autism – LittleZotz.com

Tag: autism

My Writing Process: How I Write Posts Online (From Initial Idea to Publication)

Posted on March 22, 2024March 22, 2024 by Lauren Spear

Due to my writing background, every once in a while, someone will reach out to ask me what my thought process is in regard to writing posts online. They’ll ask things like, “Where do you get your ideas?” or “What made you decide to write about that?” or “How do you go from idea to published post?”

I usually don’t have an answer. Or, rather, my answer differs wildly from post-to-post! If you ask me about a specific post, I can tell you how I went about writing it — from germination of an idea to what was finally uploaded — but, in a general sense regarding my posts overall, I wouldn’t be able to describe my “process” in a satisfactory way.

That said, I’m going to tell you exactly how this week’s post on HorrorFam.com happened. Welcome to the inner workings of my mind:

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Chewing as an Oral Stim + ARK Therapeutic Chewelry Review

Posted on May 17, 2022July 16, 2023 by Lauren Spear

This post wasn’t sponsored, but I am an affiliate. Any links to ARK Therapeutic in this post will be my affiliate link. If you purchase anything using my affiliate link, I’ll get a small monetary kickback for referring you at no additional cost to you. It’s a great way to support me/my content while buying something awesome for yourself or a loved one! ♥

My Chewing Story + ARK Chewelry Review (VIDEO)

Nightmares, Baku, Tapirs, and Believing in Miracles During Hard Times

Posted on November 13, 2021July 16, 2023 by Lauren Spear

Colorful drawing of a blue tapir-looking creature with a heart-shaped snout sucking a little thought bubble/dream from a sleeping woman. The woman is brunette and has her mouth open (snoring + drooling) and her eyes closed, cuddling a brown mountain tapir stuffed animal. Her husband is tucking her in with a pink blanket and is looking at her with love and amusement, a little cartoon love heart floating out from him as he secures her for sleep. He has brown curly head hair and red curly beard hair and freckles and is pleasantly plump.

I’ve had chronic nightmares spanning my entire life. For as long as I’ve been dreaming, I’ve been having nightmares. And November, especially over the past fourteen years or so, has been a particularly nightmare-ridden month. I spend much of my Novembers sleep-deprived and glum.

November 2021 has been no different in that regard. Halloween was a-okay and then November hit and blammo — no sleep. Or bad sleep when I do sleep.

It’s a minor complaint in the grand scheme of things, I suppose. And, much like watching horror movies, I’m well aware from a logical standpoint that what’s “on screen” in my brain during my nightmares isn’t real and can’t actually hurt me… But it’s still a gosh-darned drag and trying to get anything done when you’re unrested is extremely difficult.

However, while I would much rather not have chronic nightmares and all my other PTSD-related symptoms stemming from various traumatic experiences, I do believe they’ve served a purpose in my life. And, dare I say, contributed to one of my life’s best miracles.

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Autistic Masking and the Fine Art of Emotional Wellness

Posted on October 23, 2021July 16, 2023 by Lauren Spear

I’ve been back at my desk for one month and one week since having my uterus removed (full recovery ends in January, but I was given the a-okay to return to my desk in September). I came back strong! Maybe a little too strong… I had all sorts of things planned for October’s Emotional Wellness month, including a special post for World Mental Health Day on October 10th, but I was a bit too “on” — autistic masking in full force! — a bit too soon and I wore myself out.

I slept a bunch, tried to come back on my other site (HorrorFam.com), accidentally tuckered myself out even more because although I “learned” the lesson my mind/body was trying to teach I assumed I could boss it into behaving on my timetable (big ol’ nope on that one — though I did end up with real stress-induced tears in my eyes for a horror-themed video I made so that was…good…I guess?), and then I got increasingly more agitated until I finally stopped ALL activity and REALLY rested for a while.

Now I’m back again! And I made a new art piece!

However, I also want to fulfill my promise to my readers (and myself) that I would tackle some deeper topics related to mental health and emotional wellbeing. So, rather than the usual Art post format, I’m going to make this post very long and tackle both the artwork itself AND the topic that inspired it: autistic masking and burnout.

I’m going to put a Table of Contents here so you can jump to the sections that interest you (or you can read the whole thing if you skim the ToC and decide it all interests you!):

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Chewelry for Adults? ABSOLUTELY! My Chewing Story + My Top 5 Chewelry Necklaces

Posted on October 1, 2021July 21, 2023 by Lauren Spear

a self-portrait illustration of Lauren Spear drawn with a pen, colored markers, and crayons. It shows a 36-year-old female with dark brown hair and blue-ish eyes wearing hot pink cat-eye glasses smiling while chewing on an orange dog tag-shaped pumpkin pendant/necklace/chewelry. the words "My Chewelry Story" are written over the image.

With October’s emphasis on emotional and mental health, I wanted to write this month’s LittleZotz.com posts with topics focused on different aspects of having a happy, healthy mind. Chewelry for adults is one of THE main ways I safely self-regulate my emotional wellbeing.

When the very noisy, very stressful, very strange world gets to be a little too much — or if my mouth is just bored and needs something to do so the rest of me can focus on other things — chomping down and gnawing on a piece of heavy-duty chewelry is usually exactly what I need to get my mind back on track.

So, in this post, I’m going to share my personal experience with chewelry (what is it and why I use it) as well as my Top 5 Favorite ARK Therapeutic Chewelry Necklaces! And then, at the veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery end, you’ll have a chance to enter to WIN a Jack-o-lantern themed chewelry necklace!! (October 1, 2021 – October 15, 2021).

NOTE: All of the ARK Therapeutic product links throughout this post are affiliate links – meaning, if you make a purchase using one of my links, I will receive a small monetary kickback for referring you at no additional cost to you as a customer. Also, although ARK Therapeutic is aware (and happy/flattered) that I’m writing this post and hosting a raffle, they have not sponsored this post and/or paid me to write anything about/for them. I’m doing this completely on my own.

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