Do you think autistic people constantly need reminders?

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Yellow-bellied Woodpecker
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28 Mar 2024, 9:31 pm

Why or why not?



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28 Mar 2024, 9:44 pm

I don't know if it's an autistic thing but I definitely do. The second I moved out of my parents' house I became much more forgetful because they weren't there to remind me of things. I didn't even realize they reminded me that often but clearly they did. I have all kinds of alarms and timers on my phone because it's the only way I can remember things.
So yes, I constantly need reminders.


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DazyDaisy
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28 Mar 2024, 10:26 pm

It would be of great help to me, not because I forget things but because I tend to hyperfocus and is hard for me to shift that focus from one activity to another. Even if I planned a day and it happened that I occupied myself in the meantime with some things I really like to do, I can go like that for a whole day, even two or three days in a row, without leaving home (if I have what to eat). And I really hate it, because it is not healthy, no matter how much I enjoy "my special interest" activity.

So, although I am not the big fan of AI, in this case I would really like to have a personal digital assistant who would I program to literally remind me of all the things I need to do, but not in forms of alarm clocks. Maybe like a voice from my phone.. sounds stupid and I sound like a freak to myself, but if it could help me - I wouldn't mind being stupid and/or freak.


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Fireblossom
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29 Mar 2024, 3:56 am

Probably depends on the person. I can live my life just fine without getting reminders from others, but then again, I have pretty set routines, so that makes remembering stuff easier.



Benjamin the Donkey
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29 Mar 2024, 11:20 am

I do. It's often very frustrating.


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29 Mar 2024, 11:30 am

I'm sure some of us do.


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29 Mar 2024, 1:45 pm

I have routines. Sort of a reminder. "I just did X so now I should do Y."

I leave visual reminders for myself. Prescription bottles positioned where I'll see them during my morning routine and positioned so I know whether or not I've taken them, yet. Notes on my dresser or desk to remind me of something I have to do.

And I've told my PC calendar to remind me of things.


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29 Mar 2024, 11:42 pm

i do
i use a calendar and reminders on my phone for pretty much everything.

example

phone goes off at 5:55pm with a reminder to feed the cat

normally i'll remember but i like to have the reminder there in case i have a lot to do that day that i need reminding

i've put it down to executive functioning???

i have heard that poor executive functioning can be a symptom of autism



autisticelders
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30 Mar 2024, 7:09 am

depends on the person. there are a lot of different ways to help remind us of "things we have to do". Talking with an occupational therapist can help you set up a system that works for you. I use a calendar and a bulletin board, son has everything programmed in apps on his phone, there will be something "out there" that can work for you.


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CockneyRebel
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30 Mar 2024, 8:43 pm

I know I constantly need reminders. My short term memory works like an old, rusted engine.


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SharonB
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31 Mar 2024, 12:22 pm

I'm ASD/ADHD and so not sure how much is which. I "live in the moment" and can forget something in an instant. I'll agree to do something and within 5 seconds see something and forget what I was wholeheartedly intent on doing. My kids are nice about it: "Mom, did you...?" Me: "Oh, right, on it!" I have reminders on my calendar for near everything (schedule this, pay/cancel that, call or check on someone). As far as daily chores and daily self hygiene? They just don't happen often. Even with reminders I don't have the oomph to do them. My ASD BFF is much better at daily chores and self hygiene but then she doesn't have as much going on as I do, so she has "room" for that stuff.



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31 Mar 2024, 12:30 pm

I have a small plate, so things fall off easily and typically if something gets placed on my plate, other things will fall off.


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ToughDiamond
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02 Apr 2024, 4:30 pm

Possibly, in some cases, because we tend to have memory problems. Depends on the nature of the reminder system though. All the automatic ones I've tried tend to pester me at awkward times no matter how carefully I try to set them up.

But the reminder feature built into the Thunderbird email client is quite intelligently designed and seems to be as good as these things get, as long as I'm using my computer on most days. Even with that I find it nags me annoyingly unless I'm always very clever about configuring the reminders. And it's not "cloud-based" so if the computer breaks I'll be lost. It's a portable program so I could keep it on a flash drive, but the flash drive could break. I did copy it to a flash drive once, but keeping the copy I don't use up to date is a pain in the butt for some reason, and it doesn't get done. Story of my life - something becomes very useful, I become dependent on it, invent a strategy to mitigate the effects of losing it, get bored with maintaining the strategy, stop bothering, then it lets me down. But so far, so good.

I suppose Google or whatever might be more unbreakable, but I don't trust Google with all that personal data. Thunderbird is private, local, and without nonsense.

I certainly benefit from constant reminders, or more accurately, from timely reminders. Constant reminders get annoyingly distracting and I stop heeding them.