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This is a full transcript of 1800 Seconds on Autism as published on 29th October 2020, presented by Jamie Knight and Robyn Steward.

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[Jingle: 1800 Seconds on Autism. With Robyn Steward and Jamie Knight.]

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ALFIE - When things obviously were getting cancelled I actually went into a three day temper tantrum because it was change, and I don鈥檛 like change.

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[trumpet]

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JAMIE - What鈥檚 the cutest thing he does?

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ABBIE 鈥� Sneezes.

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ROBYN 鈥� Ah!

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JAMIE 鈥� Ah!

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ROBYN - Keep your emails coming in, and your quacks and your flaps. Everything is welcome.

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JAMIE - Hello. This is 1800 Seconds on Autism, the podcast that makes you think about how you think. I鈥檓 Jamie Knight.

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ROBYN - And I鈥檓 Robyn Steward. We鈥檙e back for this, our third series, because lots of you emailed asking for more episodes. You suggested great topics we haven鈥檛 already talked about, and said you鈥檇 value something autism friendly and familiar in your podcast feed during these continuingly strange times.

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JAMIE - So, here we are. You said lots of lovely things about the show too, so thanks.

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ROBYN - Thank you.

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JAMIE - This is our feedback episode. We鈥檒l read some of your emails and do a couple of phone outs, and I鈥檓 hoping there鈥檒l be some time to talk about my truck.

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ROBYN - Your truck?

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JAMIE - I got a truck. It鈥檚 wonderful.

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ROBYN - Oh. Emma, the producer, is here with us, virtually of course, because we鈥檙e all still recording at home due to COVID-19. Hi, Emma.

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EMMA - Hello. Hi. It鈥檚 good to be back, but I am sitting here trying to talk into a box lined with foam, praying that I鈥檓 pressing all the right buttons. But I鈥檓 wondering how this remote recording situation is suiting you two?

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ROBYN - I鈥檓 quite happy. How about you, Jamie?

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JAMIE - I am pretty good. It鈥檚 way less effort than travelling into the studio and it takes me about ten minutes to set up the cushions in my bedroom in just the right way. So yeah, I鈥檓 pretty chill, I like this.

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ROBYN - I mean, maybe you could go to a studio, Emma, and me and Jamie can stay at home.

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EMMA - Yeah, do you know what? I know you guys talk about eye contact and, you know, having less stuff around, sort of facial expressions and body language, but I think you guys like seeing me and seeing my positions and stuff, and I think you get a lot from that actually.

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ROBYN - Yeah, that鈥檚 true. Oh, we do like seeing you. Henry says he likes seeing you.

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JAMIE - It鈥檚 easier to time stuff when there鈥檚 less of a delay as well, so that鈥檚 one thing that constantly trips me up, the little bit of lag. But apart from that I鈥檓 quite enjoying it, not needing to go all the way into London is really good for my spoon and energy, and it鈥檚 far less opportunities to get hit by a car, so woo.

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EMMA - That鈥檚 a reference to our last cycling pod where Jamie frightened the be-jeepers out of me, talking about all the times he was hit by a car.

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JAMIE - It鈥檚 fine, I鈥檓 still here. I seem to bounce quite well.

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ROBYN - Having the right help during recording lets us use less spoons. Indeed it does. If you鈥檙e a regular listener you鈥檒l know that my support bat, Henry, sits beside me. He鈥檚 in my hand right now. [rustling] That鈥檚 Henry saying hello. And Jamie has his famous plushy lion, who goes by the name, Lion. We know they are stars in their own right because listeners keep mentioning them in their emails to us, but we鈥檝e now had an email about Jamie鈥檚 support person, Ollie, who occasionally makes an appearance when he鈥檚 not asleep in the corner or playing on his Nintendo Switch. Jamie, do you want to read the email?

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JAMIE - I will, yeah. 鈥淪ome of your 1800 Seconds on Autism guests have young children so they talk about their children鈥檚 needs and the care and guidance given. However, there鈥檚 no one who talks about the adult care and guidance given to Robyn and Jamie, other than the occasional input from Ollie.鈥� Yeah, I think the last time we heard from Ollie was when we were discussing the last time I was taken to A&E, due to all the pain which had made me start acting a bit strange. Well, stranger than normal. It turns out I had gallstones. Ollie鈥檚 here. I鈥檓 just going to pass him an earbud so he can hear what鈥檚 happening on the Zoom call. Hey, Ollie.听 How are you doing?

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OLLIE - I鈥檓 good.

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JAMIE - So that was a bad time for me, but how was it for you?

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OLLIE - It had a big impact and I wrote poetry for, like, the first time in ten years.

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JAMIE - I didn鈥檛 know that you ended up writing poetry about me getting gallstones.

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OLLIE - Well yes, it was, like, we left the hospital really late, it was like, two in the morning. I was entirely knackered, like, physically and emotionally. I thought, wow, people write poetry when they鈥檙e in a state like this, I should do that. It came out really trippy, it was about sort of the hospital and stuff. It was good.

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JAMIE - Well, I鈥檒l see if I can secure a copy for the show notes.

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OLLIE - I think it鈥檚 got a lot of swearing in it. [laughter]

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JAMIE - I should get on with this email. 鈥淒uring the last three years I鈥檝e had to negotiate my way around hospital during three rounds of cancer diagnosis and treatment, with a new round of symptoms and investigations just starting.鈥� Dear God, that sounds鈥�

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ROBYN - I鈥檓 really sorry to hear that.

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JAMIE - Yeah, likewise. That sounds awful. And he goes on to write: 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think other people appreciate how hard these situations are for autistic people. As producers of the show I鈥檓 not sure you appreciate how much can be learned from listening to the podcast a few times and with the input of others like Ollie. Perhaps Ollie can be hired as the show鈥檚 occasional consultant. I very much like his neutral tone; the problems and issues he negotiates for Jamie are never a problem in his eyes and are often quite amusing. I find this uplifting. Please let Ollie know that his input is appreciated.鈥� And actually that鈥檚 the end of that sentence. So yeah, Ollie, you鈥檙e appreciated. Well done.

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OLLIE - Thank you.

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ROBYN - Whay! Well done. [claps]

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JAMIE - Last week me and Ollie were in Wales and we decided that we鈥檇 sit on some benches on a really tall hill in a lightning storm.

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OLLIE - Metal benches.

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JAMIE - Metal benches on a tall hill. Metal, some trees and a lightning storm.

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ROBYN - That鈥檚 not sensible.

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JAMIE 鈥� It wasn鈥檛, but the lightning was quite far away, and it was very pretty. And it was one of those things where it went from a perfect summer鈥檚 day to a storm in, like, a couple of minutes and all the wind blew and it was very biblical. And we both came out going, 鈥淐or, we have some really surreal, awesome experiences together.鈥�

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EMMA - That鈥檚 a recipe for poetry right there isn鈥檛 it?

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JAMIE - Yeah. Did you write some more poetry after that?

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OLLIE - No, no. We drove for, like, another three hours through a heavy rainstorm and we kept stopping just to watch the lightning a bit more. It was really cool.

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EMMA - We get so many emails and I do think as a producer and not being autistic I do realise the impact that this has on people. And it鈥檚 incredible to know how much people get from the podcast and it鈥檚 nice to get an email about Ollie.

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OLLIE - Yeah, thank you very much for that.

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JAMIE - He鈥檚鈥�

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EMMA - Let鈥檚 get rid of Ollie now.

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JAMIE - No, let鈥檚 not get rid of Ollie.

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ROBYN 鈥� No!

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OLLIE - I鈥檒l get the gun. [laughter]

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JAMIE - That鈥檚 such an Ollie thing to do. I鈥檓 going to get shot. I鈥檇 better go get the gun because nobody else will.

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OLLIE - Yeah. If you had one you wouldn鈥檛 even know where it is.

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JAMIE - Exactly, exactly.

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OLLIE - Well, I鈥檓 going to continue go watch YouTube videos on the sofa, but thank you very much guys, I really appreciate you bringing me in.

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JAMIE - He鈥檚 blushing. It鈥檚 adorable.

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OLLIE - No, it鈥檚 the lighting, you鈥檙e wearing sunglasses. It鈥檚 also very warm in here.

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JAMIE - Oh yes, I am.

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OLLIE - You are. [laughs]

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JAMIE - That will be why I can鈥檛 see anything.

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OLLIE - Yes, that is true. Right, catch you guys later.

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[Jingle: Email stim@bbc.co.uk]

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ROBYN - We absolutely love hearing about your intense interests, the things other people sometimes call special interests or obsessions and believe it to be negative, but we believe that it can be positive and it can help you build useful skills and even, if you want it to, become your career. On this subject, Mark Logan tells us that he doesn鈥檛 have a fluffy support animal like we do, but he does make stuffed animals for a living. He says: 鈥淚t鈥檚 the only job I鈥檝e managed to keep for more than a few months, other than a year long job I had once doing data entry. I taught myself to sew and then started a small stall to sell my dolls. I began this 17 years ago and I鈥檝e created 8,728 one of a kind stuffed animals since then.鈥�

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Apparently one of his dolls has featured in the renowned Smithsonian Museum and Barak Obama was given one by a congresswoman in 2010. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been wonderful to figure out a skill that utilises my need to repeat the same motions for hours a day and uses my ability to visualise 3D objects and translate them into sculptures of fabric.鈥� Ah, that sounds great. Thank you for sharing that with us, Mark.听

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JAMIE - That does sound really amazing, and I really like how Mark is building on one of his interests to make a career. And that topic of 鈥業 had employment doing data entry or something else but it wasn鈥檛 my special interest, it wasn鈥檛 my intense interest, and then I managed to find a way to make my intense interest my income鈥�, a lot of happy autistic people I know have followed that path.

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Let鈥檚 do one of our phone outs to Alfie Ward, who has an intense interest to tell us about. Technically it鈥檚 not a phone out though, because he has to join our Zoom call and it鈥檚 not a traditional phone in either because we鈥檙e not live. This is confusing. Anyway, Alfie is a 26 year old BSL translator from Birmingham who wrote to us about a sports team he set up for autistic people. Hi Alfie, how are you today?

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ALFIE - I鈥檓 not too bad thank you?

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JAMIE 鈥� Whay!

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ROBYN - What sport do you play?

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ALFIE - So I play a sport called paintball.

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JAMIE 鈥� Ah!

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ALFIE - Yeah. [laughs] We鈥檙e quite a rare breed, paintballers are. We started the team up because myself and a friend found it hard to get into some paintball teams, obviously because of our autism and people didn鈥檛 really understand. So obviously we needed to create a team where people felt safe and they felt that people around them understood about autism and the coaches would understand as well.

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JAMIE - I imagine paintballing is the same thing as mountain biking, or it鈥檚 a very kind of socially complicated environment, full of barter and stuff like that, which to me is a little bit of a lost cause. Similar sort of thing or鈥�?

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ALFIE - It can be, especially when we go to, like, tournaments, because obviously in tournaments there鈥檚 a lot of people, a lot of different noises. So I like to just put my headphones on until I do actually have to take them off, then I鈥檓 kind of a bit out of my comfort zone. I do try and talk to only a handful of people who I actually know. Yeah, it can be socially awkward sometimes.

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ROBYN - So how does paintballing work? Like, I mean I realise that you鈥檝e got guns with paint, but I mean that鈥檚 all I know about it.

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ALFIE - There鈥檚 two different types that you can play. So there鈥檚 Woodsball which sounds like its name, you play in the woods, obviously with trees and natural bunkers, whereas I also play Supair which you鈥檝e got like inflatable bunkers. So I prefer that. So it鈥檚 basically two different teams on the field at one time and it鈥檚 a race to, like, three points, six on each team or five, and you basically just shoot each other really. [laughs]

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ROBYN - What does it feel like to have the paint shot at you? Does it feel horrible?

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ALFIE - At first, especially if you鈥檙e new it can be horrible, because obviously like the texture and it can feel cold as well. So I think when I first got hit I just screamed and I just sat where I was. I didn鈥檛 like it, but I think after a while I sort of managed to build up a bit of tolerance to it, like I got used to the pain, especially outside as well.

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JAMIE - Does it leave bruises?

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ALFIE - It can leave bruises. I鈥檝e gone paintballing Saturday, Sunday, I鈥檝e come back into work on the Monday and I鈥檝e turned up black and blue before.

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JAMIE - I鈥檝e had the same thing when I fell off my bike and people were like, 鈥淥h my God, what happened to you? Did someone beat you up?鈥� 鈥淣o, I鈥︹��

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ALFIE - Yeah, that鈥檚 a question I do get asked quite a lot.

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EMMA - But guys, it doesn鈥檛 seem like a very autism friendly activity, like there鈥檚 so much unpredictability and the paint being shot at you, like the feeling of that and everything. Would you guys agree with me in that assumption, or do you just not make assumptions like I do?

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JAMIE - I think I鈥檇 say that it鈥檚 a defined activity with relatively fixed rules in a defined area. So whilst it is chaos it鈥檚 actually quite well defined chaos. Like for example, whilst you鈥檙e out on the field playing nobody is going to come and ask you whether you want a sandwich or, you know, 鈥淲ould you like a cup of tea?鈥� You鈥檙e probably not going to answer your mobile phone. So actually a lot of the day to day stresses I imagine, a bit like mountain biking, disappear because they鈥檙e not relevant whilst you鈥檙e doing the activity.

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ALFIE - Yeah, I find it that whenever I play, for however long I鈥檓 playing for, I鈥檓 just in my own little world and nothing else really matters. So for that two, three minutes of playing I鈥檝e got a job to do and I know the rules, so鈥�

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JAMIE - It鈥檚 a nice flow state where the rest of the world buggers off for a bit. In my case in need to avoid trees and you just have to shoot people. What could possibly go wrong?

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ROBYN - How fast does the paint come out of the gun?

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ALFIE - So every time we go to the paintball field they have to test our markers to see the rate of fire. So a typical paintball match for myself, we can shoot between five and ten paintballs a second.

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JAMIE - What velocity do they come out?

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ALFIE - I鈥檓 not 100% sure I鈥檓 afraid. I don鈥檛 really get into the technical stuff, my brain doesn鈥檛 really like numbers. If I get hit by one I know full well there鈥檚 nine others going to come at me straight away.

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JAMIE - [laughs] There鈥檚 more coming.

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ROBYN - Alfie, what鈥檚 life been like for you during lockdown?

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ALFIE - It鈥檚 been really, really hard. I鈥檝e not been able to keep the routine of my running races, obviously your paintball tournaments. My work has been great, they鈥檝e actually managed to keep some kind of routine for me, but when things obviously were getting cancelled I actually went into a three day temper tantrum because it was change and I don鈥檛 like change. So yeah, I spent three days just with my headphones on in my bedroom, not coming out to see the world.

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JAMIE - It sounds more like a meltdown or a shutdown than a temper tantrum really.

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ALFIE - Yeah. I threw a couple of things as well.

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JAMIE - I had a few recently and I鈥檝e now got extra ventilation holes in my bedroom door.

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ROBYN - For you, Alfie, what鈥檚 the difference between a meltdown and a temper tantrum?

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ALFIE - For me a meltdown is where I just curl up into a ball, put my headphones on and just escape from the world. A temper tantrum is where I go into a full-blown strop, throw myself on the floor kicking and screaming. That鈥檚 what I鈥檝e been told I do, I don鈥檛 really remember them. It鈥檚 all like it just goes into a bit of a blur.

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JAMIE - There鈥檚 a blurring of terms here because what you describe where you basically go and hide I would describe as a shutdown and what you鈥檙e describing as a tantrum I鈥檇 describe as a meltdown. Especially the not being able to remember it after.

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ROBYN - Yeah, but Jamie, you can鈥檛 tell other people how to describe what they experience.

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JAMIE - I鈥檓 not, I used the phrase, 鈥業 would describe as鈥�. But I think the reason why I keep picking up the world tantrum is because tantrum is a very judgemental term and I think we spend a lot of time trying to explain to people that meltdowns are not tantrums. So that鈥檚 why I was picking up my ears.

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EMMA - Why do you use the word tantrum, Alfie?

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ALFIE - It鈥檚 a word that got stuck with me from a very young age, so I think that鈥檚 the kind of word that got used on me. And it鈥檚 just a word that I鈥檝e always remembered. Because I got diagnosed quite late on in years of autism, so throughout the years I was known as just a naughty child. So what we didn鈥檛 know were obviously my meltdowns I just got told, 鈥淵eah, you鈥檙e having another temper tantrum.鈥�

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JAMIE - That makes a lot of sense. I think there鈥檚 a lot of people who are diagnosed later in life who have the same experience where the bad behaviour lens was the lens that was used rather than understanding the autism stuff.

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ROBYN - Thanks a lot, Alfie.

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JAMIE - Thank you, it鈥檚 been great to chat.

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ALFIE - Thanks very much for having me.

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[Jingle: 1800 Seconds on Autism. With Robyn Steward and Jamie Knight]

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JAMIE - A bit of housekeeping for you. Unlike before, our podcasts won鈥檛 be published every week, they鈥檒l be published monthly, recorded a few days before they go out.

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ROBYN - I don鈥檛 quite get the housekeeping bit. I mean, I鈥檓 in a house but I鈥檓 not normally in a house. Jamie, are you in a flat or a house?

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JAMIE - I鈥檓 in a flat, but housekeeping means announcements that relate to the thing that you鈥檙e doing.

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ROBYN - I know, I鈥檓 just kind of making fun of鈥�

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EMMA - Of me, as usual. You always make fun of me. Why do you always make fun of me? [laughter]

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ROBYN - Sorry. I鈥檓 not really making fun of you, I鈥檓 more making fun of just that these are things that people do say, you know, housekeeping stuff, it鈥檚 not that you invented that, but to me I just find that kind of thing quite funny. In my head what I see is a picture of a house and a broom and that doesn鈥檛 relate. So I鈥檓 not really making fun of you personally, I鈥檓 more making fun of just that in English we have all these non literal phrases and they are quite funny when you think about it.

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EMMA - Me and Jamie call them Robynisms and they鈥檙e fantastic and we really like them. I think I鈥檓 a little bit sort of raw from the Ollie email where nobody鈥檚 emailed about me to say Emma gets a rough deal because you always take the pee out of her script.

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ROBYN - Ah! I鈥檓 not really taking the piss out of your script though.

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EMMA - Not this time.

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JAMIE - So we need a new section for the podcast called we really like Emma.

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ROBYN - Yeah, we love Emma.

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EMMA - [laughs] It鈥檚 not about that.

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JAMIE - Welcome to the Emma appreciation hour.

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EMMA - You see, now I just look like an absolute eejit.

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JAMIE - No, no it鈥檚 fine. I think the neurotypical people call this banter.

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ROBYN - Yeah, I think that鈥檚 what they call it, yeah. Anyway, for the last two series we recorded programmes in advance across many months and then put them out weekly, all in a row, like ducks, which meant we weren鈥檛 able to respond to your emails on the next programme, unlike ducks, because they would quack. [laughter] Well, now we can. Quack. So we hope you like the new format and all being well we鈥檒l be here once a month for the next eight months. Yay! That鈥檚 how it鈥檚 working for this series and it鈥檚 a good way for us to continue to speak with you during this pandemic era. Message over! Let鈥檚 carry on!

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EMMA - I think what I was trying to say there was鈥�

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ROBYN 鈥� Quack.

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EMMA - Keep emailing鈥� [laughter]

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ROBYN - Keep your emails coming in and your quacks and your flaps. Everything is welcome. So, Jamie, now is your time to talk about your truck.

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JAMIE - Okay, so I didn鈥檛 actually mean to buy a truck. Me and Ollie do lots of adventures and we鈥檇 been using his car and then I pay for the fuel and stuff, but we鈥檙e basically slowly destroying his car with muddy bikes and stuff like that. Also, I can鈥檛 easily get in and out of his car because it鈥檚 really low and when I鈥檓 really tired I need to hold the door and he has to hold the door and it鈥檚 a right rigmarole. So we got onto this idea of getting a pickup truck. Dirty things like bikes can go in the back and then we can put handles and stuff into the cab. The original plan was for me and Ollie to buy it together but for it to be Ollie鈥檚 daily driver, so he鈥檇 drive it every day and he then put in more money and stuff, but then he didn鈥檛 like how it drove so in the end I ended up keeping it because I really liked how useful it was. And we were going to lose 拢500 or 拢600 selling it anyway, so we may as well keep it for three months, see how much we used it. And I鈥檒l tell you what. It鈥檚 bloody amazing. I鈥檝e never had a vehicle of my own before.

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ROBYN - But if Ollie doesn鈥檛 like driving it who drives it?

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JAMIE - All of my friends are insured on it. And I鈥檓 also insured to drive it, as long as there鈥檚 a qualified driver with me, which is a terrifying, terrifying, terrifying idea, but we鈥檒l find a quiet car park and I鈥檒l have a go at some point.

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ROBYN - And are you using it like a sensory den?

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JAMIE - I am, yeah.

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ROBYN - That鈥檚 cool.

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JAMIE - So it鈥檚鈥� Oh, God, it鈥檚 been used for a little bit of everything. So one of the things that I鈥檝e never been really very good at is if I went mountain biking with someone, essentially while they were packing the car I鈥檇 be sitting around doing nothing, 鈥榗os I just get in the way, but now what we can do is we鈥檝e got this custom built rack that goes in the back of the pickup bed which rides out on wheels so I can pull it out and bolt the bikes to it all by myself without needing anybody to help me. And then we can put the bike rack in and go on ride bikes or whatever. But the bike rack also comes out so we can also鈥� At one place it was really hot and the truck鈥檚 got air conditioning, which is brilliant, so we were able to sit where it was nice and cold. I can change my clothes in the back really easily. It鈥檚 got a twin cab. So it鈥檚 got five seats like a proper car so you can also sit in the back where it鈥檚 all got blacked out windows and it鈥檚 nice and dark. It鈥檚 a really, really cool thing. [laughs]

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ROBYN - Does it make you want to learn to drive?

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JAMIE - Yes. Yes. So bad. So bad. The way that my routine works at the moment is I basically get five days of just enough routine to stop everything from collapsing, so five days where I get some stuff done but essentially I鈥檓 stuck at home or鈥� Very little autonomy really and I鈥檝e kind of stuck on my routine which is about the only thing I鈥檝e got the energy and the support to do. And then I get two days a week where Ollie does a back to back visit and then those are the days where we do opticians or doctors and we end up at the doctors quite a lot at the moment because I鈥檝e got a health condition to monitor. So we do food shopping, laundry, all that sort of stuff during this two day slot when Ollie visits, but we can also use some of that time to go for a bike ride.

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I would love to be able to ride my bike any day, and it would be a dream of mine to be able to drive myself to a bike park, go for a ride and then drive myself back. The nearest bike park鈥檚 about three miles away, so it鈥檚 not that far away, and I鈥檝e got a provisional driving licence, so in theory, now that I鈥檓 insured on the truck, if I had a fully qualified driver sat next to me then I could slowly build up to being able to do that, although in reality it鈥檚 probably something I might manage to do once, just for the sake of the adventure, but I don鈥檛 think it鈥檒l ever be a practical thing I can do every day.

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ROBYN - What colour is it?

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JAMIE - It鈥檚 black. It鈥檚 got silver wheels. It鈥檚 got silver metal bits down the side and it鈥檚 got a silver kind of canopy over the top of the truck bed.

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EMMA - You do love your little spaces don鈥檛 you?

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JAMIE - Oh I do, I do.

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EMMA - Between storage units and cupboards and trucks, I mean we could have literally made a series couldn鈥檛 we about Jamie and Robyn鈥檚 little spaces?

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JAMIE - Little nooks.

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[Jingle: You鈥檙e listening to 1800 Seconds on Autism]

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ROBYN - Let鈥檚 do a phone out. Hello, Abbie Lewis.

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ABBIE 鈥� Hi.

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ROBYN - Abbie wrote to us with a glowing email, although I don鈥檛 know how it can be glowing because I don鈥檛 think emails glow. Anyway, Abbie says: 鈥淚 am 16 years old and have Asperger鈥檚 syndrome. Most of my peers at school bully me for my disability and I could talk for hours on this, but my email would be too long.鈥� I used to get bullied at school as well. 鈥淲hen I start talking about a passionate topic the words just start to fall out of my mouth and I cannot seem to control it very well.鈥� Yeah, I can definitely be like that.

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JAMIE - Yeah, I know that feeling well.

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ROBYN - 鈥淚 just wondered whether you would do a phone out with me, because one of my neurotypical friends introduced me to your podcast and we stay in contact chatting constantly about it and how amazing you are at it.鈥� Ah, thank you. 鈥淚 have re-listened to all of your episodes many times and made myself fall off my chair laughing. That was a pun on one of the names of your episodes. I hope you understand the joke.鈥� We do! 鈥淔rom Abbie Lewis and Poppy, my support plushy dog.鈥� Well, Abbie, thank you so much for coming on our podcast. Before lockdown what were you doing and has this changed?

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ABBIE - Before lockdown, obviously I was at school, but now that we鈥檙e in lockdown it鈥檚 been online school which has been quite hard to deal with sometimes.

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ROBYN - What鈥檚 been the hardest thing about online schooling?

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ABBIE - The fact that teachers often pick on me more now that I鈥檓 not in the stressful situation of being at school.

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ROBYN - They pick on you. Do you mean they ask you questions or they鈥檙e horrible or鈥�?

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ABBIE - No, they ask me questions like to answer a question in class.

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ROBYN - Can you do text or do you actually have to speak?

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ABBIE - I had to tell a couple of my teachers that I prefer to use the chat function. So it took quite a while for them to adapt their teaching methods but finally they managed to allow me to use the chat function.

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JAMIE - That鈥檚 good.

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ROBYN - And what do you want to do next year?

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ABBIE - I鈥檓 hoping to go to one of two sixth forms and I鈥檓 hoping to get a career in general paediatric nursing.

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ROBYN - Oh, that鈥檚 great. So how do you feel about going to sixth form?

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ABBIE - The thought of it鈥檚 quite scary because there鈥檚 a chance I might be going to a new one where there鈥檚 the social issue of having new people to talk to, and obviously they won鈥檛 understand how best to communicate with me.

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JAMIE - When I went to sixth form I had the same worry, but generally speaking the people who have gone to sixth form tend to be the more mature students. So my social skills improved a lot with sixth form because the students were more flexible to communicate with me. So it was a much better experience than GCSEs.

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ROBYN - What other things do you like to do?

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ABBIE - Recently in lockdown I鈥檝e got into colouring which is quite relaxing. I also like playing with my dog.

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ROBYN - Do you have a dog as well as Poppy?

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ABBIE - Yeah. He鈥檚 called Harvey.

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ROBYN - Ah. What kind of dog is he?

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ABBIE - He鈥檚 a mix between a Cavalier King Charles and a Bichon Frise.

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ROBYN - Ah. Does he have, like, floppy ears?

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ABBIE - Yeah, his ears are far too big for his head.

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ROBYN 鈥� Ah!

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JAMIE - What鈥檚 the cutest thing he does?

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ABBIE 鈥� Sneezes.

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ROBYN 鈥� Ah!

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JAMIE - Ah! So Abbie. Earlier you mentioned that you鈥檙e looking to be a paediatric nurse. What draws you into that?

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ABBIE 鈥� From a young age I was in my local Brownies and now I鈥檝e gone back as a young leader to help, so I鈥檝e become quite close with young children and I just like making people feel better and helping them.

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JAMIE - That鈥檚 really good.

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ROBYN - I used to go to Brownies. Jamie, did you go to Scouts or anything?

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JAMIE - I did Sea Cadets for a short while but I left unable to tie knots and unable to swim, so I鈥檓 not sure I necessarily did very well at Sea Cadets. But it was fun, I liked the routine and the structure of it.

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ROBYN - I loved going to Brownies.

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JAMIE - It鈥檚 really positive to have more autistic nurses and people working with children because it鈥檚 a role model for young people they support and it also helps show that being autistic doesn鈥檛 necessarily mean that you can鈥檛 have careers in really competitive fields, like being a paediatric nurse. So it鈥檚 really good, really, really good, I鈥檓 really excited for it.

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ROBYN - Personally I鈥檇 rather be seen by a fellow autistic person, because I think sometimes non autistic people, I don鈥檛 really know how to articulate it better, but they like fluffy communication when it鈥檚 medical things.

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JAMIE - I have that exact experience. I went a couple of years ago and had my teeth done under anaesthetic and the anaesthesiologist was autistic and he didn鈥檛 say, 鈥淥h, we鈥檙e going to put this into you and it鈥檚 going to make you fall asleep,鈥� he went, 鈥淭his drug will make you so you don鈥檛 move as much. This one will mean that you don鈥檛 remember anything. This one will make you relaxed,鈥� and he kind of mixed it all up whilst explaining what they all did. And that actually really reassured me because I understood what was going on, rather than, 鈥淭his is a magic thing that makes you fall asleep,鈥� which to me was actually a really scary thought.

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ROBYN - I have one more question. Abbie, do you think there are any topics that affect young people that we haven鈥檛 covered in the podcast?

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ABBIE - There is one that you partly touched on, but I think it鈥檚 bullying, which is quite a big one for me sometimes.

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ROBYN - Abbie, thank you for sharing about your bullying, because I think it鈥檚 a really important topic and maybe we can do a future episode on it. but thank you so much for joining us, and it鈥檚 been fantastic.

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JAMIE - Thank you for joining us, it鈥檚 been great. Cheerio.

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ROBYN - That鈥檚 it for this month鈥檚 episode of 1800 Seconds on Autism. We love reading your messages so please keep them coming in to stim@bbc.co.uk. Stim is spelt S-T-I-M.

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JAMIE - If you subscribe to the podcast on the 大象传媒 Sounds app each new episode will automatically appear in your feed as soon as it鈥檚 published. Thanks for listening, and remember鈥�

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ROBYN - When you鈥檝e met one autistic person鈥�

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JAMIE - You鈥檝e met one autistic person.

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ROBYN 鈥� Bye.

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JAMIE 鈥� Bye.

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[Jingle: That was 1800 Seconds on Autism]