autism doesn’t always look the way people expect. for me, it shows up in routines, challenges, and small comforts that keep life steady. over time, I’ve learned how masking, sensitivity, and self-acceptance shape my everyday life and how being on the spectrum has become part of who I am.

Sometimes it’s not the lyrics or the artist, it’s something about the sound itself. For a few minutes, you just feel alive again. That rush is called frisson, the moment music slips past all your reasoning and just makes you feel. It’s not just sound, it’s connection. A reminder that your capacity to feel deeply is still there, even when it hides.