TL;DR

• Society’s Failure: The cycle of forced “neurotypical” performance leading to severe burnout and a subsequent denial of support.
• Physical Toll: Burnout isn’t just exhaustion. It’s a health crisis involving cognitive decline and shortened lifespans.
• Dream House: Posted a pic of my ideal living room.
• Updated for clarity on 12/25/25.

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I’ve been trying to get clear thoughts on this, but it’s pretty simple. Burn the autistic person out by demanding they be neurotypical. Then deny them assistance when they burn out. Also, pretend not to understand… anything.

It probably sounds like nothing to them because they use the term “burnout” without thinking about it. But the health consequences are severe. I just saw an article on how many autistic people have unspecified dementia. (Hello – thanks, society!) Wow, can’t figure out the cause of that. All of this shortens lifespans, but let’s pretend “not to understand” so we don’t have to do anything. Clever.

Some autistic people who don’t have to spend the day around NT people (especially at work) are unlikely to experience this kind of burnout, so that’s why they call it “optional” for lack of a better word. But I’ve gotta eat, so I have to be in their world.

All they have to do is stop requiring NT behavior, OR give assistance once the person is burned out, AKA more disabled. But hey, that’s humane. So, not happening. No chance.

The most humane thing is obviously to stop asking people to do what they cannot. Stop requiring a neurotypical performance for work, safety and (basic) shelter.

So leave us to languish. Okay. I guess they don’t mind being affected by this either. We aren’t in a vacuum despite other people’s desires. They made their choice. But don’t lie, pretend, and act confused about it. I get it. They made their decision, but they can’t seem to claim it.

And please don’t ask us to do anything for you, or continue to ask autistic people to deny their biology. That’s the very least people can do. It doesn’t lessen the harm, but it doesn’t add to it.

If it’s not clear, I have zero patience for anyone who doesn’t understand the dire consequences of doing nothing. Imagine someone constantly hurting you and pretending that nothing is going on. Yes, there are terms for that, but I prefer to spell it out.

(I didn’t even mention how disabled people -not just autistic people- often stay at the same job a long time, are good workers, and can’t get promoted to another job within the company. This is proven by stats, of course. Another problem that makes this situation even worse.)

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It’s Christmas Eve. I worked (lol, burnout much?), and I still have 1 hour left at my part-time job. I’ve only had one Christmas Eve off since college, unless it fell on a weekend.

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Still not eating much, but I am eating solids, if chicken noodle soup counts as a solid. I had to break up eating soup constantly with 2.5 tablespoons of tuna for lunch today. Need the protein. Need the calories.

I’ve probably been getting 300 calories a day for a week! I was already unintentionally losing weight, and now, ugh. I’m screwed. Maybe I got 400 calories today.

I hate that they advertise things as low-calorie. Tuna: only 80 calories. Uh, I need more calories. Please put hidden stuff in it to make it 200 calories. Do whatever, since this is all I can eat.

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I chose five pictures and asked ChatGPT to put together a room. Loved the output. This would be my dream living room. It’s great for a person with visual-spatial deficits because of all the shelving with open containers. Some suggest clear containers, but they should at least be labeled. And I don’t think my dog’s paws would like rugs, but I like those rugs.

This could motivate me to clean up and organize. But my house couldn’t be more opposite of this picture. Plus, I would have to buy stuff to make all this happen. And right now, very low energy since I’m not eating. But anything could happen in the future.