Did you know that if it weren’t for the unique minds shaped by autism, the world would have missed out on geniuses like Albert Einstein, Emily Dickinson and Bobby Fischer? 

On World Autism Awareness Day we’ve gathered some of the most inspiring and heartening quotes about autism. These aren’t just words; they’re reflections from people who are on this journey of autism.

Here we go.

1. “Autism is not a pathological condition or a disease, it’s a way of life” – Amanda Baggs, blogger who writes predominantly about autism.

2. “Children with autism are colorful – they are often very beautiful and, like the rainbow, they stand out.” – Adele Devine, special needs teacher.

3. “There is this myth that children with autism don’t have empathy. I’ve found the exact opposite to be true: children with autism are instead the most highly sensitive individuals I have ever had the privilege to know” – Elaine Hall, author and founder of The Miracle Project.

4. “Autism doesn’t come with an instruction guide. It comes with a family who will never give up.” – Kerry Magro, autistic professional speaker and author.

5. Autism is not a disability but a different ability – Stuart Duncan, writer and father of a son with autism. 

6. “There is no doubt that autism makes my life difficult, but it also makes my life beautiful. When everything is more intense, then the everyday, the mundane, the typical, the normal … those things become outstanding.” – Erin McKinney, basketball operations personnel with the Memphis Grizzlies team

7. For us, you see, having autism is normal — so we can’t know for sure what your ‘normal’ is even like. But so long as we can learn to love ourselves, I’m not sure how much it matters whether we’re normal or autistic – Naoki Higashida, author.

8. “Think of it: a disability is usually defined in terms of what is missing, but autism is as much what is abundant as what is missing, an over-expression of the very traits that make our species unique.” – Paul Collins, author.

9. By separating the autism from the person, are we encouraging our patients’ family members to love an imagined nonautistic child that was never born, forgetting about the real person who exists in front of us? – Christina Nicolaidis, Professor and author.

10. “Autistic people are people: they’re not puzzle pieces or baffling enigmas or medical mysteries to be solved, or ‘normal’ people ‘trapped’ in the bodies of autistics.” – Steve Silberman, science writer and speaker.

Read more about neurodivergent experiences as told by Ashiish V Patil and Anima Nair.