Fireworks. Who wouldn’t love them?
Well, lemme tell ya . . .
We spent the July 4th with some of our friends whose son also happens to be on the autism spectrum. He’s got a bit of a different symptom set than I do.
For example, he’s way more coordinated and active than I was as a kid, and while he’s not as hyperverbal, he has an almost uncanny talent for sound mimicry.
He’s been doing exceptionally well with therapy, support, all that good stuff. So, I was surprised and not surprised to see him walk out with these awesome noise-cancelling headphones.
“Yep,” said his dad, “If he’s bothered by a loud noise, he just grabs the headphones and deals with it.”
But here’s what’s interesting:
Loud noises are different strokes for different autistic folks.
It’d make sense for us autistics to be noise-sensitive, but apparently it’s more of an all-or-nothing deal.
Me? I now enjoy loud noises.
Weird, huh? I might not be for commotion or a gaggle of people in my kitchen, but I’m drawn to BOOMING sound.
Fast-forwarding to the fireworks show, there was my friend’s son, jumping up and down, hands to headphones, getting a KICK out of the show, the lights, and the (manageable) noise. It was amazing to see him manage his senses to better enjoy the sensory load.
But I’m all about that feeling – the resonating waves kicking into my sternum, rattling my bones, heaving me back with sonic oomph.
The firework sound doesn’t bother, move, or otherwise delight me. But the splintering crack whipping through the air and cascading down to bump me back into my chair? Yeah, man, bring me more of that.
Just another quirk of the Life Autistic: even the things that’d seem unmanageable can be enjoyable.
The Life Autistic 