49. S4, Ep6: Out of place everywhere: communication, community and coming to terms with autism

Sophie Adamkiewicz was born in Poland, but was brought up in Germany after her mother emigrated there when the Berlin wall fell, and she says that she has felt like an outsider all her life. At the time of our rerecording she was living in Ireland, but was about to move to London. She is 37, and is currently self-diagnosed and on the waiting list for her autism and ADHD assessments.  She has worked in freelance video and CGI production, as a producer at a Fortune 500 company and been Head of Studio. She is now a producer at a large production agency. In our conversation we talk about  ➡ Coming to terms with being autistic ➡ Communication difficulties across neurotypes, and feeling out of place everywhere  ➡ Masking and stimming ➡ The intersection of autism and her transition as a trans woman ➡ and learning to acknowledge and accept our limitations Squarepeg is a podcast in which neurodivergent women, and trans and nonbinary people, explore navigating a neurotypical world and share their insights, challenges and successes. I hope that these conversations will be inspiring and thought provoking, open you up to new ways of thinking about being neurodivergent, and help you feel more connected to a worldwide community of people with similar experiences. I’m Amy Richards, and after being diagnosed autistic at the age of 37 I’m now on a mission to learn more about different perspectives and issues around being a neurodivergent adult in a world that feels like it doesn’t quite fit.   EPISODE LINKS: Sophie’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/snek_Mom  Her LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophieahltorp/   If you'd like to connect or get in touch with Squarepeg, you can find me on: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/squarepeg.community/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/squarepegautism  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/squarepegautism/  Or on my website: https://squarepeg.community/    THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS! A HUGE thank you to my amazing patrons, who support my work on the podcast: Abigail J Moore, Caroline, Cat Preston, Catrin Green, Corinne Cariad, Elise, Jackie Allen, Jessica, Karawynn Long, Kate Faust, Katharine Richards, Katherine Lynch, Laurie Green, Lea Li, Lilli Simmons, Pete Burke and Vera Cady. If you’re enjoying the Squarepeg podcast and would like to help me carry on making new episodes, you can become a member of the Squarepeg community on Patreon from just £3 per month: https://www.patreon.com/squarepegpodcast