We live in a world of constant updates and new technology. My father, who I suspect was also autistic, loved computers. Many autists do. Many of them work in technology fields and find these kinds of changes exciting and not at all threatening, frustrating, or just tiresome. But it is one of the textbook “symptoms” of autism to struggle with change, and for me, changing technology requires a great deal of effort. I’m always trying to decide if the best choice is to get the very newest cell phone so that it will last longer and I won’t have to switch over for another five or six years or to get the one that is most like my current phone so that the change effort is smaller for right now. I tend to go for the latter.
Change effort comes up in multiple ways in my life. For many years, one of the hardest things for me was trying to figure out how to sleep in a hotel room. Hotel rooms were so different from my house. Obviously, the sheets and bedding were different. And I tried on a few occasions to bring a pillow from home with me to make it feel better. I eventually figured out that a sleep mask and ear plugs were a way to sleep better because they helped me cut out sensory experiences that disrupted my ability to let go and fall asleep. I eventually started using them at home, as well, and I sleep better now.
