Empowering Authentic Autistic Communication: Sensory Processing

Deficit-based social skills training for autistic individuals makes zero neurological sense. Historically, social skills training for Autistic individuals has aimed to identify deficit, ‘normalize’ behavior and promote Neurotypical communication styles. This approach is neurologically misguided and can be deeply invalidating, as it teaches Neurodivergent folks to go against what feels authentic and natural.

From a sensory processing perspective, these approaches actually work against neurology. Autistic individuals often have heightened sensory sensitivity due to differences in the thalamus and sensory cortex, leading to amplified responses to internal and external sensory stimuli. This is called neurological amplification. An Autistic brain may also have difficulty filtering out irrelevant sensory input, resulting in competition for attention resources, an important part of social engagement.

Keep in mind many Autistic individuals also have ADHD so attention differences may be present already.

Constant sensory input can overwhelm working memory and executive function — the same systems needed for interpreting facial expressions, social cues, and conversation flow. There is just not enough cognitive bandwidth for the complex multi-tasking needed for conversation.

Overstimulation can trigger the autonomic nervous system, shifting the body into survival mode.

Fight, flight or freeze is activated, making vulnerability, genuine connection or social engagement neurologically inaccessible. This is a safety issue for the brain. Not something we can or should “train” out of someone. Reducing a person’s ability to distinguish safety from danger is a recipe for trauma.

Social skills training often happens in sensory-rich settings such as clinics and classrooms, without consideration different sensory needs. No brain, Autistic or not, can learn with this level of environmental mismatch between stimulus and nervous system.

Therapy that affirms a person’s neurotype and natural communication style isn’t just kinder, it makes a lot more sense neurologically. We create more meaningful connection, greater engagement, and better long-term outcomes by working with a person’s neurology, not against it.