What makes an autism friendly enviroment

Welcome back! I hope everyone is safe and well!

Sorry for the long gap between the last blog and this one. Work has been VERY busy and quite overwhelming if I am honest and time to write blogs hasn't quite happened. My plan going forward is to try and get one post out a month. One a week worked just fine when I was a student but working full time it has proved a bit too much! But I have a few days off so decided it was time to do a bit of writing!

A topic that I was asked to write a post about a while ago was making an inclusive environment. So here goes, what makes an autism friendly environment?

Well the short answer is creativity and a bit of considerate thinking on what is needed to make the environment inclusive to all (Autistic or not!). Throughout the past 2 years of COVID restrictions I think that people have become more aware of this term and I really hope that this is the start of a wider movement to make to world more accessible. 

It is a fairly known fact that autistic individuals experience the world in a different way, this can be both debilitating and empowering and the right environment is so key in getting this balance. To me the most important thing in making an autism friendly environment is thinking about the sensory stimulus. It is also important to remember that each autistic individual have different sensory needs some are hypersensitive (therefore need struggle with a lot of simulation) and others that are hyposensitive (may need more sensory stimulation that others to feel safe).

The easiest way to work though what I think makes an autism friendly environment is to take it sense by sense. However I think it you don't have an autistic brain it is really hard to fully understand this. The national autistic society have made a really helpful short film that gives a small insight into the eyes and ears of an autistic individual and so worth a watch to understand why changes are needed to make an environment autism friendly. 

Too Much Information - National Autistic Society

1. Sound

Next time you are in a supermarket, park, beach etc stand still and listen. What can you hear. This is often used as a mindfulness activity but this time use it as a chance to think about what an autistic individual might be experiencing. For me sound is often the biggest part of a sensory overload, adding on the layers of multiple sounds can just become too much.

When thinking about managing this some sounds cannot be completely eliminated but think about small things that you can reduce. Can music be turned down, can ear defenders be offered, is there an option to move away from the main que to a quieter waiting area?

One really positive thing that has come out of the COVID pandemic is supermarkets are now increasingly offering a 'quite shopping time'. Many food shops have maintained this time even as restrictions have eased, allowing a time for individuals to go into a shop when the music is turned down and lights are dimmed reducing sensory overload.

When it comes to finding quite times at venues it is worth looking on google at the popular time graph. This shows how busy the location typically is at different times of the day, this data I drawn on an average over the last few months so not 100% accurate but definitely worth having a look at when it comes to planning a visit. If you are planning a visit somewhere it is also worth ringing ahead to ask what their quieter periods are. 

2. Sight

Quite times at supermarkets leads on nicely to sight. Again think about what you can see, how bright are the lights etc. Florescent lights can be painful for autistic individuals and in some cases make them feel physically sick. flashing lights can be over stimulating again causing physical pain for individuals. Lots of clutter can be overwhelming there is too much to look at and focus on meaning our eyes are flitting all over the place trying to process all the information. 

Crowded environments can also be really overwhelming, think about have easy the exits are to see/ get to. Autistic individuals can easily become overwhelmed if they feel closed in, it can add to the panic of a meltdown. If it is a seated environment think about placing the autistic individual at the end of the row where they can make an easy escape if becoming overwhelmed. Having easy sight of a door etc can also help to reduce panic knowing there is a way out if the situation becomes too overwhelming.

Think about dimming lights, offering sunglasses, fixing flickering lights (Or turn them off). Think about information such as signs are they cluttered or on bright backgrounds that are likely to distract from the information on them. Again these aren't challenging or out there things but they can make a really big difference to autistic individuals.

If you are preparing for an autistic individual to visit you or a particular area then it can be really helpful to take photos or videos of your setting and send these to the individual in advance. You could also offer a pre visit making the real visit less overwhelming as the individual will know more what to expect and will have had a chance to explore the environment making it less of an unknown.

3. Touch and Space

Like I have said already think about overcrowded areas. If people are shoulder to shoulder this can be a real challenge for autistic individuals. Some autistic people need stimulation from touch to feel grounded for others it can be terrifying and even painful. Being in a position where you have no control about people brushing past can be really overwhelming. 

Again this is where COVID has proved beneficial for the autistic community. The 2m social distancing rule and general awareness of not getting too close to each other has been really beneficial. 

While on the topic of touch a sense of space also comes into this. Something to be aware off is that some autistic individuals find it really difficult to know where they are in space. This can mean that sometimes they can get a bit too close to you than you may feel comfortable with. Please don't make a big fuss. While we need to support each other to know what we do and don't feel comfortable with there is a kind and sensitive way to do this. Think about the wider situation, are they trying to seek comfort or reassurance. They could well also be just making friends in a way that seems a little strange to you! 

To manage this sense of not knowing where they are in a space some autistic individuals may rock, sway, swing etc to give themselves a sense of space again, just let this happen. As long as they aren't causing harm to themselves or others it is not something you need to draw attention to.

4. Smell

Finally think about smell, something as small as your perfume can be really overwhelming to an autistic individual. If you multiple this by the number of people in a supermarket etc this can cause a lot of over simulation for the individual. For some individuals an overload of smell can make the feel or even be physically sick. The same goes of body odours, the smell of cleaning products etc. Just being mindful of smells that you can reduce is really worthwhile. Simple steps such as opening the window after cleaning the bathroom to allow the smells to reduce can make a big difference.

It is worth remembering that autistic individuals can smell things that the average nose cannot smell, so being super cautious/ over sensitive to smell is really helpful.

So that is my whistle stop tour of making an autism friendly environment. Appolagise if it is a bit chaotic I am out of practice of blog writing so feel a bit like this post as been a case of verbal diarrhoea! However I hope that there is something vaguely helpful within my waffle!

Like I said at the start of the post I will aim to get one post out a month so please do let me know any ideas of topics for future posts, I have an ever growing list of requests but always open to more ideas!