All Cats Have Autism

Autistic social anxiety is not "social anxiety" in the typical sense. An anxiety disorder is defined as an "irrational fear". So for example, imagine someone who is afraid to speak in case everyone looks at them and goes "what the heck are you saying you wierdo." If that person is neurotypical, then the chances are that they're very unlikely to get that response. Therefore their fears are irrational, and that is true "social anxiety". If you put an autistic person in that scenario, on the other hand, then probably the reason they're afraid of that response is because they've received it many times before. They're fear is based on repeated past experiences, therefore it is not irrational and not the simply an anxiety disorder. That's why people giving the classic social anxiety responses to autistic people is so unhelpful. "Just go out there and talk to people, it'll be fine," or "keep pushing yourself out of your comfort zone and you'll get more confident," don't work if the problem is real and not just in your head.

Mel and her ED friends, the two black cat coded sarcastic assholes that are softer with her and hate each other 🤝🏻 Trinity and her ED friends, the two blondes that look like victorian sickly children who can't catch a social cue or pop culture reference to save their lives

Are the pitchforks gonna come out if I say this is mainly Robby's fault? Both Santos and Langdon deserve support, and neither are getting it the way they need to because Robby couldn't pull his head out his ass long enough to give Al Hashimi a proper hand-over. Yes she came a shift early, but let's be for real. This is his last shift. He was never going to answer her emails, or give her the proper hand over she needed. And in the end, it's the people underneath him who suffered for it. Who he has a duty of care to. He is the boss. I know he has his own shift going on; so I'm not saying, "Robby is a horrible person." What I'm saying here is he fucked up and likely made an uncomfortable situation much worse.

No, y'all, the solution to Mel's crash-out is not for Mel to get a romantic partner so that she doesn't feel left out. The solution is for her to ask herself why she got so upset about Becca's new boyfriend, and to unpack how her own struggles (caretaker's fatigue, isolation) have led to her not respecting Becca's autonomy. While I absolutely agree that Mel needs to start building relationships outside of Becca, I think that suggesting she get a boyfriend so she's "even" with Becca kinda misses the point of her crisis. Mel needs to realize that Becca is an adult who should be allowed to live her own life, without Mel immediately putting that life in competition with her own. And the solution to Mel's own social isolation isn't to get a significant other (one person)—she needs a community.

oh its bad back there.