Happy New Year!!
It’s been a short while since I last posted on here, as I have spent most of Christmas in my home town of Manchester; trying to catch up with family and outrun a cold (a race which I lost – abysmally).
Nevertheless, I’m on the up now and, before we go into a new week of this new year, I wanted to give you 3 quick updates with where Autistic & Unapologetic is heading in 2020.
Changes to Autistic & Unapologetic in 2020:
1. A New Kind of Content
The site has always focused on explaining autistic concepts, sharing the autistic experience and keeping people up-to-date on the autism community as a whole. However, despite the rare venture, I don’t explicitly discuss support techniques such as therapies and interventions (even though this was something I outlined in my first post – back when I thought that including citations on informal British sayings, like ‘waffle’, was a good idea).
This was largely due to how vast the spectrum is (and me not wanting to promote one support route in particular if it isn’t going to make life’s little challenges easier for everyone). However, as this doesn’t stop people emailing me and asking me for advice on these topics anyway, I have decided that, moving forward, I will no longer shy away from discussing the grey areas of autism therapy.
2. A New Look to Old Posts
There are now well over 100 articles on Autistic & Unapologetic and, as we move into a new year for the site, I would like to revisit some of these articles to update them with both the information discussed in point one of this post, as well as all the new information which I have learnt since starting this site in late 2017.
Don’t worry though, as these updates will not be coming at the cost of any of my old posts. They do mean, however, I will be jumping on the #ThrowbackThursday bandwagon across most of my social media. Also, in addition to this, I have recently been umming and ahhing over a new experimental way to share content from the site and, while I am both cautious and excited to see how this can be achieved, I think using these golden oldies might be a good way to implement said new approach (but more on that later in the year).
3. Autistic & Unapologetic Drop-In Sessions
Finally, it is with much shame that I admit that, when it comes to giving the awesome followers of this site responses to the enquiries which you send my way, my replies are usually slower than an asthmatic snail. This isn’t just a problem with my advocacy life though, but with my work and social life too as, whilst trying to balance all three, I get muddled up and often drop all my plates at once.
As of January 1st 2020, I am committed to improving my communication sitewide by, firstly, just being better, but also by implementing fortnightly drop-in sessions on my Facebook page where you can ask me anything for 1 hour and I will respond promptly.
One More Thing!
When I started thinking about all the changes which needed to be brought to the site in 2020, I have to admit there was a little panic in my head – as I worried about how I would balance all this with my fulltime job, an additional course and the little matter of planning my wedding. However, after writing this all down, I can’t deny I am VERY excited for what’s to come in the year ahead.
This is in no short part due to how brilliant I believe our little segment of the internet has become over the last few years. As such, I wanted to say thank you to everyone who has been involved and enjoyed my writings on this site. You guys really are my inspiration for carrying on and, through your continued support, you keep this page a joy to work on.
So, thank you to everyone who has taken the time to check out Autistic & Unapologetic over the recent years. I hope that in 2020 every one of you reaches your potential just as I intend for the site to reach its.
Carry on the Conversation:
As always, I can also be found on Twitter @AutismRevised and via my email: AutisticandUnapologetic@gmail.com.
If you like what you have seen on the site today, then show your support by liking the Autistic & Unapologetic Facebook page. Also, don’t forget to sign up to the Autistic & Unapologetic newsletter (found on the sidebar on laptops and underneath if you are reading this via mobile) where I share weekly updates as well as a fascinating fact I have found throughout the week.
Thank you for reading and I will see you tomorrow for more thoughts from across the spectrum!
