Is there a drug that can give an autist a "normie experience"?
Asking because my gf has ADHD and she told me that, the first time she took ritalin (methylphenidate), she thought to herself "So this is what it feels like to not have ADHD?"
That got me thinking, is there a drug that has a similar effect on autists, that allows them to experience what is it like to "not have autism"?
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RedMari
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •I Cast Fist
in reply to RedMari • • •lime!
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •I Cast Fist
in reply to lime! • • •agamemnonymous
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •mech
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •Kojichan
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •I've tried Escitalopram, Paroxetine, and Foquest... I'm not "normal", per se, but I'm not freaking out as much as I am when I'm not on something...
That said, I feel "normal" after having a couple of drinks, or having some thc+cbd... obviously not a great idea to rely on either.
I've heads that the regions autists need help with chemically is a different region and chemical than regular adhd members. I don't remember the exact chemical imbalance, something similar to SISG or something... not SISS. Hmmm...
I'll try to find the science paper I read about it.
Catoblepas
in reply to Kojichan • • •Kojichan
in reply to Catoblepas • • •My bad. It was something different, but it felt like something that might affect similarly.
sciencedaily.com/releases/2025…
Scientists find brain chemical tied to trauma and depression
ScienceDailyCatoblepas
in reply to Kojichan • • •nate3d
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •webghost0101
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •Feel “normal”? Yes, the drug that works. (High dose of cbd for me, a little alcohol can also work in a social setting)
Actual Neurotypical experience? Biologically impossible.
Your neurodivergent self is your real “normal”.
But when you no longer experience symptoms that cause the everyday problems you struggle with and feel like you just function optimal.. that’s an amazing feeling allright.
But it can almost feel like a high in contrast. Its definitely not what “neurotypicals feel like all the time”
They have their own days that they struggle or function more optimal.
The main difference is that there struggles are “normal” ones that “everyone has” and “understands” (y)ours are different and can cause social strife, exclusion.
Its possible that while your symptoms are gone you fit in better amongst neurotypicals and this sense of belonging is a big part of the neurotypical experience, but your brain is still a neurodivergent one at its core, with all the good and bad that goes on in it.
Shiri Bailem
in reply to I Cast Fist • •@I Cast Fist Not really, with ADHD it's primarily a chemical imbalance which means like 90% of the issues can be cleared chemically (ie. medication). It's not exactly a "normal" experience, but it's way closer than it was.
Autism on the other hand is broad and neurological, so much of it has to do with the actual physical structures of our brains (like density of nerve clusters), and there's nothing that can be done about that.
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SCmSTR
in reply to Shiri Bailem • • •Don't forget that adhd can result in underdeveloped areas and overdeveloped areas when left untreated.
Edit: what about a GABA drug like GHB?
Shiri Bailem
in reply to SCmSTR • •@SCmSTR that's why I said primarily, but I recognize that was a subtle distinction and not very clear.
I don't think any medication is going to really make us have an allistic experience, we can sometimes use medication for some comorbidities, but the things that make us autistic are too fundamental.
I realized in reply to someone else that I could have pointed out that we do have one occasion where we have something resembling an allistic experience, and that's when we're associating with other autistics.
They've done studies and our "social difficulties" disappear when we're only interacting with other autistics.
It's because our social issues are outside expectations and not a problem with us, we operating in an autistic manner. But because the world treats allistic norms as the only right way, we're forced to accommodate them and they refuse to accommodate us... so we get difficulties. When we're interacting with other autistics we're basically using the same protocol, so everything is fine.
It's still not entirely an identical experience, but it's the closest we've got. We still have fundamental differences in our entire sense of selves (the recent Identity Theory of Autism highlights how we structure our identities in a completely different way from allistics, it's why we typically don't understand "school spirit" or "peer pressure")
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Noxy
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •I've got ADHD and stimulant meds help me get distracted less, but they don't do much to help me focus on the right things sadly. Still definitely helpful though.
But no, I (a complete amateur with zero qualifications) highly doubt such a drug is possible, and if there were one it'd be kinda uncomfortable to ponder the very concept of making neurodivergent brains work like neurotypical brains at some point.
Like, why should we have to change when it's society that sucks, not us?
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AddLemmus
in reply to Noxy • • •Same, but meds in combination with my learned copes and methods, before and after diagnostic, is a miracle drug.
For example:
- I catch myself focusing on a news site or lemmy -> set a 5 minute timer when to stop
- pick an item from my todo-list. If no list is present, only make the list, then allow myself to do whatever I want
- don't feel like any of those things -> just simulate doing them in my head. If still none appeal to me, I can do what I want. It happens often enough that I want to do one after the "simulation".
I Cast Fist
in reply to Noxy • • •I'm not really interested in "becoming a full-time normie", but I would be lying if I said I wouldn't want to experience that life for like a day, maybe up to a week, tops, to get a better understanding of both sides
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paultimate14
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •I appreciate that from the responses here, it seems that a lot the autistic community views normal people as the equivalent of just being drunk or high. In other words, raw autism is like being extra sober.
I agree (moreso THC for me personally), but I also think it's really funny.
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DaGeek247
in reply to paultimate14 • • •like this
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Shiri Bailem
in reply to DaGeek247 • •@DaGeek247 @paultimate14 @I Cast Fist This.
A lot of us autistic people tend to look down on allistics. Sometimes it's a coping strategy to deal with the judgements levied against us, sometimes it's a refusal to see our own flaws.
... and it's not without value sometimes, because there are sometimes the allistics just suck... (see Identity Theory of Autism that highlights how we're morally much more consistent than them)
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AllNewTypeFace
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •nondescripthandle
in reply to AllNewTypeFace • • •like this
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Shiri Bailem
in reply to nondescripthandle • •@nondescripthandle @AllNewTypeFace we pretty much have the data there, all that could separate are minor side effect differences... but it's all overshadowed by the severe addiction side effect of cocaine.
A lot of people with ADHD have cocaine habits because, being a major stimulant, it helps with ADHD symptoms... plus cocaine is often easier to get ahold of than ritalin/adderall despite the latter being safer.
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nondescripthandle
in reply to Shiri Bailem • • •Shiri Bailem
in reply to nondescripthandle • •@nondescripthandle I get what you're thinking, the thing is that cocaine is really awful and we've got so many better alternatives. One of the biggest elements being the addictiveness, which generally means a drug loses it's effectiveness over time (it's why caffeine can help a tiny amount with ADHD but really isn't recommended, because it actually makes it worse in the long run)
MDMA and Ketamine, while strong, aren't especially addictive.
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I_Has_A_Hat
in reply to AllNewTypeFace • • •Possibly linux
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •VerilyFemme
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •If there was, they'd already have us on it from childhood.
I recommend psilocybin mushrooms.
OldQWERTYbastard
in reply to VerilyFemme • • •VerilyFemme
in reply to OldQWERTYbastard • • •FridaySteve
in reply to OldQWERTYbastard • • •TheBluePillock
in reply to OldQWERTYbastard • • •If you're the type that can learn stuff online, growing your own is very easy. You can do anywhere from just a couple inoculated cups of instant rice to turning it into a full blown hobby.
Best practice is usually found on the shroomery message boards. Even if you end up just buying some, they have a wealth of advice for newbie psychonauts too. There's no shortage of reading material for those with enough interest.
Ananääs
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •I feel most normal when I'm around other neurodivergents. One person in my peer support group said that autism is an environmental problem rather than a personal one.
I have AuDHD and amphetamines make me feel "more normal" (easier) when I'm in a work setting or similar social environment with lots of stimuli. Then again when I'm at home they make me feel less normal (in those bigger doses that I need to function "outside"), I need to change the dosage according to amount of expected stimuli, I've heard other AuDHD people share the experience.
Shiri Bailem
in reply to Ananääs • •@Ananääs @I Cast Fist oh, I should have mentioned. There's studies showing that autistic "social difficulties" disappear when we're with other autistics.
So we get the closest feeling to "normal" when we're hanging out only with other autistics, likewise if they want the closest feeling to being one of us they should attend an event in which they're the only allistic.
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BradleyUffner
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •Strider
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •JTode
in reply to I Cast Fist • • •I figured my shit out by reading John Elder Robison, and followed him in medias for a while. Some time back, 5-10 years, he tried out a thing where they stimulate an area of your brain with (IIRC) electromagnetism, and he talked about it the way some people talk about being born again (the Jesus kind of born again). "I once was blind but now I see!"
I'm sure a google will turn up how that's going, it was just a study or something that he got to participate in at the time I think.
MelodiousFunk
in reply to JTode • • •Transcranial magnetic stimulation, probably. I did a round earlier this year. The only noticeable effect is that I now barely bite my nails after doing it my entire life. Like, that's not why I went, but it is indicated as a treatment for compulsive behaviors. So that's neat I guess.
form of brain stimulation using magnetic fields
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