#moderate support needs

like, i'm glad you feel represented by "autistic-coded" characters, but like... i want representation for level 2 and 3 autistics, low masking autistics, autistics who need caregivers, autistics who use aac (and not just high tech aac), multiply disabled autistics, autistics who have severe meltdowns, intellectually disabled autistics, autistics who need visible disability aids, autistics who need to be heavily accommodated or helped by others, etc etc etc.

it's okay to like autistic-coded characters, lower support needs characters, etc. i love those characters too! that kind of representation is also important! but i also think it would just be really nice and healing to see myself and my higher support needs autistic friends represented in media outside of just like, kids shows.

what actually matters is how u treat me. like if u call me “autistic” but then u ignore my needs or treat me like i’m a burden, that sucks more than any word. and if u call me “special needs” but u’re respectful n kind n actually help me, that feels fine??

i think ppl forget that we’re not all the same. like some autistic ppl hate certain words n that’s totally fine! but that doesn’t mean ALL of us feel that way. sometimes ppl say “no autistic person wants to be called ___” and i’m like. actually some of us dont mind?? some of us prefer it even?? we’re not all the same.

so yeah idc what word u use for me, just don’t treat me bad. words matter, but actions matter more.

This is a survey to understand how autistic people use and understand language. @neurodivergent-mermaid, a nonverbal autistic person, gave me the idea and helped me word some of the questions.

The survey is for everyone who has or might have autism, including those who suspect autism but aren't diagnosed with it. This survey is just for fun, not research!

Page 1 is about how well you can talk and write. This includes how often you go mute and if you can talk during meltdowns.

Page 2 is about how well you can understand language.

Page 3 is about other conditions that you might have that can affect your language.

Page 4 is about your developmental history. This includes when you started talking and if you've had speech therapy.

Page 5 is about demographics. It asks your autism diagnosis, age, gender, and ethnicity.

You can skip any questions that you do not want to answer. You can stop taking the survey at any time. If you do not submit the survey, no one will see your responses. The survey is completely anonymous; no one will know if you took the survey or what your responses are.