I didn’t know that I was autistic when I was growing up. Maybe there were some signs that other people picked up on them, ways that I didn’t act like neurotypical people did, but I couldn’t tell. I only knew my own perspective, the way I did things, and I just behaved in a way that made sense to me.
Of course, the way that made sense to me wasn’t what everybody else expected, and I didn’t really connect with my peers at school. A lot of my time in elementary school was lonely, first from bullying, and then from the inherent isolation of a cyber charter school. It was better for me, and a smaller amount of interaction with people wasn’t unwelcome, but I still wanted something.
I managed to find that through online communities. Playing group games like Dungeons and Dragons and League of Legends provided structure and goals that I could pursue with other people that had similar interests to myself. Different forums gave me a place to interact with people to talk about TV shows, games, and music. I think that those experiences were valuable, and they gave me the opportunity to interact with a wider range of people than I otherwise could. Not only in terms of physical distance, but also in actual ability to interact. Talking to new people can be hard, and while there’s still anxiety to do so online, it’s easier when I can just type or talk into a microphone.
Online communities are valuable for interaction, and can also be useful in a business sense. Ideally, this website will be a community where we can communicate with minimal friction.