Autism is something that many people know about.
很多人都听说过自闭症。
For example, some people think that autistic people are fair-skinned males
举个例子，有的人认为自闭症人士是白人男性，
that speak in monotone and constantly go on and on about the same topic.
说话声音单调，并且会对同一个话题说个不停。
Some people think that autistic people do not know right from wrong,
有些人则认为自闭症人士无法分辨对错，
avoid attention and usually say the wrong thing at the wrong time.
不喜欢被人注意，并经常在错误的时间说错误的话。
Some people think that autistic people are socially awkward and lack humor and empathy.
还有些人觉得自闭症人士在社交上表现笨拙，并缺乏幽默感和同理心。
Now if you agree with what I just said, I'm sorry to tell you, but you do not have the right impression of autism.
如果你们同意我刚才所说的，那我很抱歉地告诉你们，你们对自闭症的印象并不正确。
How do I know? Because I have autism.
我是怎么知道的呢？因为我就有自闭症。
I do have my own obsessions with things like electronics and public transit, but that does not define me.
我的确对电子产品和公共交通非常着迷，但这并不能定义我是怎样的人。
Each of us are different and unique in our own way.
我们每一个人都有自己的不同与独特之处。
However, there is not a lot of information out there on what an autistic life actually looks like,
但是世界上并没有多少关于自闭症人群真实生活的信息，
so people often resort to stereotypes. And we see these often in the media.
于是人们通常会诉诸刻板印象。我们在媒体里常常看到这些刻板印象。
Some of the more common stereotypes in the media include being socially awkward, lacking empathy and even being a supergenius.
一些在媒体里更常见的刻板印象包括社交障碍，缺乏同理心，甚至超级天才。
And the lack of knowledge on autism doesn't stop there either.
对于自闭症的认识缺乏还不仅限于此。
Did you know that some people are trying to find a cure for autism?
你们知道有些人正在为自闭症寻找治疗办法吗？
That's because they see it as a negative thing, as a disease.
这是因为他们觉得自闭症是不好的，是一种疾病。
Many people are challenging the idea and to us, we think autism is not a disease.
很多人在驳斥这种观点，对于我们来说，我们认为自闭症不是一种疾病。
It's just another way of thinking and looking at the world.
它只不过是另一种思考与看待世界的方式。
Our brains function differently from most people's brains.
我们大脑的运行方式同大多数人不同。
Think of it like comparing and Xbox and a PlayStation.
这就好比把Xbox和PlayStation拿来对比一样。
They're both highly capable consoles with different programming.
两者都是性能出众的主机，有着不同的程序。
But if you put your Xbox game in a PlayStation, it won't work, because the PlayStation communicates differently.
但是如果你把Xbox的游戏放在PlayStation里面，它不会顺利运行，因为PlayStation的读取方式和Xbox不同。
When I look in the mirror, I see someone who thinks differently. Oh, and I also see nice hair.
当我看向镜子的时候，我会看到一个思维方式不同的人。噢，还有好看的头发。
But the question is, am I really diseased if I just think differently?
但是问题在于，如果只是思维方式异于常人，那我真的患有疾病吗？
The main problem with living autistic in today's society is that the world just isn't built for us.
自闭症人群在现代社会里生活的最大问题是，这个世界的运行方式对我们不适用。
There's so many ways that we can get overwhelmed.
世界上有太多的事情能让我们无所适从。
For example, the thing that makes me overwhelmed all the time is loud noises,
举个例子来说，我一直难以应付的东西是巨大的声响，
which means I never crank up my music really loud and I usually am not a fan of large parties.
这意味着我从来不把音乐声音开得很大，我也不喜欢参加大型派对。
But other people on the spectrum might get overwhelmed with things like bright lights or strong smells or gooey textures
但是其他有自闭症谱系障碍的人，可能会因为强光或者浓烈的味道或者黏糊糊的质感而感到难以忍受，
that all have the potential to create anxiety.
这些东西都可能给我们制造焦虑。
Think about all of the social gatherings you've been to in the past.
想想你们过去参加过的所有社交聚会。
Was there loud music playing? Were there really bright lights?
那里是不是放着很大声的音乐？是不是有着很刺眼的灯光？
Were there lots of different food smells going on at the same time?
是不是同时弥漫着很多种不同食物的味道？
Were there lots of conversations happening all at once?
是不是有很多人在同时进行对话？
Those things may not have bothered you guys, but for someone with autism, they can be quite overwhelming.
这些事可能不会让你们觉得困扰，但是对于有自闭症的人来说，它们能让人觉得不堪重负。
So in those situations, we do something called stimming,
所以在这种情况下，我们会做出自我刺激的行为，
which is like a repetitive motion or a noise or some other random fidgeting that may or may not seem normal.
比如做出反复的动作或声音，又或是其他无意义的小动作，看上去可能正常，也可能不正常。
Some people will flap their arms or make a noise or spin.
有些人会挥动手臂，或是发出吵声，或是旋转物品。
Ya, it's basically our way of zoning out. It can often feel necessary for us to stim.
没错，这基本就是我们走神时的表现。我们常常觉得有必要进行自我刺激。
However, it's often frowned upon, and we're forced to hide it.
但是，这种行为常常令他人不悦，于是我们被迫隐藏这种行为。

When we're forced to hide our autistic traits like this, it's called masking. And some people mask better than others.
当我们被迫隐藏类似的自闭症状时，我们在进行伪装。有的人比其他人隐藏得好。
I mask so well sometimes that people don't even know I'm autistic until I give them the big reveal.
我有时隐藏得相当好，以至于别人甚至不知道我有自闭症，直到我为他们揭开谜底。
But at the end of the day, it gets really stressful.
但是不管怎么说，这样的伪装会带来巨大压力。
Even something like doing my homework at night becomes very tiring.
甚至晚上做作业之类的事情都会变得非常令人疲倦。
Some people think, because of our ability to mask, that this is the cure to autism.
有些人会想，因为我们有能力进行伪装，这就是治愈自闭症的办法。
However, all it really does is makes us ashamed of showing our true selves.
但是，这样的伪装只会让我们羞于展现真正的自我。
Another common stereotype that is often associated with autism is that autistic people lack empathy.
另一个常常和自闭症联系在一起的刻板印象是，自闭症人群缺乏同理心。
And again, this is not true. I actually have lots of empathy. I'm just not really good at showing it.
同样的，这也不是真相。我其实富有同理心。我只是不擅长表现出来。
Whenever a friend is trying to tell me some of the struggles that they're going through, I often don't know how to express my reply.
每当朋友尝试告诉我他们正经历的一些挣扎时，我通常都不知道如何表达我的回应。
And that is why I don't show as much empathy as my nonautistic friends do.
这就是为什么和我没有自闭症的朋友相比，我没有表现出同等程度的同理心。
Emotional expression, however much or however little, is difficult for me.
情感上的表达，不论多少，对我来说都很困难。
And that is because I am bursting inside with every single emotion one feels at all times.
这是因为无论何时我感受到的任何情感，在心中都如同爆炸一样强烈。
Though of course, I cannot express it that way. Otherwise, let's say, happiness, for example,
虽说当然了，我无法那样强烈地表达出来。否则的话，以快乐为例，
would come out as a huge burst of gleeful wheezing, hand flapping and loud vocal "woohoos." Whereas you may just smile.
快乐会剧烈地爆发出来，我会兴奋地喘气，手舞足蹈，并大声高呼“哇吼！”而换作你的话，可能只是个微笑。
Whether it be receiving an awesome birthday gift or listening to a tragic story on the news,
不管是收到非常棒的生日礼物，还是听到新闻里面悲剧的故事，
I cannot really express my reply without bursting, so once again, I have to mask it in order to appear normal.
我真的没办法在情感不爆发的情况下表达回应，所以为了表现正常，我不得不再次进行掩饰。
My inner feelings are unlimited, but my mind only lets me express extremes or nothing.
我内心有无限的情感，但我的头脑只能让我极端爆发，抑或毫无波动。
So my... I am not great with my emotions, and I communicate differently,
所以我...我不擅长表达情感，我沟通的方式也不一样，
and because of that, I was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.
因为这些，我被诊断有自闭症谱系障碍。
This diagnosis helps me and my friends and family to know how my mind works.
这次诊断让我、我朋友和家人了解了我思维的运转方式。
And in the world, approximately one percent of the population is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.
世界上，大概1%的人口被诊断有自闭症谱系障碍。
And this number is growing. However, we are still a big minority.
同时这个数字还在增加。但是，我们依然是一个大型的少数群体。
And there's still lots of people that do not see us as equals to other people.
现在还有很多人不把我们视为和他人平等的人。
This is my family. And in my family, there is one other person who is also autistic.
这是我的家人。在我的家庭中，还有另一位有自闭症的人。
My mother. Yes, adult women can also be autistic. My dad and my brother are both nonautistic.
我的妈妈。是的，成年女性也可能有自闭症。我的爸爸和兄弟都没有自闭症。
Sometimes it can be a bit difficult for us to communicate with each other, however.
有时候，我们几个人互相沟通会有些困难，但是。
Sometimes I'll say something like, "Oh, Toronto's Union Station, right?"
有时候我会说类似“噢，多伦多联合车站，是吗？”这样的话，
thinking that I can help them to remember certain aspects of it.
因为我认为这样能帮助他们想起车站的某些方面。
When they get confused, I often have to elaborate myself on that.
当他们感到困惑时，我经常不得不对其进行详细阐述。
And we often have to say things in a number of different ways so that everyone understands.
我们也经常不得不用多种不同方式说明，以便所有人理解。
However, despite all that, we all love each other and respect each other as equals.
但是，尽管这样，我们都很爱彼此，并且平等地尊重对方。
In his book "NeuroTribes," author Steve Silberman states that autism and other mental conditions should be seen as naturally human,
在《神经部落》一书中，作者史蒂夫·希波曼声称，自闭症和其它精神状况都应被看作人类的自然特性，
naturally part of a human spectrum and not as defects.
都是人类谱系中的正常部分，而不应被视为缺陷。
And this is something that I agree to completely.
这一点我是完全同意的。
If autism was seen as part of a natural human spectrum, then the world could be designed to work better for autistic people.
如果自闭症人群被视为正常人类谱系中的一部分，那么这个世界就可以被设计得对自闭症人群更加友好。
I am not ashamed of my autism. And I may not think like you, or act like you, but I am still human and I am not diseased. Thank you.
我并不因为有自闭症而感到羞耻。我可能和你们的思考方式不同，行为举止不同，但我仍是人类，我也没有患病。谢谢。