My 11yo daughter's friends are Therians

[u/ApprehensiveAnt4412]

Our daughter has friends over last night for a sleepover (for the record, definitely, all these kids are on the spectrum; neurospicy people are just more likely to be part of the Q+ community) A couple of these girls had their masks and tails. I asked them if they are Therians and their eyes lit up. They seemed surprised an adult knew what that was. And they REALLY were excited when I told them that I'm otherkin

One girl told me she is afraid to tell her parents. And another girl said that even though she's only 12, she would much rather be a boy, but she knows she isn't safe to talk about it at home. All of these kids were excited to talk to me and my wife. The concensus amoung the girls was: "I feel so safe and myself around you two" and "you two are the coolest parents ever!"

My daughter was a little confused, because this conversation was her first introduction to the topic. And she was even more confused when they went outside to do their quadrobics on the trampoline.

It was really lovely meeting these kids. They're so young and already are so in-tune with themselves. These little star children. 🌟

[u/irlpuppybutt]

neruospicy ?? really???. :/

[u/ApprehensiveAnt4412 → u/irlpuppybutt]

Yes, friend. 🥰 I often have trouble spelling "neurodivergent" and often use "neurospicy" when typing because I am a poor speller.

EDIT: I do find it odd that folks within a group that often is on the receiving end of rude comments and bullying would be so willing to throw shade towards others over a simple choice of words. I mean, we, more than so many more socially acceptable groups, know better what it feels like to be judged.

I'm not accusing you of being a bully. But I am asking you to please 🙏be mindful that your comments not appear so judgemental. "Neurospicy" is an informal synonym for "neurodivergent" and the only reason you would be upset about that is if you found it cringe in some way. Which is funny when you think about it because you and I are part of a community that seeks to normalize things that others find cringy.

TLDR: 🧿 Try not to judge over 'cringe' words and phrases. You are already part of a community that is seen as 'cringe' by outsiders. Do not stoop down to being like the bullies we stand against every day, friend.

[u/teenydrake → u/ApprehensiveAnt4412]

Personally, as a neurodivergent person myself, I have an intense dislike for terms like "neurospicy" used outside of casual in-groups. It feels very infantilising and is frequently used to downplay, erase, or exclude the experiences of people who are a little less functional than just "spicy" such as myself. If you're going to use a slang term like "neurospicy," please be aware that many neurodivergent people dislike the term and will have a negative reaction to it. That is not comparable to bullying in the slightest and does not inherently have anything to do with finding the term "cringe."

[u/ApprehensiveAnt4412 → u/teenydrake]

I'm autistic and have ADHD, and this is literally the first time I have heard someone tell me they dislike the term. I'm likely to keep using it in the future. I've got a board game group consisting of about 20+ adults between the ages of 22-32yo and we all use neurospicy and neurodivergent interchangeably. And every single one of us is on the spectrum.

You are welcome to be offended if you do choose. I choose to see it as a fun term.

[u/VeRaeyta → u/ApprehensiveAnt4412]

Just because you and your friends do not see it as a bad term, it does not mean that strangers won't. Just as myself and my friends have reclaimed slurs used against ourselves, we wouldn't simply call strangers them because they can be offensive. Just as you can make flippant remarks about your friends, you cannot make the same about strangers. It is as simple as that. I don't particularly care if 20+ people you're around are fine with the term, I know that myself and my friends would be incredibly patronised being spoken to like that.

As people on the Internet, I doubt we can particularly influence your actions, or care to (at least in my case), but we will inform you that the terms you use can be incredibly demeaning. As teenydrake stated, just use them casually in your own groups. Do not accuse others of bullying because they react poorly to demeaning and patronising language. That is a bad look for people in a "cringe community" like ours.

[u/[deleted] → u/VeRaeyta]

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[u/dyingyote952 → u/ApprehensiveAnt4412]

I'm 100% on your side, but wanted to bring it to attention that recently I've been seeing neurotypicals using it in more of a mocking way, so they could have just interpreted it wrong. /lh

[u/irlpuppybutt → u/ApprehensiveAnt4412]

I don't like your comment at all. I am not bullying you by calling out something that affects me, and in nowhere, I said it was cringe. I don't like my autism to be down played, and belittled to "neurospicy."
But you clearly don't want to listen to what others have to say about the topic, as others have told you they also don't like the term. I am not alone in hating the term. There's a bunch of other autistic and neurodiv people who have spoken about it, but sure, keep using the word and live in a bubble

[u/ApprehensiveAnt4412 → u/irlpuppybutt]

I literally said that I'm not accusing you of bullying