Something I didn’t expect when I discovered I’m autistic was how lonely it can feel.

After my autism discovery, I started accommodating my needs because I realized that the life I was living didn’t fit my true self. These accommodations have changed my life for the better, but at the same time, they’ve also increased my sense of loneliness.

Before I knew I was autistic, I thought everyone struggled to make friends and felt like they didn’t quite fit in. So I ignored those feelings and tried my hardest to be like my peers.

But when I discovered I’m autistic, I realized that the person I am around other people is often a masked version of myself. And part of accepting myself as an autistic person has been learning to unmask. For me, that means needing a lot of time alone to recharge.

I also realized that daily contact and meeting up with people every week drains a huge amount of my energy. To protect that energy, I had to stop pushing myself to socialize so much. On top of that, I genuinely thrive when I’m by myself, and that combination can make it difficult to maintain friendships and meet new people.

But the fact that I struggle with keeping in touch or making friends doesn’t mean I don’t want connection – because we all need it!

That contradiction can be hard to navigate, and at times it has made me feel incredibly lonely. It’s difficult when you deeply want to connect with other people but don’t know how to do that without burning yourself out.

I also feel that many neurodivergent people need a different kind of connection than neurotypical people, which can make friendships even more complicated.

Luckily, I’m slowly finding a balance between protecting my peace and staying connected to others. Part of that process has been accepting that some friendships may no longer fit into my life the way they once did, and that’s okay. I’ve learned to trust that new people will come into my life when the time is right.

Surprise! Everything above was written by Julia, a fellow autistic alien who started as a 1-1 coaching client and now helps me behind the Liv Label Free scenes (listen to Julia’s story on the podcast here.)

My book Rainbow Girl came into Julia’s life at the right time, leading her to work with me. In our final coaching session, I mentioned hiring someone for Liv Label Free – and Julia couldn’t have been more excited to join the team! And so you see, everything does fall into place when you surrender to your discovery journey and commit to living in alignment with yourself.

Are YOU ready to embark on a neurodiversity-affirming journey to discover your unique version of freedom? The Autistically ED-Free Academy is now available as a 1-1 coaching experience! Whether you want to work with just me or both me and Julia as part of her training to become a Liv Label Free coach, contact me if interested and I can send you pricing info.

Here’s what Julia says about our time together:

“I can’t put into words how grateful I am for Liv’s help and support! I got to know her through her podcasts and blogs, and I absolutely loved both. But what truly changed my life was her 1-on-1 coaching. I discovered quite recently that I’m autistic, and I was really struggling with my ED recovery journey. Liv helped me put things into perspective and find my joy and happiness again.”

Click here to learn more about the 1-1 Academy experience →

Here’s to discovering your joy,

XO Liv (and Julia)