Author Dean McIntosh is an autistic male who was born in the last week of October during the year 1978. As anyone who knows enough about life on the autistic spectrum can imagine, this entailed a lot of abuse and mistreatment.
But it gets worse. Outcomes in life, we are told, are heavily influenced by a number of factors, the most relevant of which here is the age of the mother at the time of birth. Dean McIntosh‘s mother was a few months past her twenty-first birthday at the time of his birth. Growing up autistic in a household, a school system, and a social service system these details entail, has had effects that continue to show themselves even now that middle age has come to pet his face.
In this journal, you will find his musings about why he is what he is, why he cannot help it, and his desperate hope that no other child is forced to become what he is. More than anything, Dean hopes that you will find what he has to say here enlightening.
I Still Find It So Hard... 
http://www.abwfoundation.org/act-now/aatf-open-letter/
It’s a short letter – too fierce for most; too simplistic for others, whistling into the wind for the rest. But perhaps you’ll see it through.
With sincere greetings,
Vorya Yarow
Thank you. I have read this post once now. I will read it again, and comment further on the content in a future post. If not today, then at a point very near to today. Today is proving a bit of a shaky-dazed day for me, however, so I can only promise that I *will* do something soonish.
Hey there! I have nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award! Check out my latest post, and keep up the great work! 😀
🙂 :$ Well, thank you. I am not sure exactly what about this journal merits any kind of award, but it is a very nice thought. And if it results in more people hearing the word, even better. 😀 I hope you will keep up the great work you are doing, too.
Hi! I found you through your comments on the Global news site. You are an amazing writer.
My son is Autistic and I believe I am also (just waiting for my test results). I was horribly abused by my parents also. I hate to connect over such negativity, but such is life and I’m glad I found your blog. Mine is http://onequartermama.ca if you’re interested.
I will check out your journal in due course.
At present, I am trying to apply for government housing, and am experiencing a bit of a breakdown both of mood and coping mechanism, so I have been very, very ill. There is so much I want to write about, yet cannot. *sigh* Maybe someday soon…
In reference to your petition on change.org (user unfriendly): Autistic people have recently started advertising with an image of a child and text asking the observer how nice it would be to eliminate cancer, diabetes, and Autism $peaks during the child’s life time. *innocent face*
Sheogorath, this is a bit like a tease, friend. *chuckle* What you describe is something I would laugh uproariously and happily about. Is there an example or link online where I can see it with my own eyes?
Ah, no, which is why I referenced your petition. I simply took a paragraph from it and altered it slightly as a joke. Sorry to disappoint you.
Yes, I know all about the abuse and mistreatment, especially from misguided fools who thought that what they were doing was in my “own best interests”. People who are so utterly intolerant, or just plain ignorant of, the fact that we can’t all see the world the way they do, are utterly contemptible.
Nice website, by the way.
I have been neglecting this site a lot in the past year and change. I am very sorry I have done that. But I had one commenter who was literally stalking me across not only journals but other services and sites, trying to correct me about the PTSD symptoms I experience when unwelcome people want to get in greater physical contact with me than I am ready to allow. I have written about one such incident from my early days at great length, and it still feels intensely humiliating and upsetting to even think about, so where this person gets off even speaking to me is a good question. I might start working on the site again in the coming days. I am still a bit scatterbrained with all kinds of tasks.
I like your observations about Queensland. I was born there and got out on 1983 at age 22 when the hillbilly asshole dictator joh re-elected. lived in Sydney since and never looked back. Man- what are you doing there!?!
Totally understand your derision about that ace and the people! am also ‘autistic’ by the way. prefer Aspergers syndrome