Dad and Daughter Spectrum

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20/11/2025

This post popped up on my Facebook feed courtesy of and it stopped me in my tracks. It sums up exactly what my head has felt like for as long as I can remember… even on the days when life looks fine from the outside.

With November being Men’s Mental Health Month, and me facing my own battles, it felt like the right time to share it.

Opening up still feels like an alien concept for me. Talking about what’s going on inside my head doesn’t come naturally. But it’s ok to talk. It’s ok to ask for help. And it’s ok to admit when your brain is stuck in survival mode.

I’m lucky to have some incredible people around me who show me patience, love and support while I figure all of this out. I’m grateful for every single one of them.

If you’re struggling too, you’re not weak, you’re not dramatic, and you’re not alone. Reaching out is strength.

18/11/2025

This is Amelia. She’s four. She’s not a crisis or a joke. She’s not “insane.” She’s a child with sensory needs, and these ear defenders help her cope. Hearing a prospective politician use outdated language like this is worrying. It drags us backwards, feeds the stigma and hysteria around neurodivergence and gives people permission to question and dismiss the support children like her rely on.

what’s next? Blaming autism on paracetamol?

13/10/2025

A little girl’s special interest brought to life 💙🚂

It all started with a jigsaw we picked up at Didcot Railway Centre earlier this year. On it was the LNER A4 Mallard, though Amelia never called it that. To her, it was simply the Fast Blue Train.

Ever since, she’s been captivated. Watching videos of it on my phone, talking about it out of nowhere, lining up her toy trains and asking when we could go see it in real life.

I told her the Fast Blue Train lives in a museum in York, but that’s a 9 hour round trip for us. So when I found out that sister locomotive, Sir Nigel Gresley, was visiting , we made it happen.

A 4 hour drive later, and it was all worth it. The look on her face as the blue engine came into view said everything. That’s the thing about autistic joy - it’s pure, deep, and utterly beautiful to witness.

24/09/2025

The most powerful man in the world is now claiming that paracetamol (Tylenol) causes autism.

Not only is that ridiculous as it paints autism as something broken that needs fixing, but it also risks scaring mothers away from safe pain relief during pregnancy.

Science is clear: autism is largely genetic and hereditary. Both Amy and I accept ourselves as neurodivergent, so if Amelia got it from anywhere, it was from us.

History itself proves how absurd Trump’s claim is – Beethoven, Darwin, Tesla, Jefferson… all believed to have been autistic, long before paracetamol even existed.

Amelia is not a problem to be prevented. She’s an incredible little girl who deserves the same opportunities in life as anyone else. She’s amazing exactly as she is. 💜

05/09/2025

Just a couple of steam enthusiasts living our best lives 🚂💜

When we first walked into , Amelia clung to me tightly. She was nervous, tense, unsure.
And then, like someone flicked a light switch, her confidence burst through. Suddenly she was full of smiles, excitement, and joy, taking everything in.

These are the moments that remind me why sharing my passions with her matters. Not just trains – but the space to feel safe, to grow, to shine.

31/08/2025

Finally ticked another one off the list 🙌

Yes this is one of my special interests!

Robbie Fowler. My childhood hero. Number 9.

I had this shirt, the 97/98 away Reebok jersey, as a 7 year old and of course had Fowler on the back then too. Now I have it signed and added to the collection ❤️

Last year I got to meet him in person (still cannot believe that happened) but event rules meant no outside items could be signed. I ended up with a pre signed canvas that now lives on my Liverpool shrine in the bedroom. Shout out to Amy for letting me hang it there 😂

For me this is not just Liverpool history, it is football shirt culture too. Maybe one day I’ll have a collection like 😍

I’ve got Fowler and Carragher (x2) in the bag and just need Steven Gerrard to complete the trifecta of childhood heroes 👌

28/08/2025

We spent our bank holiday Monday afternoon at a local Carnival.

These photos show a happy, Stitch and Angel obsessed little girl living her best life… face paint, ice cream, rides, and plenty of smiles! She even met Stitch and Angel (whilst holding onto Amy for safety!) 😁🍦🎢

But between the snapshots came the harder parts too.
✨ A refusal to walk from the car to the entrance (so between us we carried her the 2 minutes, with tears along the way).
✨ Huge excitement for the big inflatable slide… right up until we paid. Then the confidence drained in an instant, replaced with tears and refusal.
✨ Another walking-related meltdown when it was time to leave. By this point, Amy and I just couldn’t carry her anymore.

Days like this remind us that autism isn’t just about the joyful moments we capture in photos. It’s also about navigating overwhelm, sudden changes in confidence, and tricky transitions.

But it’s all part of the same little girl we love so fiercely. 💜

18/08/2025

She might cover her ears when the whistle blows, but nothing stops her love for these giants of steam 🚂💛
Amelia’s contradictions make perfect sense when you understand her. The noise can be overwhelming, but the magic of the train is stronger. Fascination always wins.

14/08/2025

Two people. One spectrum. Endless differences.

Some chapters of our lives look completely different.
Others feel strangely familiar, like they could have been copied from one to the other.

Neither of us is formally diagnosed yet, but it’s clear our brains work a little differently from most people. That difference doesn’t make either of us more or less autistic. It just shows how wide and varied the spectrum really is.

This carousel shows some of the ways we are alike and some of the ways we are not. Both matter. Both are valid. And both are entirely autistic experiences.

Which of these felt most familiar to your own experience? Let me know in the comments, and if you know someone who needs to see that autism can look different for everyone, share this with them.

28/07/2025

Water + Amelia = A Very Specific Relationship 💦

If she gets even a tiny drop of water on her clothes, it’s game over. Within minutes she’s either completely naked or heading straight for a meltdown.

But give her a bath, a paddling pool, or in this case, my parents’ hot tub, and it’s like her inner mermaid awakens. 🌊🧜‍♀️

Sometimes it’s serene regulation (like the first photo). Other times it’s splash city and dry land doesn’t exist. Yes, including our bathroom floor. 😂

She’s either all in… or all out.
No in between.
And honestly?
That makes total sense to me.

Her autistic contradictions feel beautifully familiar.

20/07/2025

Sensory Survival Kit 🔧🧠
I rarely leave home without it – and it’s on a string so I don’t lose it. 🤦‍♂️

👓 Transition lenses – because bright light = instant overwhelm
🎧 Noise-cancelling AirPods – music or silence, depending on what my brain can handle
🔇 – for filtering all those noises my brain can’t ignore
🤏 Lanyard clip – bonus fidget (and the only reason I haven’t lost the AirPods and Loops… lately)

The lanyard’s not for style.
It’s so they don’t fall out of my pocket, vanish into the void, and send me into a spiral when I can’t find them!
You get it. 😂

What can’t you leave the house without?

Address

Fire Fly Avenue
Swindon
SN2 2EY

Website

https://www.instagram.com/dadanddaughterspectrum

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