Brittany McGuire, also known as Tacobellqueen, went viral after sharing a TikTok of her brother, Ryan McGuire, reacting to her wearing a face mask.
The 28-year-old Ryan McGuire has autism, and when people began asking the 25-year-old Brittany McGuire questions about him, the two thought they could use her TikTok account to teach people about autism.
Brittany McGuire shared how TikTok has strengthened their relationship while helping others understand what autism is, according to Today.
TikTok Helps Illustrate Autism
Brittany said that when she captured her brother's reaction to her wearing the face mask, she thought it was a funny moment that people would appreciate.
However, she had no idea that it would go viral, and they would begin using social media to educate others about autism. While a lot of people enjoyed seeing them hanging out, questions flooded in, and some of them began sounding intrusive and offensive.
The two have a TikTok where she would ask him what autism means to him. In one viral video, Ryan shared that he does not think of autism as an illness but a disorder.
Ryan explained that he often does things differently than other people and processes things in his way, but he still has thoughts and feelings just like anyone else.
Hearing Ryan's point of view about autism is powerful and enlightening. And it made people search more about autism and its spectrum.
There is not a single definition for autism. It is an umbrella term consisting of a broad spectrum of people.
Yet, TV shows and other pop culture media tend to rely on autistic stereotypes, creating inaccurate portrayals of autism spectrum disorder, from the show "Sheldon." to "The Good Doctor" and the controversial Sia movie "Music."
Who are the best people to represent what autism looks like? The answer is the autistic people themselves.
April is Autism Awareness Month, and autistic TikTok users upload videos using hashtags like #actuallyautistic and #autismawareness to talk more about their experiences with autism.
Individualized Experience
A common theme featured across all videos is that autism is an individualized experience. There is no specific way an autistic person should look, act, or even cope.
According to Verywell, autism manifests in different ways. Autistic people may or may not have issues communicating and understanding social situations.
The situation can range from being nonverbal to demonstrating challenges in language or talking only about very specific topics. Some people may display deficits in social interaction, while some may be able to camouflage them, according to VOX.
The behavioral diagnostic criteria of autism involve repetition and very restricted behaviors, but this can depend on the person. For example, repetitive body movements include flapping hands, rocking back and forth, and placing items in specific orders.
Parents and professionals may have a hard time understanding autism because of the sheer amount of misinformation surrounding the disorder, which trickles down to autistic people, according to Autism.org.
The false link between vaccines causing autism is an example of how autism is portrayed as an accident instead of an extension of a person's identity, as reported by the CDC.
Every person's autistic identity is different, just like snowflakes, because no two are the same.
Related Article: Researchers examine autism differences in boys versus girls
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Written by Sophie Webster
