I never claimed to be normal

Random neurodivergent expression

Boo. It’s me. 👻

My name is Cindy. I am 34 years old and neurodivergent. These blogs are just who I am and what I am feeling at the current time they are posted or random things I enjoy. Some deep, some not. If you read them I thank you for taking the time out of your life to listen. Some people don’t care enough to try to understand others, and it says something about you that you are trying.

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Caturday – Why I relate to cats as an autistic person 🐈

Happy Caturday 😺✨

A small simple collage I made with vintage cat photos I cut from 1950’s magazines

I have always loved cats. We had several cats through the years growing up and it started out as just loving how cute they are, and then I really just started to like their personalities. I learned from a young age how you have to behave around cats. You can’t just waltz on up to them and start petting them. You can’t even expect them to like you instantly. You have to build trust with them. Food is usually a good start. You also have to get a feel for their comfort level. I learned it’s usually safest to let them come to you – with your hand lowered. Usually they will be interested, come up and sniff your hand and rub their cheeks on it to leave their mark on you, or just sniff and walk away offended because you had no food for them.

The more I learned about cats, the more I felt like I could relate to them, but it wasn’t until a few years ago when it really clicked with me why I relate to them – a lot of them share some of my autistic traits. Here are a few examples I’d like to share.

  1. They are sensitive to sound. Something I always noticed is how sensitive cats are to sound and it felt very relatable. Any loud sound and they will jump, or put their ears back. I always found their reactions to mirror how I felt when any loud sound happens.
  2. They are independent and like their alone time. Cats get into moods where they just want to be alone and sometimes there is no clear reason, they just need it. When they are in the mood they can be really affectionate, but when they aren’t they can get a cattitude and lash out when you try to pet them. It makes me think they can get overstimulated, and need recharge time which is similar to how I get with people sometimes. Although I don’t lash out and scratch and hiss at people, I can get angry sometimes if they won’t respect that I need alone time when I’m overstimulated.
  3. Cats love routine. Unexpected changes in routine can really throw them off. This is definitely my experience.
  4. They can be picky with food. They have their favorites and are not afraid to show distaste for food they don’t like.
  5. They are usually cautious when it comes to new people. They can approach slowly until they learn the new person is safe. Sometimes they won’t even approach and will hide under a couch or table when a new person is in their environment. This is similar to how I am with people. It takes time for me to build trust with them. My social anxiety makes it hard for me to approach and sometimes makes me want to hide. When I lived with other people and they had new guests over, I’d sometimes want to hide under the couch with the cat too so I wouldn’t have to be introduced to them. It’s not that I was unfriendly, I was just a scaredy cat.

These are just a few reasons I feel like I can relate to cats as an autistic person. I’ll acknowledge not every cat is the same, they all have their own personalities so they are not all like this – these are just common similarities I have noticed after being around cats most of my life, that make me feel even more connected to these cute bundles of anxiety, rage and joy. 🐱🔪❤️✨

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