Autism, self-advocacy, and transition beyond high school

What kind of life do you want after high school? Where will you live? Will you be working or going to school? Do not worry if you feel overwhelmed or are confused by these questions. Deciding about your future takes time to figure out. If you are like most autistic people, your plans will change many times as you learn more about yourself.

Transition from high school in particular is stressful for any teenager and may even be scary. Unlike high schools, which are required to identify students with disabilities and accommodate them, after high school it will be up to you to make others aware of your disability and ask for an accommodation. The burden will be on you to address your needs.

One thing you need to do is learn to advocate for yourself. You need to be comfortable with your disability and be able to approach different situations with confidence. It is important that you learn to step up and ask for whatever you need because you will have to do this throughout the rest of your life.

Self-advocacy is about speaking up, making decisions, getting information about things that interest you and identifying who will support you. It is also about knowing your rights and responsibilities, reaching out to others when you need help and learning about self-determination. This is important so you have the knowledge to succeed and the opportunity to participate in decisions about you.

Self-advocacy involves knowing when and how to approach others to negotiate desired goals, and to build better understanding, relationships, and trust. Sometimes it may be necessary to explain why an accommodation is needed or helpful. As such, an important skill for successful self-advocacy is self-awareness. People on the autism spectrum of disorders need to understand how autism affects their interactions with others and need to be familiar with their strengths and challenges.

It is important to advocate for equality but, at the same time, the goal is integration, not segregation. It is therefore equally important to respect ourselves as well as the community. Self-advocates need to appreciate the progress that has been made for people with disabilities and remember that cooperation is the best way to create change.

For more information about autism, transition and self-advocacy, please send an email to as_cnmi@gmail.com.

Vince Merfalen
via email