People's stares
Two thoughts;
(1) I don't always manage to do this, but when somebody is staring at me, it can be quite effective to smile at them. They're likely to look away hastily, or else sheepishly smile back, so then at least they're smiling at me instead of staring at me, which is an improvement of sorts.
(2) Fully agree there is (or can be) an autistic vibe that people pick up on. NTs are instinctively hostile to the unusual; they can't help it, it's just the way they were born, same as we were born Neurodivergent and we can't be blamed for that. However, quite often the autistic vibe is a charismatic or intriguing one, rather than a repellent one: they may be staring because they're just interested, not because they're actually reacting negatively. It's still rude of them, of course, but you don't have to be on the autism spectrum to suffer rudeness in everyday life!
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You can't be proud of being Neurodivergent, because it isn't something you've done: you can only be proud of not being ashamed. (paraphrasing Quentin Crisp)
I get looked at weirdly but I can be pretty sure that's because I wear bruise make up to calm me down, sunglasses because of the light and huge sound cancelling headphones. When that's not the case, it's probably because my resting face is terrified and I have been told I look very uncomfortable. In those cases it's them looking sorry for me and I tend to smile back. In general people tend to baby me and protect me.
As for my sister... Whatever she is giving out is causing her to constantly be met with aggression through both looks and words. To make things worse, she is and looks 12. We've given her a badge asking people to be patient because of her autism because while adults may be perfectly fine being mean to a child, when there is a label explaining why said child is a little strange, they can feel guilty if they act the same way.
Yeah, forgot that one! Apparently my resting face is so terrified it can come across as psychopathic fury. In supermarkets, which are terrifying for all kinds of A.S.D. reasons I needn't bore anyone with here, I try to remember to plaster an idiot grin on my face as though I were an elderly vicar or something. Sometimes people even smile back!
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You can't be proud of being Neurodivergent, because it isn't something you've done: you can only be proud of not being ashamed. (paraphrasing Quentin Crisp)
Yeah, forgot that one! Apparently my resting face is so terrified it can come across as psychopathic fury. In supermarkets, which are terrifying for all kinds of A.S.D. reasons I needn't bore anyone with here, I try to remember to plaster an idiot grin on my face as though I were an elderly vicar or something. Sometimes people even smile back!
I agree, supermarkets are indeed that. I wish I had the additional energy but I'm often just trying to get out as fast as possible without having a meltdown or panic attack in public because that sucks.
There is a possibility this would increase the number of unwanted stares...
But that is a consciously flippant remark on my part. I do recognize the pain (not to mention the pure annoyance) behind the question.
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You can't be proud of being Neurodivergent, because it isn't something you've done: you can only be proud of not being ashamed. (paraphrasing Quentin Crisp)
All the fluorescent lamps and the displays, the endless rows of shelves, and the other shoppers, can become a bit much, don’t you find? Sooner or later, usually, my trolley stalls and I grind to a halt, the bright labels and the bright lights spinning, and for an infinite second or two I fear I’m about to wet myself. You know the feeling? Is this why so many people pack their bags willy-nilly at the checkout, with no semblance of method, as if they didn’t care about squashing the squashable things with hard heavy things, nor about keeping the cold things cold by putting them with other cold things? Are they simply in a hurry to get outside before their bladders let go? I couldn’t blame them for that. I try to load the conveyor belt so that the things come down in a sequence sensible for bag-packing. Sometimes a rogue cashier picks them up in an unnatural order and capsizes my whole process; then I end up leaving things behind, in my own haste to get outside. That’s even less sensible than packing the baked beans on top of the tortilla chips, isn’t it? I mean, broken tortilla chips would still taste better than tortilla chips you’ve paid for but left behind.
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You can't be proud of being Neurodivergent, because it isn't something you've done: you can only be proud of not being ashamed. (paraphrasing Quentin Crisp)
Do you have social anxiety? If you do, it's best not to post about being stared at on autism sites like this one because you'll get a bunch of answers that will make you feel worse, like "as an Aspie you're probably flapping your hands or wringing your hands even if you think you are not" or "you probably think you have a high sense of fashion but really you dress like a doofus" or (the most annoying one of all) "you probably give off shy/nervous body language that causes people to think you are a murderer". The way I see it, the more an Aspie is aware of themselves and others the more they're probably good at masking and blending in. But some people (AS or NT) on autism sites seem to think that we are all like Rain Man or Mr Bean or something.
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Female
There are many ugly people walking in the streets. Do you stare at them? If the sight of you produces such negative feelings in someone then it's unlikely that they willingly look at you for longer than necessary. More likely they'd turn away and wipe you from their memory.
Either you are imagining it or they find something about you unusual, be it good or bad. People also give me unkind glances but it can be caused by sth entirely different than in your case. If they don't insult or attack you then just forget about them.
Once when I was 16 I sat in a park during lunch break and when an elderly stared at me for too long I actually did shout: why are you staring at me? (I must have had a bad day) Fortunately he remained friendly.
(1) I don't always manage to do this, but when somebody is staring at me, it can be quite effective to smile at them. They're likely to look away hastily, or else sheepishly smile back, so then at least they're smiling at me instead of staring at me, which is an improvement of sorts.
I tend to nod rather than smile. My smile is quite obviously fake and forced for the most part.
I don't stare at "ugly" people nor do I stare at really attractive people. If I do see a cute guy I usually look at him from an angle, in a casual way so not to intimidate him, and if he does look then I smile. Otherwise I refrain from even making eye contact with passing strangers in the street. But I have strong periphery vision so I can still see if someone is staring - which is even more unsettling when you know you're looking ahead and not at them. Sometimes I let guys off the hook if they stare because it might mean they think I'm attractive, but if a woman stares I think she is judging me. I've learnt I'm not very attractive in women's eyes but I can be attractive in men's eyes.
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Female
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