Adventures in Art

Some info about him: His full name is David Elias Lefevre. He’s 28 years old and married to his high school sweetheart Tuomas. He’s the singer and bassist of the symphonic metal band Scintillian. David got diagnosed early on due to a heavy speech delay, but was never told the diagnosis. He suffered through a few years of ABA and in school was constantly labeled as “aggressive” due to his violent meltdowns. After moving in with a bunch of his friends to escape his borderline abusive father, things magically became better. (As it is when not everybody is out to put you into sensory hell every minute of the day.) The late diagnosis hit him hard, and it took him a while to accept it before he learned to be proud of being himself. He plans on becoming a public activist (like Temple Grandin, just less classist and ableist). His favorite stims are singing, flapping, and pressure stims (a hug or a weighted blanket, swimming and diving is also great). His favorite color is dark blue, because that’s the color of his husband’s eyes (for some reason, eye contact with Tuomas isn’t as painful as long as it isn’t a full on staring duel). Tuomas,  Pokemon and Harry Potter make him happy flap. He adores Good Textures™, such as stroking his husband’s hair or a nice piece of clothing, but Bad Textures™ are a huge problem. He’s very sensitive to sudden noises. Touring is really stressful, but the rest of the band is 100% accomodating and make sure to include enough time to recharge.

Being an Aspie who “passes”, I see how often Autism is portrayed as this evil, evil monster that’s not desirable to be around. As a girl I got diagnosed very late, when I had already passed years of wondering what was wrong with me, and people showing me that I was different and different was Bad™. It’s always the same picture of an autistic person that is taught over and over, in media, even in school. We’re not all Rain Man. We’re individuals, and no two individuals are really the same. Discovering neurodiversity was probably the best thing that could have happened to me. Everything fell into place and that was an amazing feeling. Even when people close to me deny my diagnosis. Even when people suddenly are uncomfortable once they learn about it. I wish I could say proudly I’m autistic without facing drawbacks in everyday life. I’m different, but different is not less. And I’ll do my best to help spread acceptance and inform people beyond the limited view we are getting taught.