So ... I’ve been making a few discoveries about myself of late - which I have written about, for instance, here (which also led to information about one of my partner’s past lives), and here - and that post is interesting, among other reasons, for the fact that my adoptive sister had suspected it for many years.
I have another one to add to that list: being neurodivergent - specifically, probably autistic.
It turns out that my partner, who is a counsellor, had suspected it for some years anyway, and in retrospect, I can see it in things such as:
- some personal stims such as chewing my finger nails and, for much of my life, plastic;
- sensitivity to noise and crowds - although that is also connected to being introverted and HSP;
- some of the ways I studied and learned when I was younger (such as, when my adoptive parents bought me my own boat when I was a teenager and I was learning to be a skipper, asking other sailors questions about tuning etc and writing the answers in a little notepad - until one said “everything you say will be taken down and used against you” [which came after my adoptive father suggested I ask questions/challenge the info - I had to learn boundaries & gratitude]);
- having a rich inner life - but that may be tied up with my creativity ... although I do practice conversations - sometimes as part of dealing with past trauma;
- my intense dislike of small talk - but some of this may be connected to my spiritual perspectives ...
Then again, maybe it is the other way round:
- An Autistic shaman talks about how autism and shamanism complement each other;
- Autism, Paganism, psychic ability & the paranormal;
- Living in my own mind: A Pagan With Asperger’s (noting that the term “Asperger’s” is no longer used).
In any case, techniques such as meditation (and use of mood-appropriate music that I like) have helped with all of these sundry issues.
I feel that this also is partly a reward for outlasting corporate work, and partly one of the benefits of simply getting out of the excessive stress of modern working life ...
One resource I have found quite useful with this is Orion Kelly - see https://orionkelly.com.au/ and https://www.youtube.com/c/orionkelly/videos.
I also still recommend Jessica Wildfire’s “Unlikable: A Guide for Different Minds”, which I mentioned here (and, Dear Reader, you now know why I wrote that I was researching autism).
Vote Yes for the Voice in Australia - see this backgrounder.
Finally, remember: we generally need to be more human being rather than human doing, and to mind our Mӕgan.
