A column by The Autistic Journalist Tyler Ody. North Swindon resident Tyler has been working for Swindon Link for the past four years. From the age of four Tyler has been diagnosed with Classic Autism.

Autism and Interests

Hey everybody! Welcome back to Living With Autism. In Instalment number 14, I will be talking about the interests of autistic people.

Everybody has an interest such as technology and cooking, But people like myself have different interests.

When I was little I used to like things that would spin such as the washing machine as I used to like sitting and watching it when it was on. Another thing I used to love doing was spinning the saucepan lids.

When autistic people have an interest they focus intently on that interest and want to learn as much as possible about it.

Some people with autism have an interest in trains as they quite like the different shapes and the way they move. For others it could be the history or how they are made.

I love to listen to music and I quite like certain singers and bands which I like to do research on as I quite like finding out interesting facts about them. 

Others have interests in TV Shows. I quite like comedies such as Benidorm and My Family, where as some may like kids TV or watching documentaries.

Many autistic people like to cook or bake. I’m a bit of a baker and I like baking with my sister Teagan as she will help me with preparing and the cooking side of it.

Some like to cook a full meal which I can’t do but I would like to learn to cook eventually.

Another interest from my childhood days is toy cars. I used to love playing and used to think I was driving the car.

 My favourite one in particular was a Morrison’s toy lorry which I think was a birthday present. It used to have a door at the back which opened.

Most autistic people are interested in animals because of the texture of their fur as it is quite calming for the individual. 

My favourite animal is the giraffe because I quite like their long necks which helps them eat food off the top of a tree.

I know a lot of autistic people have a lot of interests in many things which I think is amazing. To know about their interests is very helpful for the individual as it helps you get to know them.

Just remember to keep being who you are and keep shining.

Enjoy reading, see you next month