Autistic Culture | Where Autism Meets Identity!

BONUS Episode: When Angela Met Matt...

Oct 25, 2023

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In this episode of The Autistic Culture Podcast:

One of our own podcast hosts, Matt Lowry, LPP, was interviewed on Meg Ferrell’s podcast, “Two Sides of the Spectrum,” about strengths-based autism diagnoses. Listen in to find out why this interview a) made Angela cry, and b) became the catalyst for TACP!

Matt draws from his personal and professional experience working with Autistic children, teens, and adults to criticize how the traditional autism diagnosis process focuses on deficits as compared to neurotypical norms. He contrasts this with his strengths-based diagnoses, which focuses on natural variations in autistic people.

He advocates for diagnosticians to learn about autism as a cultural difference, not a disorder. They should be knowledgeable about diverse presentations in women, trans people, and racial minorities. Autism awareness is inherently flawed and harmful without this understanding.

Meg: And what you're describing is neurotypical evaluators who haven't done their work to understand Autism.Matt: It's essentially a cultural difference.Meg: Yeah.Matt: Because if a white evaluator approaches a person of color, and tries to talk about their deficits in not being white, that's horrifying. And to say, ‘oh, you don't communicate in the same way that I do. You don't have the same cultural touchstones that I do’—that is ridiculously, horrifyingly racist—and it’s the same approach with Autism.

Matt outlines his model of Autistic-centered therapy which focuses on interpersonal skills, trauma, advocacy, and taking care of our “meat bodies,” with sleep and other forms of self-care. This form of therapy for Autistic individuals centers the mental health and wellbeing of the Autistic person, rather than focusing on compliance with neuronormative standards.

He strongly cautions against ABA for autism as destructive and points out that it is aimed at making autistic people indistinguishable from peers at the expense of the autistic individual’s mental and emotional well-being.

Matt reads an early version of the allegorical legend, "The Legend of Autistica," which tells the story of an Autistic warrior freeing people from the oppressive demands of neurotypical society.

The key takeaway is that autism should be approached as a cultural difference requiring mutual understanding, not as a disorder to be fixed. Diagnosticians and therapists should affirm autistic strengths.

Amazing Meg was culturally respectful in this interview. Did you catch some of the green flags? Tell us about it in the comments and use #AutisticCultureCatch to share your answers on social media and connect with other listeners!

Show notes and resources:

Original Two Sides of the Spectrum episode on Meg’s Learn, Play, Thrive website.

*BONUS* Episode: When Angela Met Matt...

BONUS Episode: When Angela Met Matt...