Autism Stories Autism Stories: Marilise Blignaut
Dec 29, 2025
Marilise Blignaut, a registered nurse and creator of MB Studio, shares her journey as an autistic woman dedicated to creating accessible educational resources. She passionately discusses improving primary care for autistic patients by fostering collaboration and checking biases. Marilise highlights the unique sensory challenges nurses face and the importance of self-care to avoid burnout. She also reveals how she leverages AI to craft empathetic communication while advocating for visually engaging educational materials that support neurodivergent individuals.
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Public Unmasking Sparked Her Advocacy
- Marilise began publicly unmasking as autistic in May 2025 and started writing about her experiences on Medium.
- She connected with others via LinkedIn and expanded her autistic advocacy from there.
Hyperfocus Masks Sensory Overload
- Hospitals are a sensory avalanche but hyperfocus can enable excellent performance in crises.
- The bigger cost is post-shift recovery needs and depletion after intensely stimulating shifts.
Treat Patients As Experts; Advocate Persistently
- Healthcare professionals should check biases, meet patients where they are, and treat them as experts on their lived experience.
- Autistic patients should persistently advocate or bring a support person to appointments when needed.