Introduction This eBook has been created and written in partnership with autistic adults, to raise awareness and increase understanding of the differences in communication styles between autistic and non-autistic people. Whether we realise it or not, we all follow a social rulebook - all those unwritten “rules” that shape our everyday interactions and the way we navigate the world. Day to day we are often required to read between the lines to truly understand what someone is saying, to interpret body language, to make eye contact and to understand idioms. For non-autistic people, eye contact is seen as an important sign that people are listening and paying attention. Idioms are all those little phrases and sayings people use as shorthand, for example, saying ‘it’s raining cats and dogs’ to mean it’s pouring with rain, or ‘killing two birds with one stone’ to mean ‘achieving two aims at once’. However, not all of our brains are wired the same way, to be able to process and interpret this rulebook. Meanings are often lost, and conversations misinterpreted. Many people are left to navigate a world where everyday interactions are much harder and more overwhelming than they need to be.
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