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About CY: I am 25 years old and was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) at the age of 15. I am currently working as a project assistant at a sheltered workshop and is responsible to train people with disabilities to produce goods. Some hobbies I enjoy are reading, cycling, volunteering and hiking. I have produced and hosted a RTHK radio show called “A Child? A Guy!” to help spread ASD awareness and support. My wish is to bring positive changes in the society. |
People are gregarious by necessity, especially in the modern world today, and social interaction skills are essential for the daily functions of individuals. However, people with ASD face great difficulties in developing these essential social skills and it becomes very challenging for us to integrate into the society. Thus, individuals with ASD are prone to be socially isolated.
A friend of mine with ASD, simply due to the fact that the store assistant that he was familiar with was not present at that moment, he felt insecure and did not dare to enter the store to purchase an eraser; a friend of mine who is passionate in teaching, he failed to resolve the conflicts among his colleagues and had to quit his dream job due to the social challenges he faced; some people with ASD are very sensitive to sensory information thus have to change their living routines and are not able to live with flexibility.
These examples are only the tip of the iceberg. It is not hard to imagine how many repeated failures and negative emotions people with ASD experience every day. What is worse, some may turn to self-harm to relieve these frustrations.
Take myself as an example, I have very low confidence and always have this thought that I am not as bright as others. My co-workers think that I am too impulsive. I always create conflicts with others; I get offended from other’s jokes, always thought they are mocking me. I am also insensitive to gossip and rumors that circle around.
Flashback to my secondary school life, I was bullied all the time. I got flicked with rubber bands and felt like I was a “toy” to others. I gradually developed fear of people since then. High school was the hardest time of my life – I did not feel accepted and was very confused about my self-identity. Worse still, the surge of cyberbullying made me feel incredibly uncomfortable. Not to mention my love life – I had difficulty expressing my feelings appropriately, driving people away from me. My self confidence was so low that I thought people will criticize me for having affection for someone.
After that, I studied a diploma program where I encountered people with different backgrounds. Sadly, the shadow of being bullied did not fade and I was still very scared of being isolated by my new circle. The fear was so intense that when I had a new haircut I was so afraid I would be teased by my classmates and I kept pulling my hair to release the anxiety. Due to my lack of understanding in social rules, it was impossible for me to fit in.
The accumulated incidents during my school life made me come to a realization that changing a new social circle was not effective in rebuilding a new image of myself. I was determined to reestablish my self-identity through participating in community service and I have learnt about The Spastic Children’s Association of Hong Kong (SAHK) by chance.
I have allied with other high-functioning ASD individuals and formed a mutual-aid self-help group with the assistance of the organization. We meet regularly and are involved in different activities such as publishing online articles, hosting radio shows and volunteering. For example, we have organized a workshop to help improve learning and behavior of children with special educational needs. Also, we were able to share our experiences with other self-help groups organised by people with other disabilities.
Everyone in this small yet supportive group faces similar difficulties and problems. We help ourselves through sharing and discussing each other’s challenges, successes and failures. We were able to grow together during this process. I feel more confident and empowered to face the challenges ahead.
I also want to take this opportunity to let people with ASD to know that you are never alone. We are all going through what you are experiencing even though it seems like people around you don’t understand what you are going through. You have to stay strong to cope with all the ups and downs in life.
If your family members, friends or colleagues are struggling with ASD, try to understand from their perspective. Please understand that they have great difficulties in processing all the social cues and situations they encountered. They are not slow or stubborn. Explain the situation to them in a simpler and direct way to facilitate your communication. Also, I encourage you to explore our strengths and ability. Many people with ASD are able to work successfully, live independently and integrate themselves into the society. We strongly believe that we can change the world by strengthening our mutual aid networks and building an inclusive society.
To help individuals with ASD integrate into the society, everyone, including those without ASD, need to work hand in hand to achieve the best outcome.
Facebook Page：香港耀能協會青年發展平台自助小組
Only available in ChineseThanks CY for sharing his experience and being interviewed by Beverly Chong (AP Lead Behavioral Therapist) and Kelvin Ho (AP Senior Behavioral Therapist)
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CY 自我介紹: 今年25歲的我，於15歲時為確診自閉症人士，現職庇護工場活動助理，負責管理智障及傷殘人士生產貨物秩序。閒時喜歡閱讀、踏單車、當義工和行山，亦曾擔任香港電台節目「星球人有話兒」統籌及常駐主持，宣揚自閉症人士助人自助的訊息。志願是幫助社會，在各方面為社會帶來正面改變。 |
自人出生以來，就已經是生於社會中，尤其是現今世代。如何能夠與社會接觸，社交能力及互動技巧是不可缺乏的。但這些技能的缺乏，一些少眾，尤以自閉症人士而言，或因難以融入社會，而與社會所隔離。
我身邊有患自閉症的朋友因相熟的文具舖售貨員不在，而不安到不敢去買一枚擦膠；有人志願做老師，但因社交困難完全不懂如何處理同事們間的是非鬥爭而被迫放棄工作；有人因感統敏感而影響生活，需改變生活習慣，不能自由生活…自閉症人士面對著種種日常的負面經歷，容易積壓情緒而起伏很大，有些更會用自殘行為去宣洩。
在我而言，自感整體自信很低，總覺得自己比別人遲鈍。工作時，常被評太衝動，周不時與同事頂撞，只因別人說笑調侃，卻即時覺得是挑釁，對是非亦非常不敏感。回想起中學校園生活，我初中起已承受著各種滋擾如被彈橡根，自我感覺似別人的玩具，漸漸對人產生懼怕感。高中時簡直是人生低谷，自我認同亦相當混亂，不覺被任何人愛，當時剛冒起的網絡欺凌氣氛太濃亦令我常感不安。感情上，我很不懂如何正常表達而嚇跑人，自信低落到連喜歡一個人亦怕被眾人評價。
及後，我開始了毅進的進修生涯，當中遇見來自五湖四海的同學，因著中學生活滿有陰影，深怕不被新圈子歡迎，我的懼怕感嚴重到連轉了個髮型，因怕被取笑而不安到猛拔頭髮。不通社交規矩的我，實在難以融入大家。
毅進生涯令我感到即使轉了圈子也無助建立新形象，便痛定思痛，希望透過社會服務作出一點點貢獻，重組自我。機緣巧合下，我接觸了香港耀能協會，在其協助下，我和其他同患自閉症的同路人組成了一個自助小組。我們定期見面，曾辦「同路同行工作坊」，教有特殊學習需要的小學生改善學習和行為問題；我們亦在社交網站寫連上載文章、辦義工活動，更為港台錄節目，亦與其他的自助組織作誇團體交流，聯合辦活動。或許，無獨有偶，部分與我相近的同路人，其實都是受限於社交能力，想有所發揮但卻缺乏機會，對於如何與人互動，都是困難和充滿挫折的。或者就是共同的經歷及身份，這亦是一個呼召，要使我們聚在一起。經過參與自助小組之後，雖然規模不大，但是這亦是一個機會讓我學習和發揮，亦增強了自信，令我雄心萬丈的迎接新的挑戰。合作過程中，大家都在互相磨合，一齊成長，亦為明天漫長的自助之路踏出第一步。
我亦希望在此勉勵同有自閉症的朋友，縱使世界不明白你，或遇上不快時，試想想其實你並不孤單，記著要使內心強大，在面對社會的洪流時才更有能力去應付，你亦可聯絡我們（本文底部有面書專頁資料），我們這群同路人可與你互勉互助。若你不是自閉症人士但身邊有自閉症的家人、朋友或同事，請多加諒解他們，有時他們並不是遲鈍，而是當下難以分析太複雜的情況，你可嘗試用直接的言詞簡單地解釋，那可促進溝通。試試發掘我們的優點及工作能力，我們很多也可以生活獨立、成功就業及融入社會，也多多跟身邊人分享自閉症的資訊，使各方更明白我們的處境。我始終深信只要社會同心共融，「互助」的概念不會只限於自閉症人士圈內，而是與各界互助。
歡迎讚好:
專頁名稱：香港耀能協會青年發展平台自助小組
感謝CY撰寫文章及接受莊頴嘉（AP高級行為治療師）及何梓軒（AP資深行為治療師）的採訪
請分享，讓更多人了解自閉症及學習更多應用行為分析（ ABA）的治療技巧。
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