The Other Autism

Dr. Elaine Aron and her husband coined the term highly sensitive person (HSP) in the 1990s. Since then, her books and online content on the subject have become widely read and discussed. I'm not the first to see an overlap between the HSP trait and autism, and I won't be the last! 

Topics discussed also include:

• An overview of the HSP checklist
• Getting into some details about Dr. Aron's now-deleted FAQ website content on HSP and autism
• Specific ways that Dr. Aron's work can be helpful to autistic people
• The HSP trait and how much it aligns with the so-called "female autism phenotype"

If you'd like to know more about topics discussed in this episode, check out:

The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You by Elaine N. Aron

"Are You Highly Sensitive" —a checklist by Elaine Aron, 1996

"My Hypersensitivity Is Real: Why Highly Sensitive People Have ADHD" by Zoë Kessler

"Journey to Diagnosis for Women With Autism" by Dori Zener

"Sensory Sensitivity May Share Genetic Roots With Autism" by Nicholette Zeliadt

"An Update on Psychopharmacological Treatment of Autism" by Aishworiya et al.

"Biomedical Interventions - Medications" an ASD fact sheet, from Synapse.

Episode intro and outro music: "Sweet Dreams - Middle-East Remix" by Maarten Schellekens (no changes or modifications were made)

All episodes written and produced by Kristen Hovet.

Send in your questions to [email protected]

Buy me a coffee!

The views, opinions, and experiences shared by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or production team. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any decisions related to your health, fitness, or wellness. 

Did you know that most, if not all, autistic people have sensory processing differences and that many have some combination of hyper-reactivity and hypo-reactivity to different types of sensory stimuli? In this episode, I talk about sensory processing differences and how they could be THE core feature of autism.  

Topics discussed also include:

• How sensory differences impact adaptive functioning
• Answering a listener question about my own sensory differences
• An overview of sensory seeking and stimming

If you'd like to know more about topics discussed in this episode, check out:

"The Impact of Atypical Sensory Processing on Adaptive Functioning Within and Beyond Autism" by Neufeld et al.

"Sensory Processing in Autism: A Review of Neurophysiologic Findings" by Marco et al.

Episode intro and outro music: "Outer Space" by Maarten Schellekens (no changes or modifications were made)

All episodes written and produced by Kristen Hovet.

Send in your questions to [email protected]

Buy me a coffee!

The views, opinions, and experiences shared by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or production team. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any decisions related to your health, fitness, or wellness. 

In this episode, I answer a listener question about autism's impact on my education and learning experiences. 

Topics discussed include:

• The challenges AND benefits of being autistic in the context of school and learning
• Aspects of my autistic brain that made learning easy, and the subject I struggled with most
• Contributing factors leading to a long interruption during undergrad

Episode intro music: "Walking on Clouds" by Audiobinger (no changes or modifications were made)

Episode outro music: "Love Is Not" by Broke For Free (no changes or modifications were made)

All episodes written and produced by Kristen Hovet.

Send in your questions to [email protected]

Buy me a coffee!

The views, opinions, and experiences shared by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or production team. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any decisions related to your health, fitness, or wellness. 

What are some traits that autistic adults might experience, especially those with late-diagnosed autism? And what does the female autism phenotype have to do with all of this? 

Topics discussed also include:

• Some of my own autistic traits, starting from infancy till now
• The impetus for seeking an adult autism diagnosis
• Looking for a psychologist for adult autism diagnosis

If you'd like to know more about topics discussed in this episode, check out:

"The Female Autism Phenotype and Camouflaging: A Narrative Review" by Hull et al.

"The Experiences of Late-Diagnosed Women With Autism Spectrum Conditions: An Investigation of the Female Autism Phenotype" by Bargiela et al.

Episode intro music: "Upbeat" by Jon Luc Hefferman (no changes or modifications were made)

Episode outro music: "Golden Hour" by Broke For Free (no changes or modifications were made)

All episodes written and produced by Kristen Hovet.

Send in your questions to [email protected]

Buy me a coffee!

The views, opinions, and experiences shared by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or production team. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any decisions related to your health, fitness, or wellness. 

Autism and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EMDR) — are they a good match? Recent findings suggest that EMDR might be particularly helpful for autistic individuals in relieving PTSD symptoms and addressing multiple mental health concerns.

Topics discussed also include:

• An imaginary autism island and what this has to do with diagnostic overshadowing
• What EMDR therapy entails and the proposed theories to explain how it works
• The challenges that many autistic people have with cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)

All episodes written and produced by Kristen Hovet.

Send in your questions to [email protected]

Buy me a coffee!

The views, opinions, and experiences shared by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or production team. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any decisions related to your health, fitness, or wellness. 

Autism and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are often co-occurring — in other words, they're often seen together. In fact, many autistic people on their diagnosis journey often wonder if they're autistic or living with complex PTSD. For this reason, it's important to have a good understanding of PTSD symptoms and why being autistic might increase chances of developing PTSD. 

Topics discussed also include:

• The ways that PTSD can magnify autistic traits
• How PTSD differs from complex PTSD (C-PTSD)
• Attributes of autistic brains that set the stage for repeated PTSD

All episodes written and produced by Kristen Hovet.

Send in your questions to [email protected]

Buy me a coffee!

The views, opinions, and experiences shared by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or production team. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any decisions related to your health, fitness, or wellness. 

Why are autistic people especially prone to being abused and exploited by narcissists and other toxic individuals? What traits tend to leave those on the spectrum vulnerable to predatory types? 

Topics discussed also include: 

• Identifying financial and economic abuse — and the difference between these
• Why couples therapy is not helpful when one person in the relationship has narcissistic personality disorder
• What some of the research shows about autistic people being susceptible to interpersonal violence

All episodes written and produced by Kristen Hovet.

Send in your questions to [email protected]

Buy me a coffee!

The views, opinions, and experiences shared by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or production team. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any decisions related to your health, fitness, or wellness. 

Mast cell activation syndrome and autism. Is there an overlap? In this episode, I talk about the percentage of autistic people who have some kind of allergy or allergic condition, the difference between allergy and food intolerance, and what could potentially underlie some of the food issues and intolerances seen so often in autism. I also go into some detail about mast cell activation syndrome (or MCAS), the symptoms experienced by those who have MCAS, and why MCAS is so hard to diagnose. 

All episodes written and produced by Kristen Hovet.

Send in your questions to [email protected]

Buy me a coffee!

The views, opinions, and experiences shared by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or production team. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any decisions related to your health, fitness, or wellness.