Thinking Person's Guide to Autism (TPGA): You are now pursuing a Master's degree. Can you talk about why you chose this educational path, and your career goal?

Jordyn Zimmerman (JZ): As you see in the film, I had many experiences which made me who I am today. I want to change the system so students do not have the difficulties I faced with obtaining an education and/or accessing effective communication. I am also very passionate about every student exercising their right to a truly inclusive education.

TPGA: Can you talk about the work it takes to learn to communicate through AAC? (I ask because some people assume AAC is an instant miracle.)

JZ: Learning to communicate through AAC is not easy and there are no words that describe the complexity (and frustration) it entails. Initially, besides using it here and there, I was pretty resistant to the iPad. I did not want to hold it or carry ithowever, once a strap was put on it and I began to wear the iPad, I became more excited about its use.

Still, it took a lot of practice before I transitioned from symbols to typing, and then typing complete sentences. When I really got the hang of it and was able to share so much about my body and what I was feeling, it was exhilarating and beautiful.

TPGA: Do you consider autistic traits like stimming to be good, bad, or neither? Can you talk about that?

JZ: I definitely do not consider stimming to be bad. It is simply a motion to generate a sensory response and/or to help soothe our bodies as we become accustomed to the environment we are in at that time. Sometimes, I become totally engrossed in my hands and make sounds with my mouth.

TPGA: How did running for exercise help you while you were a student at Mentor High School?

The repetitive motion and rhythm of running definitely helped to stimulate and regulate my body so I could handle more of the sensory input I was processing each day.

TPGA: Tell us about Buster, the large dog who makes an appearance in the film. What kind of a dog is he, and what was his role in supporting you?

JZ: Buster is a Cane Corso, which is an Italian breed of Mastiff. He was a trained service dog, who is now retired. Buster supported me throughout my day at schoolproviding deep pressure by physically laying his head or whole body on me, attending to me when I was upset, stopping me from running into traffic, and alerting staff when I needed help.

TPGA: You mentioned that people didnt know what inclusion was when you started college. Can you explain what inclusion really means?

JZ: Inclusion means everyone participating together and feeling a sense of belonging. Successful inclusion isnt about everyone doing the same thing or doing everything perfectly, but people share the same outcomethough, how they get there may be different. The entire community must collaborate and embrace this idea.

For Ohio University Sparkles [the inclusive cheer team Zimmerman founded], this meant forgetting about the what ifs. It did not mean Sparkles doing the same stunts as the OHIO Cheer team, but it meant doing stunts side-by-side and together. It meant adapting to different challenges and celebrating the strengths of everyone.

TPGA: What messages would you like to give to autistic students who don't feel heard, or understand, or supported, as you once were not?

JZ: I was you and I see you.

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This Is Not About Me from This is not about me on Vimeo.

[image: Graphic with a yellow background.

Black text on the left reads, "this is not about me: a story about growing up non-speaking". On the right are black-and-white photos of Jordyn, a young white woman with a large gerber daisy blossom superimposed over her face, and a small Boston terrier-looking dog.]

Disclosure: Thinking Person's Guide to Autism is a partner on the This Is Not About Me film.

Shannon Des Roches Rosa
twitter.com/shannonrosa

"What does the story you tell matter, if the world is set upon hearing a different one?" -Ta-Nehisi Coates

After my autistic son was diagnosed 18 years ago, I went looking for autism and parenting guidebooks. And while I found exactly zero mainstream resources for helping him be a happy and well-adjusted autistic person, I did find a sizable industry centered on "fixing" him, whether through ABA therapy, specialized diets, supplements, or worse.

It's not surprising that humane strategies for parenting autistic children were not selling books in 2003, as the autism zeitgeist had only just moved on from blaming autism on "refrigerator mothers" and exploded into an autism-vaccine-epidemic panic. That era's media outlets would typically only frame autistic children as damaged goods who needed to be reshaped into "normal" children.

But we have long since debunked the autism epidemic and vaccine causation myths, plus autistic people are increasingly writing their own stories about the supports they needed as kidsso why does the publishing industry keep pumping out books about parentsshaming their kids for being autistic, like To Siri With Love,orforcibly traumatizing their autistic kids, like Autism Uncensored? These books receive rapturous praise and acclaim from the mainstream media, while parallel outrage and horror from autistic people and their allies are mostly ignored.

Little Victories is yet another book about a parent resenting having a autistic child (even while very obviously loving them). About forcing that autistic child to make eye contact. About forcing him to tolerate sensory sensations that are painful for him. About forcibly disrupting a child's routines so he won't "cling" to them, even though autistic children find sameness soothing and reassuring.

These are the "little victories" this graphic novel celebrates, even though anyone who pays attention to what autistic people themselves say understands that such approaches are much more likely toharm autistic children than to help them.

I wish Little Victories was that book, especially as people love learning through storytelling. But it isn't. So please, avoid this deceptively heartwarming tale. It mostly only models how to make questionable choices as a parent of an autistic child, and that can only hurt autistic children.

And, publishers? Maybe start publishing books on autism and parenting that don't suck.

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Disclosure: I accepted a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher because I am a cockeyed optimist.