Mindfulness & Creativity for Self-Awareness & Self-Acceptance.
Unconditional love for your autistic / disabled / aging self.
Shed the layers of “supposed” and “should.”
Achieve unconditional self-acceptance for your autistic / disabled / aging self.
I lived the first 40+ years of my life carefully.
Trying to please others, fit in, be normal.
Making my decisions and choices based on how I “should” live and was “supposed” to be.
There is a tremendous burden of weight on my nervous system.
I’ve been doing yoga since I was 12, and teaching yoga since I was 19, trying to keep my calm in a world that made me feel crazy, while accumulating the illnesses that chronic stress exacerbates: chronic pain, fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, anxiety, immune system disfunction, chronic allergies, insomnia and chronic migraines.
A few years ago, I began healing my body and mind through mindful unmasking: peeling of all the layers of “should” and “supposed” to find the core of authentic, calm, joyful awareness that is actually me.
May my journey help you on your own path of mindful unmasking.
RESEARCH STUDY: Survey of Autistic Adults about their Experiences with Stress and Coping
There is a new study about the experiences of autistic adults with stress and coping to better understand the unique experiences of stress and coping among autistic adults. A key goal of this research study is to develop supportive resources for coping with stress specifically designed to help autistic adults. For this study, you are invited to complete a survey about your experiences of stress and coping.
About the study:
- You will be asked to complete an online survey about your experiences of stress and coping. The survey will take anywhere from 15 minutes to 1 hour to complete, depending on the length of your answers to the open-response questions.
- At the end of the survey, you will be asked if you want to provide your email address. If you provide your email answer, you will receive a summary of the survey findings, including recommendations for stress management strategies for autistic adults. Your email address will be stored separately from your survey responses and will not be shared.
- To protect your privacy, the published study will not share any names or details that identify you.
Volunteers must meet all 3 of the following requirements:
- 18 years old or older.
- Autistic adults (self-diagnosis is valid).
- Sufficient English-speaking proficiency to complete an online survey (you can use support resources and/or support from technology or another person to complete the study).
This research is being conducted by Kimberlee Bethany Bonura, PhD, who is a Faculty Member in the Walden University College of Psychology and Community Services. Dr. Bonura is conducting this study as an autistic researcher researching autism (she is a late-diagnosed Autistic woman and a mom of two autistic children). Dr. Bonura’s research focuses on stress and stress-management, and she has almost three decades of experience as a yoga teacher and yoga therapist. She is interested in better understanding the stress experiences of autistic adults, so that she can develop resources to support autistic adults manage stress.
Please email Kimberlee.Bonura@mail.waldenu.edu if you have questions about this study.
Please share this post with others who might be interested.
If you would like to participate in the survey, please click here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AutisticAdults
COMING SOON:
- Resources for Autistic Adults
- Resources for Autistic Kids/Teens and the Parents who Love & Support Them