson

Being autistic is not everything about me. Try not to define me by my diagnosis. — Tina J. Richardson

I am fine as an autistic person, value me as I am. Don't look at me as a broken neurotypical. — Tina J. Richardson

She enjoyed dark things, it was how she felt. People had pushed her there. She now enjoyed the quiet. She craves the night, the darkness where she is safe. — Tina J. Richardson

I like being me, I don't mind that I have a diagnosis. I am who I was born to be. I love that I can be enthralled with things and want to learn all about something that interests me. Some days can be hard. People can be confusing for me to understand. I love time to indulge in my interests. It helps me to cope with a world that constantly changes — Tina J. Richardson

Autistic people view the world in a different light, in ways many could never imagine. — Tina J. Richardson

My thoughts and ideas are floating images in my mind. I find when it difficult to convert the pictures into words. — Tina J. Richardson

Protecting myself from the influx of painful stimuli, just give me space and I shall be okay. — Tina J. Richardson

Before my diagnosis.
I used to be a collection of other people.
An Actress,
Now I'm finding out who I actually am.
It's been a journey, but I have made it. — Tina J. Richardson

People who stare. I ask for a little empathy. Please don't judge. Be understanding that some places will strongly affect me. My senses are heightened and i experience lights, noise and smells differently that you might. Stimming will help me regulate myself to my environment as well as calming me. — Tina J. Richardson

Conversations sometimes are so hard to follow.
People are so confusing with the wrong facial
expressions for their words. — Tina J. Richardson

When I cry it's not because of one thing, it's all the built up emotions that I've been trying to hold in for weeks — Tina J. Richardson

We fell in love instantly, sparks flew. It was like we had met before.
We had trouble understanding each other over the years. But our love has grown stronger through accepting ourselves and each other. — Tina J. Richardson

there was a time I was dark, sad and a recluse
I did not understand why I felt like I did.Then my life changed.
I was diagnosed and suddenly my world made sense. — Tina J. Richardson

Autism: I may not speak with my mouth. There are many ways to communicate. They are all valid. — Tina J. Richardson

Autistic adults were once autistic kids. We grow up and need acceptance and understanding as well. — Tina J. Richardson

I tried to write how I felt. The pen remained frozen. The paper stayed white and empty,
while my brain was dark and full — Tina J. Richardson

I feel everything intensely, but sometimes I can't feel anything, I'm either hyper aware or numb. — Tina J. Richardson

Stop assuming I don't have any emotions. My inner thoughts might not be easily seen on my face. I do think and feel. — Tina J. Richardson

I find myself, wearing a mask, pretend play acting when I go out, it's the only way I can cope with it, then when I'm home I'm exhausted and stressed from trying to be someone I'm not. I over analyze the conversations I had, thinking about what I have said and done. — Tina J. Richardson

Why do non autistic people have interests/hobbies. But, autistic people have obsessions? — Tina J. Richardson

I think about so many things, my brain rarely shuts off. At night, my thoughts go over the day I had like replaying a movie. I try to make sense of what happened to the characters.
I'm the director, but can never reshow the edited film. — Tina J. Richardson

We just process things differently. It's not wrong - just different. — Tina J. Richardson

She enjoyed her own company most of the time. She rarely felt the need to be around people. — Tina J. Richardson

I love knowing other people like me. It makes me feel like I am okay just how I am — Tina J. Richardson

Communicating is the biggest thing I struggle with. People either totally misunderstand what I am saying or just don't get it. It's tiring trying to explain what you want to say over and over. Even when I rephrase it, I still find it's not how it is in my head. — Tina J. Richardson

I'm an autistic girl. I have many years to grow. I'm going to rock my life. Just watch me shine — Tina J. Richardson

Before my autism diagnosis I
knew I struggled with life but thought it was
my fault that I found everything
so hard to cope with. I told
myself I must
try harder
to be like
everyone else.
I felt like a failure because I couldn't be like everyone else. Now I know,
I give myself
credit even for the small things I manage everyday.
I know why
I find some things overwhelming. — Tina J. Richardson

I need time where it is quiet, the world is loud enough even when no one is talking. Please respect that it's something that I must do, I don't mean to disrespect you — Tina J. Richardson

I'm autistic and most of my children are autistic as well. Please don't tell me how sorry you are for me. I don't need pity. I'm just a mother who has children. Our unique identities and neurology make us who we are. We are perfectly fine just like this, thanks — Tina J. Richardson

Please don't obsess on the number of friends i have or don't have. I'll find my own way, it will be right for me. — Tina J. Richardson