Trigger Warning: Autism rant
The phrases “everyone is a little Autistic ” and “Everyone is on the spectrum” are medically and factually wrong. Based on extensive and proper scientific research, you are simply incorrect. Quit saying it. You are perpetrating a harmful and inaccurate myth.
Correction: People who are not Autistic are NOT “on the spectrum” at all, not any, period, much like you are not pregnant if you are not pregnant. Full stop. Quit saying this.
Why You’re Not Like that 9 Year Old White Boy Autistic
Only Autistics are “on the spectrum”, and our viewable presentations vary a lot. Medication, stress, support, accommodations (or lack thereof), sleep, diet, exercise, and age (puberty and menopause both show impact), to name the majors, all can contribute throughout our lives as to how our presentations show up.
These variations do not make one Autistic “more” Autistic than another Autistic, nor less Autistic. You are either Autistic or you are not. If you are, you are then on a spectrum of Autism.
Understanding The Spectrum
The spectrum is more like a color wheel not a linear scale. Each of us present varying degrees of these known factors.
We also often (65-95% of the time) have various other well known conditions that complicate our medical picture and affect the way in which our Autism presents visibly.
These include conditions such as Ehler’s Danlos Syndrome (EDS), Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), and Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) to name the major ones.
The Struggle is Real
There are mental health illnesses as well (because, like any human, we are affected by mental health challenges) and we experience complex post traumatic stress disorder (cPTSD) issues that impact most of us. THE STRUGGLE IS REAL. We are doing our best.
These various conditions further complicate our healthcare and quality of life, including our life span (39 is our average). They also exacerbate how our Autism “symptoms” might look to others, and we are drilled like soldiers from childhood to mask everything we possibly can to avoid being targeted as disabled and to avoid any inconvenience to non-Autistic society.
Many/most of us literally have to mask to avoid being unalived and institutionalized, institutions where the physical and sexual abuse stats come in around 95%. It is a life and death situation for us to be visible. Yes, still today, in 2024.
Please stop saying “we are all a little bit Autistic”, because NO the f*ck you are not, seriously. 
You have no idea.
Thank you for coming to my TED talk.