lived experience

Understanding autism can feel a little like trying to communicate across two different languages. The words may be the same, but the meaning does not always land the way either person intended.

Kaelynn Partlow is trying to change that.

An autistic therapist, advocate, and cast member on Love on the Spectrum, Partlow brings both professional expertise and lived experience to Life on the Bridge: Linking My World to Yours as an Autistic Therapist. The result is a practical, personal guide designed to help autistic people, families, therapists, educators, and other professionals better understand one another.

The book starts with a premise that feels especially important in disability advocacy, and that TravelAbility continuously amplifies: listen to autistic people themselves.

Partlow tackles the questions that often create confusion between autistic individuals and the people around them, from communication and sensory differences to meltdowns, stimming, masking, perseveration, loneliness, and accommodations. Rather than treating these experiences as behaviors to simply correct, she pulls from her expertise and lived experiences to explain what may be happening underneath them and offer concrete ways to communicate more effectively.

“Listen to autistic people themselves.”

Kaelynn Partlow

Partlow’s perspective is particularly valuable for parents and professionals who may know a great deal about autism but are still learning what it feels like to experience the world as an autistic person. Partlow’s position on both sides of that divide gives her a unique way to explain where misunderstandings happen, why certain approaches can miss the mark, and how a little more understanding can change the interaction entirely.

Life on the Bridge is available in hardcover, ebook, and audiobook, with the audiobook narrated by Partlow herself.

For anyone looking for a better way to understand autism, this is one for the books.