Asking Spectrum Women
ASK THE SPECTRUM WOMEN! Social Hangovers Jen Elecheson
Jen Elcheson gives her insights on social hangovers, and self-care.
Jen Elcheson
Book Releases
Spectrum Women Interview Series with Jen Elcheson: Camouflage by Dr. Sarah Bargiela, Illustrated by Sophie Standing
Interview by Jen Elcheson, Spectrum Women Sections Editor, Feature Writer, Interviewer Camouflage is a Jessica Kingsley Publishers (JKP) new release this year in the ever growing literature on autism in girls, women, and gender-non-conforming people. Are you or someone you love newly diagnosed and don’t know where to begin, what book to start with, and looking for an informative, user friendly basic primer on how autism can present in girls and women? Are you a clinician who is brushing up on your research? Look no further! This accessible easy to read book is a great starting point of reference on […]
Featured
My Gratitude List by Jen Elcheson
Recently, I was talking with a friend I had not spoken to in a while. As I updated her on all the current happenings in my life, we both came to the realization that I have much to be grateful for right now and should write something about gratitude; so when things get bumpy, I will have something to fall back on. Also, as my autism diagnosis/professional identification turns 20 this year, it could not be a better time to do this! There is a lot of talk around gratitude in popular culture, social media memes, and psychology right now […]
Featured
Interview: Meet Cynthia Zuber
Spectrum Women Magazine Interview by Jen Elcheson Cynthia Zuber is a health and wellness writer from the U.S. who lives in the state of Minnesota with her husband, their adorable dog Jonah, and their 18 year old black cat, Juniper. Cynthia, now 43, professionally identified as having Asperger’s (which in North America, according to the DSM-5 is ASD Level 1, or autism) at age 40, recently joined the autistic blogosphere with her Facebook based blog, The Neurodiverse Woman, which she hopes to eventually turn into a website. Her musings are deep and insightful, brimming with self-awareness, and empowering sentiments that […]
Featured
AUTISM, LITERALLY!
A Spectrum Women collaboration, edited by Maura Campbell, with Barb Cook, Jen Elcheson, Christine Jenkins, Terri Mayne, Kate Ross and Lisa Toner Morgan. Us folks on the autistic spectrum have a tendency to take things a bit too literally sometimes. Even when we get the meaning of a phrase, though, our active imaginations mean we can have great fun when we take things verbatim… 1. “I’ll have to call you back — I’m in the middle of my dinner” That could get messy. 2. “I’m just going to go jump in the shower” Mind you don’t slip! 3. “I can’t […]
Featured
15 THINGS YOU SHOULD NEVER SAY TO AN AUTISTIC WOMAN
A Spectrum Women Compilation, edited by Jen Elcheson and Maura Campbell Barb Cook, Dena Gassner, Renata Jurkevythz, Anita Lesko, Becca Lory, Terri Mayne, Yenn Purkis, Kate Ross, Lisa Morgan Content Warning: ableism, paternalizing, bullying, sexism (pretty much a smorgasbord of awful). We present to you another collaborative piece where we discuss a bunch of things people should not say to autistic women (or, indeed, to any autistic person, female-presenting or otherwise) and why saying them can be negative from an autistic perspective. 1. “Are you sure you’re autistic?” Trying to talk someone out of their diagnosis, questioning their identity, saying […]
Featured
Non-Verbals and Me by Jen Elcheson
“Smile,” “look, natural, Jen,” “stop making funny faces,” “stop moving,” “look at me.” Those were just some of the things that were said when I was younger. This didn’t just happen when my photo was being taken, it also happened whenever someone wanted to get my attention. I did not even realize my idiosyncratic body language/movements or facial expressions (or lack thereof), and was actually doing what came natural to me at the time, whether it was zoning out or looking perpetually astonished like the proverbial deer in the headlights (those are just a couple of examples). To further confound […]
Spectrum Women Authors
Meet the Spectrum Women Book Authors: Jen Elcheson
Spectrum Women: Walking to the Beat of Autism is now in its final stages of publication, preparing to be printed for the wide world to see by Jessica Kingsley Publishers, we, the Spectrum Women and authors of this book, felt it would be a great opportunity to tell you a little about ourselves and the reasons why we were part of this incredible project. Each Spectrum Woman has a unique story to tell and today we would like to introduce you to Jen Elcheson… Hello Spectrum Women Readers! I live in Prince George, British Columbia, Canada, a small northern […]
Employment
Tech Reject and Still Autistic. An Opinion Piece by Jen Elcheson SWM Features Writer
It goes without saying that autistic people should have reasonable access to gainful employment in a supportive and understanding workplace. How ‘inclusive’ is it when people automatically assume the most suitable jobs for autistics are always in the tech industry? What about those of us who are lucky enough to just be able to navigate the basic functions of our computers or electronic devices and are employed or seeking employment in non-tech industries? Are we not worthy of support and accommodation? Don’t we deserve the job or career that best suits us? All I know is society still has a […]
Insights
Autistic and Damn Proud of It! ~ Jen Elcheson
It wasn’t too long ago that I could admit to myself that I am truly damn proud to be autistic. It was a serious lesson in self-acceptance. Learning to accept being autistic meant learning to accept myself. As I have mentioned in some of my other writings, my diagnosis story differs from the narratives of the later and recently diagnosed autistic people featured nowadays. I was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome in late 1998 right after I turned 17, as my school, counsellor, and mom were concerned about how I was getting on socially and wanted me assessed. This was back […]