Open Invite: Share your experiences of being monotropic.
Share poems, art, blogs, essays, videos, podcasts, music, etc., that reflect your experience of being monotropic. We will publish across Stimpunks & Autistic Realms as part of our community project. Some stories may be chosen for a community ebook that will be openly licensed; if you would rather your work wasn’t included in this please state on your submission.
Map of Monotropic Experiences
You can use our “Map of Monotropic Experiences” for ideas. This map was created by myself, Helen Edgar (Autistic Realms) and offers insights into my own experiences as an AuDHD monotropic person.
We’d love you to share your experience of one or more of these areas.
Share how you travel between areas.
Share what your own Map of Monotropic Experiences may look like – you may like to add or take away different elements.
Would some areas take up more of the map than others?
Has your map changed over the years – what would your childhood map look like?
What do you want your map to look like in the future?
You don’t have to reference the map for your submission. We offer it as optional inspiration.
License: “Map of Monotropic Experiences” by Helen Edgar is
licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
Reflection Questions
Here are some reflection questions to spur inspiration:
- Where are you on the map?
- Where do you want to be?
- How can you get there?
- What support will you need?
- What is your biggest hurdle?
- What new areas would add to the map?
- Are some areas bigger for you? Perhaps you need to expand the mountains of ruminating thoughts or maybe you feel stuck in a giant burnout whirlpool.
- Are you experiencing many areas all at once – how does that feel, and what helps you navigate?
- What does the forest of joy, awe, and wonder feel like for you – what are your passions?
What Is Monotropism?
What is monotropism?
Monotropism is a neurodiversity affirming theory of autism (Murray et al 2005).
Autistic / ADHD / AuDHD people are more likely to be
monotropic (Garau et al., 2023).
Monotropic people have an interest-based nervous system. This means they focus more of their attention resources on fewer things at any one time compared to other people who may be polytropic.
Things outside an attention tunnel may get missed and
moving between attention tunnels can be difficult and take a lot of energy.
Monotropism can have a positive and negative impact on
sensory, social and communication needs depending on the environment, support provided and how a person manages their mind and body.
Community input from various social media platforms to help define monotropism
Collected by Autistic Realms, January 2024
Find out more:
www.monotropism.org
Resources on monotropism
If you would like to go further with monotropism, these might help. Many things in the shop are pay what you can, and lots of resources are free.
- An Introduction to the Theory of Monotropism: a free e-book.
- My Monotropic Map workbook: map your own interests, flow and attention.
- The Map of Monotropic Experiences: explore monotropic attention, interests and flow.
- Embracing Monotropism and Preventing Burnout: my book on monotropism and preventing Autistic burnout in young people.
- Embracing Monotropism (paperback): the same book in print.
- Monotropism resources in the shop: posters, cards and guides, pay what you can.
