Same Food and Autistic Wellness
with Laura Hellfeld, neurodivergent (Autistic, PDA & ADHD) health care professional, consultant and advocate
Same foods, or our favourite foods, are the foods that Autistics have a close personal relationship with (I can feel myself starting to smile thinking of mine). We tend to eat our same foods often. Maybe every day or more than once a day and often in a very specific context. In this chat, we discuss how same food is a core trait in the Autistic community and incredibly tied to our mental and physical wellness.
All too often our food choices are discussed solely from a deficit lens. Or people assume that there can only be negative in what they see as limited. But what if we flipped that lens and looked at Autistic food choices as ones that can also bring joy, comfort and physical wellbeing. These food choices are our way to help manage day-to-day demands, higher rates of co-occurring medical conditions and act as accommodations with accessing public spaces and school.
In order to support a community during the tricky times, we need to learn about what wellness means to them and what inherent traits we can work alongside with to create plans of care.
I will also share anecdotes and drawings from Autistic participants who have attended my webinar ‘Same Food as Self Care’. Their experiences will help showcase how these adults have been able to take meaningful steps of self-care when they learned that it was ok to embrace their Autistic trait of same food.
