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Author Topic: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum  (Read 2794 times)

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Offline Ponybookworm

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Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« on: September 11, 2020, 04:20:22 PM »
I was told at the grand old age of 28 I had Asperger Syndrome, which is on the Autistic Spectrum, & I've noticed, especially on here, that I'm by no means the only MLP lover on the spectrum. People of assorted ages, born under both sexes, & regardless of other circumstances, who are all on the spectrum tend to gravitate to a world of MLP.

What others on the spectrum cite as reasons for our love of Pony I'll let them say, right here in fact, but for me I feel it's the chance to create our own world we actually have some control over & can predict, as well as a way of preparing ourselves for the more scary aspects of dealing with other people. I personally find other people to be scary & unpredictable, & sometimes their actions don't make sense to me. The real world is full of that as well in my experience.

Ponies are an escape from the real world, as well as having assorted pretty colours we can sort & arrange to our heart's content. I'd arrange Ponies by pose, body colour, hair colour, rumpmark, what have you, as a youngster; while grooming & styling them is like fussing a cat without having to deal with cat litter: very therapeutic. Then there are the plushies/ soft toys, which I can snuggle into when I feel lonely. When I have no human friends, the Ponies can be my friends & I love making a good world for them to live in.

If you're on the spectrum, or know a fellow Pony-lover who is, feel free to add how MLP helps you.
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Offline CloudyGlow

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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #1 on: September 11, 2020, 04:34:07 PM »
I'm autistic, I think it's a diagnosis other than Asperger's. It took me over a decade to find that out. Not nearly as long as you had to wait though, wow!

My Little Pony, and children's cartoons in general, are an escape for me too. As the world gets scarier I've not been able to watch shows and movies that have too much death or darkness. For example, Doctor Who kept killing off characters I like so I just quit because I've had enough hurt from the real world.

My Little Pony is my obsession.  Making vector traces and drawing movie style fanart feels like the only thing I have going for me in life. I have mental health disorders that I feel bad and useless most of the time. I think the tracing is a stim for me. I get into the zone doing them and will make so many in batches. Then I switch to drawing. I love drawing because it gives me control. I can decide to make things that I want to see, and make them look like if they were in the movies. It's the next best thing to being able to control the show itself.

Offline Mana Minori

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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #2 on: September 11, 2020, 04:55:21 PM »
Pretty much echoing CloudyGlow here. Diagnosed with Aspbergers, and It’s a source of escapism for me, with everything going on in the world. Tend to hyperfixate also on certain pony lines more than others, but MLP as a whole is cathartic. Collecting, crafting, writing, theories, oc’s. It all helps.
« Last Edit: September 11, 2020, 04:59:03 PM by Mana Minori »
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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #3 on: September 11, 2020, 05:13:47 PM »
I was diagnosed at 23, which was 15 years ago now. So I had to devise lots of ways of dealing with situations prior to that without being able to explain the things that didn't make a lot of sense to other people. I did a lot of academic things very early. I still can't remember phone numbers, operate an oven (or most appliances, computers are an exception) without supervision/help and I cannot navigate. So that made life interesting.

Why ponies?

I'm guessing things like colour variety, and grooming hair came into it. I always have loved to style the ponies I had, even when I was a kid I would do this quite a lot. And there's some theory that autistic people have a more sensitive colour perception as part of the sensory awareness (I have mild synesthesia as well so I don't know if that feeds into it for me, but again that's kind of another subject...back on topic).

The other reason is that they weren't 'like me'.

I was a blue eyed and blond haired kid. As a kid those were the dolls I hated the most. I am not sure if it was because I could tell I was different from the other kids who 'looked like me', or if it was just that I wanted something that was distinct from me...because autistic people do have issues with self-awareness and separating their own identity out from someone else's at times. So having a toy that was distinct from me would've been more appealing I think.

I am also not too hung up on appearances. I get that for some people it's hugely cathartic to see someone who looks like them in a show or a book or a film, and maybe because I'm a white person I don't understand that in its proper context - but since representations of autism on TV frequently make me angry...I think it's maybe different with invisible disability.

So ponies. Ponies were all colours and shapes and sizes and nobody cared about it. They all got along together even though they were hugely diverse and 'different'. And I liked that it was ok for them to be all different from each other and yet nobody cared that that was the case. Also in the G1 comics, they interacted in their own world with so many other species and peoples and that was cool as well. I think some part of me saw the comic ponies as 'canon' in terms of who they were, but I never played comic setting games with them, I always made up my own. Still, that fantasy world (which aged 5 I believed in, bless) was a big part of it as well.

So in summation...
1. Colour and texture appealing to the senses.
2. The factor of not being 'like me' and thus none of the pressure to be a 'certain way' because of it. (Disclaimer, I can't say 100% that was the reality, but as a kid it was my impression).
3. Imagination and the opportunity to use it.

As for what ponies have done for me...

They got me out and about and travelling, to pony conventions and meets and stuff which I would probably have not done otherwise.

They marked important events in my childhood, and thus created a sense of nostalgia which I won't ever lose, no matter what happens going forward.

They made me learn how to write web coding (something I am working on improving in lockdown) because of my website.

And they allowed me to connect with the kids I worked with when I worked at the college, who also loved pony. Albeit then G4.

There are kind of two ways you can take an obsession if you happen to be on the spectrum. You can use it to push you forward or to hold you back. Mine have always been the former, and pony is one of those.

((Disclaimer note: I am not an organised autistic person, I am not really interested in structures and routine except to make sure that I remember to do a task, rather than anything else. I never organised my ponies by colour, size, height, name or any other reason except whatever took my fancy and most of the time they were just all over the place or in the drawer under my bed. So that particular clause does not apply to me.))
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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #4 on: September 11, 2020, 05:48:39 PM »
I've had a feeling I might be somewhere on the spectrum for quite some time now as I show plenty of typical symptoms (obsessing over the way things are arranged instead of focusing on their function, poor social skills, being more attached to objects than to people etc.) but I have never been officially diagnosed, I don't even know how to do that.
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Offline Wardah

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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #5 on: September 11, 2020, 06:40:11 PM »
Another person on the spectrum here, tho my interest is more vintage and modern fantasy "girly" toys in general than just pony.
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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #6 on: September 11, 2020, 08:01:39 PM »
I suspect I am on the spectrum (ASD level 1, with a touch of ADHD), and customizing and liking MLP has long been a security blanket of mine, I suppose. I like the colors, the hair, and the ability to make the toys however I want, telling their stories in my own way, is empowering and soothing to me. I find that customizing ponies as a hobby is something I've missed, and it helps me feel better as the whole world seems to be falling apart lately, and as my own relationships have been a mess as well. This forum was one of the first I joined and it was through here that I found some of my first online friends. This place means a lot to me, as does MLP.
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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #7 on: September 11, 2020, 09:48:54 PM »
I’m autistic (Asperger’s). I also have a number of co-morbidities that can make life extremely challenging and that greatly limit what I can and can’t do as far as travel, work, and even living independently. Through all of it, MLP has always been a calming, happy presence.

There are so many reasons that MLP is special to me, it was honestly very hard for me to express it a single post... It’s been a part of my life for as far back as I can remember, and I’ve loved it all throughout my childhood, teenage, adolescent, and adult life. If I had to try to summarize the reasons, the list would be:
1. Storytelling, fantasy, and escapism. As a child, I loved to pretend that I was Megan, and that I could go adventuring with my pony friends in another world. MLP also gave me a canvas to project my story ideas and characters onto.
2. Variety/collectibility. So many characters! This again ties into storytelling, as I could constantly be imagining new characters and adventures. The idea of collecting in general is also something that appeals to many autistic people.
3. Hair and fashion play. Dressing up ponies and brushing/styling their manes and tails has always been a calming and even creative outlet.
3. Ponies! I was (and still am!) obsessed with horses and ponies. I retained this childhood interest into adulthood (as is often the case for folks on the spectrum).
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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #8 on: September 11, 2020, 10:25:15 PM »
There's something different about me LOL  I don't have a proper diagnosis.  As my mom put it, "she could only afford for one thing to be wrong with me and my asthma took priority".
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Offline Ponybookworm

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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #9 on: September 12, 2020, 05:09:22 AM »
I had a feeling this thread was needed so I made it. Everybody on the spectrum is different, so while some like to organise, others will prefer to go wild.  This is why I welcome every ASD person's input on here. I just want to thank everybody for not only posting but sharing their experiences. knowing we're not a lone is a good part of the battle for us xxx
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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #10 on: September 12, 2020, 06:47:49 AM »
Though not myself, we have ASD in my immediate family who are MLP fans.

For me the first draw is “Variety on a Theme“. I really like that there are hundreds of ponies but each one is a little different from the others.  I think thats why Carebears also appeal to me.  😀

Secondly MLP are just so sweet and innocent.  no guile.  they feel like a safe place to be. A haven when things get stressful.

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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #11 on: September 12, 2020, 09:57:21 AM »
Oh wow I thought I'd been diagnosed at a late age when I was diagnosed at 19. I've always liked My Little Pony but my ASD focus has always been my art which started to be more focused on ponies at times after FiM came out :) I do find myself constantly looking at the FiM decals I have on my wall in this room and at my pony collection on one of my shelf. I love their eye pleasing colors and designs and it always makes me happy when I look at them. They are really part of what makes my art studio a fun room to be in for me. I have one shelf on that bookshelf that is for my G4 collection and the shelf above it is for G1 and G3. Then on top of the others are my various collectibles like lunch tins, Funko figures and some MIB things.
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Offline LadyAmalthea

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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #12 on: September 12, 2020, 12:20:24 PM »
It's interesting to hear everybody's stories, thanks for sharing them with us! My son is autistic and eats, sleeps and breathes MLP. At first I thought it was the hair play that attracted him to it, as he has always been attracted to hair. I have very long hair (measured in feet rather than inches, haha), and I have to wear it in a bun so that he doesn't snarl it up by putting his fingers in it. He has finally gotten over the compulsion to touch people's hair without asking, and having ponies to groom has helped with that. But I think it has evolved into a mental exercise for him; learning all the names, colors, gimmicks, symbols and accessories that each pony came with and committing them to memory...some details that I don't even think to pay attention to, such as eye color. He catalogs information such as which ponies came with which playsets, and knows details like the fact that some ponies were made with more than one version, such as both so-soft and not, or with 'winky eyes' (BBEs) or not. Basically, he is a collector of information.

I don't know if I am on the spectrum myself. After going through the diagnostic process with my son, I was shocked at the qualifiers that make one autistic. I even said to his doctor that if I had been put through that same screening as a child, I'm almost certain I would have been given the diagnosis of a spectrum disorder. She said I was probably right; testing wasn't routine back then and many kids with mild to moderate autism went undiagnosed.

I know I have something. It may be more of an ADHD/obsessive compulsive-related thing, and it's evolved. When I was a kid there were certain routines and rituals I had to complete, usually involving counting things or chanting/singing a song or phrase in my head a certain number of times before a task could be completed. These tics eased up a bit as I came into adulthood, probably because it just became impractical or unfeasible to hold down a job and be productive when I couldn't finish washing my hands before I sang the theme song to a certain 80's TV show in my head 4 times, or have to count every single tile on the floor of the elementary school bathroom before I could relax enough to pee. The ADHD symptoms manifested more heavily into adulthood; it takes me at least 2 hours to cook even the simplest of meals because I get distracted visually with the things going on in the kitchen and I walk away from what I'm doing so many times and forget what I was doing. I'm very easily overwhelmed, and simple tasks that normal people just breeze through can seem monumental to me. For this reason, my kids and I live a rather isolated existence...we rarely go anywhere, even outside, because the thought of the process it takes to make this happen is overwhelming.

Ponies are a safe and comforting thing, where for chunks of time it can be 1986 in my head while I'm looking at them, and they bring me back to a time when the adults made all the hard decisions and did all the worrying while all I had to do was be a kid. I envy my son that...he truly gets to just be a kid, even if the way he enjoys them is different than most kids.

ETA: For those who came upon a diagnosis later in life...how did it come about that you got tested? Was it at a doctor's suggestion, or were you just curious and pursued it? Just curious! In my country/state, the wait list for a screening was so long that it was 2 years between my son's pediatrician recommending a screening and his actual diagnosis, and our insurance covers absolutely 0% of autism treatment, so I'm not likely to seek any answers regarding my own quirks, but I am interested to know how other adults found answers.
« Last Edit: September 12, 2020, 12:28:04 PM by LadyAmalthea »

Offline Taffeta

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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #13 on: September 12, 2020, 12:36:51 PM »
Autism is genetic, and the spectrum is really broad, so you can have some bits and not others :) My sister is like that - she isn't autistic, but she is more compulsive than I am about certain things and hates change more than I do xD.

The wandering off aspect/losing track of what I was doing is one reason I'm not allowed to use an oven. The other reason is I can't follow recipe instructions because they are always too vague. They imply some kind of unspoken knowledge that my brain doesn't have but which I guess other people do. This is a problem I have with practical instructions in general.

Your son sounds like a great kid, Lady Amalthea. And the detail gathering rings very true to me too. This is one reason I want to be involved still in academia, because it's one of the few places that such detail nerding is really welcome! (Also it's great for learning languages :D)


To answer your question.

I made the decision to get screened myself, and pushed for it with my family through our local GP who helped me get a referral. We had wondered on and off from when I was about 18, for various reasons. I had trouble adjusting to university. The first job I had out of uni lasted 9 days because I couldn't navigate the workplace and I didn't remember where anything was. And I had a couple of unpleasant situations online as well. One was a friend who turned on me at random for something I said but I never understood what that was (and stilol don't, although she later apologised). The other was a concerted campaign of online bullying and stalking by two people in the pony community who took advantage of how naive and idealistic and frankly, unprepared socially I was at 18.  All these things came together and made me and my family want answers. I think we started the process around 2004 and I was diagnosed in 2005.

I also think it was one of the best things I ever did, because since I had that diagnosis I have achieved way more than I did before. It's easier to know what you're dealing with, and being able to explain it is helpful, but in a way the label is more to explain to other people than something that changed me in any way.

It just helps to know what the situation is.

It doesn't do much to prevent discrimination, though. Most of which is not deliberate, but just a lack of awareness. People talk a lot about institutional discrimination but when they do they rarely mention disability, which kind of sums up the problem :/
« Last Edit: September 12, 2020, 03:11:47 PM by Taffeta »
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Offline LadyAmalthea

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Re: Ponies & the Autistic Spectrum
« Reply #14 on: September 12, 2020, 03:07:18 PM »
Thanks for telling your story, Taffeta! I'm glad that you were able to get the answers you and your family were looking for. I agree, having a label is helpful to me, even if it's only for explaining yourself to other people. I had a phobia as a young child (well, still have!), but I didn't know what it was. I just knew that there was a certain thing I was afraid of so badly that I was terrified of going anywhere unfamiliar for fear of encountering said fear, and would get physically sick to my stomach if I did. I knew I was different, and that most people weren't afraid of that thing, and I thought other kids would think I was weird if they knew, and the adults in my life would think I was crazy. I couldn't talk about it. It was debilitating. In high school psychology class I learned what a phobia was, and it clicked in my head that that was what was wrong with me. It helped me be able to talk about it a little, and realized that people were willing to help me, by shielding me from that particular thing, or steering the conversation to safer subjects if that were to come up in a group of mixed people. I know some people don't like labels, but to me, they help me identify who or what I am, and helps me find work-around solutions and coping strategies.

I probably shouldn't be allowed to use an oven either! Or at least a stove. Yesterday i burned up a frying pan because I walked away from sauteeing garlic for spaghetti sauce. I do it all the time. And recipes are the worst...it's too much information at once and I find myself not following the directions because I didn't read far enough ahead.

My mom is about 90% positive that my nephew is also on the spectrum but my sister wants nothing to do with getting him tested. Not sure if it's because she doesn't want the discrimination, or doesn't want to know, or what. I hope she changes her mind.

And thank you, he is a great kid! There is so much misinformation out there, that autistic kids are unemotional and unsocial, and this is just not true! He feels things more deeply than most people I know, but expresses himself differently, and doesn't always know how to socialize the way other kids do. It was so hurtful hearing these 2 girls refer to him as 'that weird kid that kept wanting to sing', and trying to run away from him. We are having trouble getting through all the red tape to get him some extra help in the classroom in the form of a 'shadow', but we are lucky that his new teacher actually used to work with autistic kids, so things look hopeful this year.

 

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