Taking Off the Mask
Taking Off the Mask
Practical Exercises to Help Understand and Minimise the Effects of Autistic Camouflaging
'I realised I had been camouflaging my whole life - I’d been trying to mask my autistic traits and fit in with all the non-autistic people around me.'
Growing up autistic can often feel as though you have to become a chameleon in social situations, camouflaging yourself to fit in with a seemingly neurotypical world. Combining lived experience with scientific research and practical advice, this book is the essential guide to understanding why you mask and how to feel confident without one.
Focusing on diagnostic devices like the Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q) to discover the situations in which you mask the most and why, alongside a range of techniques, from CBT, compassion based therapy, DBT, and mindfulness to relieve anxiety and reduce stress, this guide gives you all the tools and confidence you need to re-connect with yourself, the things you love and finally, take off your mask.
Autistic authenticity is essential for self-acceptance and self-worth. Indeed, it is the key to living a life less riddled with mental health challenges that can completely cripple. In Taking off the Mask autistics will find a thoughtful and practical map they can use on their journey to living life fully and comfortably as their true self. And equally as important, non autistic audiences will be persuasively encouraged to change the way the world accepts and truly supports neurodiversity.
Is ‘masking' something you would like to do less of? Written by Hannah Belcher, autistic woman and respected academic, 'Taking Off the Mask' is a practical, honest and compassionate guide that will help you discover who you are, what you like and not be afraid to show it.
Acknowledgements; Disclaimer; Introduction; Foreword; Introduction; Chapter 1: Learning to Imitate; Chapter 2: The Drive to Camouflage; Chapter 3: Do You Camouflage?; Chapter 4: How to be Self-Compassionate; Chapter 5: Taking off the Mask; Chapter 6: A Guide for Parents, Educators, and Therapists; Chapter 7: Final Thoughts; References; Further Reading
