We all have something we're intensely passionate about. So autistic or not, we all have an obsession of some sort. However, for the autism community, having an obsession is often portrayed negatively.
Yet, it shouldn't be.
I love using my son's "obsessions," or rather enthusiasms, as Barry M. Prizant calls them, to communicate and connect with my child. For example, J has been is passionate about traffic lights and has been for about 7 months straight now. Most days, after school, he will draw detailed intersections with traffic lights, crosswalk signs, etc. He just lives and breathes them. So I've taken his passion for traffic lights to help him connect not only with me, but with his younger brother with simple activities like this traffic light suncatcher craft and light table activity or this traffic light sensory bin.
And then there's his passion for math. I've already discussed in detail why I use math to connect with my son and how I used his love of numbers to get him to try something new.
So why would I want to squash his obsessions when they provide me with exactly what I need to get him to communicate and connect with us?
And why would I want to discourage these obsessions if they are the exact tools that I need to parent him?
It is my hope that you too will positively view autistic obsessions as powerful tools through these 15 autism quotes about obsessions.
Yet, it shouldn't be.
I love using my son's "obsessions," or rather enthusiasms, as Barry M. Prizant calls them, to communicate and connect with my child. For example, J has been is passionate about traffic lights and has been for about 7 months straight now. Most days, after school, he will draw detailed intersections with traffic lights, crosswalk signs, etc. He just lives and breathes them. So I've taken his passion for traffic lights to help him connect not only with me, but with his younger brother with simple activities like this traffic light suncatcher craft and light table activity or this traffic light sensory bin.
And then there's his passion for math. I've already discussed in detail why I use math to connect with my son and how I used his love of numbers to get him to try something new.
So why would I want to squash his obsessions when they provide me with exactly what I need to get him to communicate and connect with us?
And why would I want to discourage these obsessions if they are the exact tools that I need to parent him?
It is my hope that you too will positively view autistic obsessions as powerful tools through these 15 autism quotes about obsessions.
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15 Autism Quotes About Obsessions
"What I care about - in fact I'm pretty obsessive about this - is the order things come in, and different ways of lining them up...When we're playing in this way, our brains feel refreshed and clear." - Naoki Higashida, The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism, p. 70
"We don't obsess over certain things because we like it, or because we want to. People with autism obsess over certain things because we'd go crazy if we didn't. By performing whatever action it is, we feel a bit soothed and calmed down." - Naoki Higashida, The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism, p. 100
"Sometimes being autistic means that you get to be incredibly happy...You get to have just about the coolest obsessions." - Julia Bascom, The Obsessive Joy of Autism, pp. 10-11
"Every inch of me is totally engaged in and powered up by the obsession." - Julia Bascom, The Obsessive Joy of Autism, p. 21
"Being autistic, to me, means a lot of different things, but one of the best things is that I can be so happy, so enraptured about things no one else understands and so wrapped up in my own joy that not only does it not matter that no one else shares it, but it can become contagious." - Julia Bascom, The Obsessive Joy of Autism, pp. 22-23
"All of these things autistic people are supposed to be ashamed of and stop doing? They are how we communicate our joy." - Julia Bascom, The Obsessive Joy of Autism, pp. 32-33
"Children with autism develop all kinds of enthusiasms...perhaps focusing on one topic gives the child a sense of control, of predictability and security in a world that can be unpredictable and feel scary." - Barry M. Prizant, Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, p. 54
"Discouraging an enthusiasm can be just another way of dismantling a strategy that helps a child with autism feel better regulated - or, worse, removing a source of interest and joy. A more helpful approach is to...use the enthusiasm as a way to expand the child's outlook and improve the child's life." - Barry M. Prizant, Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, p. 55
"When a person with autism develops an interest, we must assume that the particular subject of the interest is a good match for that person's neurophysiology and serves an important function." - Barry M. Prizant, Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, p. 58
"These deep interests can help children stay more engaged and attentive. They can be used to motivate learning and to enable participation in situations that might otherwise be difficult." - Barry M. Prizant, Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, p. 60
"Often an enthusiasm offers the hook to engage a child, the lure to bring him into an activity or a conversation." - Barry M. Prizant, Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, p. 64
"Though they come with challenges, enthusiasms often represent the greatest potential for people with autism. What begins as a strong interest or passion can become a way to connect with others..." - Barry M. Prizant, Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, p. 70
"Obsessions, in fact, can be great motivators. A creative teacher or parent can channel obsessions into career-relevant skills." - Temple Grandin, The Autistic Brain: Helping Different Kinds of Minds Succeed, p. 188
"I'm human like you. I'm not broken or need fixing. I'm passionate about my interests. I can absorb facts like breathing why would you want to eliminate that?" - Tina J. Richardson
"Why do non autistic people have interests/hobbies, But autistic people have obsessions?" - Tina J. Richardson
