Autism Acceptance and Poetry Month

April is filled with celebrations including Arab American History Month, National Minority Health Month, and National Stress Awareness Month. Personally as an autistic poet I am excited to celebrate Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month and National Poetry Month. 

First, as The Neurodivergent Adult pointed out, some of us who are autistic feel like the term Autism Acceptance Month is better than Autism Awareness Month. I have to say I like how my local bookstore phrased it as Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month. I feel like Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month encapsulates the complexities of autistic life journeys.

For example, only a few years ago, I had no idea I was autistic, and once I discovered that I was, I know that when I shared that information with the various communities I am part of, there were different levels of understanding around what that meant. 

I am also aware that in the medical field in general, there is a real lack of awareness around autism, especially around autistic women who were not diagnosed until later in life. So, I feel like awareness is still an important part of Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month.

But rightly, others have shared how acceptance is just as vital to be celebrated: "The goal of the transition to using Autism Acceptance Month is to encourage the culture to accept those of us with autism as we are."

So maybe we should call it Autism Awareness, Acceptance, and Accommodations Month? But even I know that is a bit wordy. So, you will see a range of language used during April, and personally, as long as you are being thoughtful and intentional, I think any of those terms can work. Keep your eyes peeled. I will be exploring being autistic more in later posts this month.