Penny for your thoughts…
By Jeannette | February 24, 2012
In a pensive frame of mind today. Now that I’ve been part of the twitter community for three months or so, it’s take stock time.
When I first signed up on twitter, I started off by following my favourite singer (and teenage crush lol) – no I’m not naming! Then a writer who’s work I always enjoyed reading. Left it like that for a while. Made one reply to a celeb’s tweet and when I didn’t get a reply, thought “humph, bit rude” it’s only when you look at their profile and follower numbers that you realise they are probably
absolutely bombarded by replies every time they tweet. Even if it’s something like “run out of milk”.
And then you get a bit more confident, you start searching for people who share the same interests or, in my case, have a child with autism. You reach out to them and they respond.
The first time I started have a twitter conversation with someone in the same boat, I remember thinking “is this for real, how does she know how I’m feeling – how scared I am for D’s future, how much pride I take in the little achievements that she makes, how does she know?” You swap photos of your children and think “wow, I’ve found a kindred spirit here”.
And then leads on to following more people, having more people following back. People that make you laugh with their antidotes and jokes, people who make you cry with their life stories, people (bless their souls) who aren’t around any more due to the cruel and non-discriminating disease called cancer.
I changed my user name from Bluecrisps to reflect more of why I’m on twitter, I started blogging and am so pleased when someone comes back and reads it and says “yes, I identify” or “we’ve been through that and this is what we did”.
None of us know what the future holds for our children and, if I’m being honest, the way the Government is trying to cut and disregard the disabled community really really scares me. Any parent of a special needs child has enough to worry about. We need to take notice of the Welfare Reform Bill and DMS5 proposals as it will affect a lot of our special needs community. Sign up for Pats Petition if you haven’t already, singularly we aren’t powerful, put us together and we have a voice demanding to be heard.
I’ve unfollowed quite a few celebrities, I’m not interested if they’ve run out of milk anymore.
My only regret is that I miss out on the tweets from America, Australia etc because I’m asleep (if D let’s me sleep that is).
So, to every one of you that reads this, thank you.
Dedicated to T, K, M and C xx and #team twitter.
8 Comments
Pam on 24th February 2012 at 11:31 am.
That was beautiful J. I started Twitter the same way! Then it just exploded when I searched for parents of kids with not only Autism but Down Syndrome as well. Now I have my little “groups” that I have been welcomed into with open arms! My “UK Mums”, such as yourself and quite a few others, share stories of their Autistic children. I speak with parents of kids with Downs too. I love how you used the term “kindred spirits” as I have used that term to describe you all as well.
Thank you for making me feel so welcome and for sharing your stories. 🙂
Tracy on 24th February 2012 at 11:59 am.
Your one awesome friend !!!
Twitter came alive when we started tweeting and teamtwitter was born xxx
Nicola on 24th February 2012 at 3:19 pm.
It’s so true, I was exactly the same, and like you, I found the most amazing community on twitter I never knew existed, like minded people who just “get it” and understand, and you realise you are not alone. Thank you J for being in my twitter community 🙂 xxx
Julie on 24th February 2012 at 3:26 pm.
I also started to use Twitter just to see what it was about. When I started meeting other autism parents the whole world just seemed to open up. I’m so glad that we were able to connect although thousands of miles away!
Blessings to you my friend!
Vanessa (@AspieMum) on 26th February 2012 at 10:17 am.
I’m finding all these Benefit changes related to disability and carers scary too. Another thing is inspite of the Autism Bill services for adults on the spectrum didn’t improve and now services for all disabled are being destroyed. So much for the Autism Bill.
Jenny Meyerson on 26th February 2012 at 3:36 pm.
Julie (my sis who commented above!) and I were just talking about this very thing. We are both new to the blogging/social media world and have been overwhelmed and surprised at how much support and connection we have felt from complete strangers all over the world. We feel more in common with people all over the globe, than those in our backyard.
As Julie’s sister, I can only understand her journey to a certain point. I walk the road beside her and see her struggles, but I can only grasp the reality to a point. {Just as she doesn’t totally get what it is to have had cancer or live with its fears of recurrence, etc.} So I am thrilled that the autism community is so big on twitter. She feels a kinship that she so desperately needs.
I’m so glad to have “met” you. This was a beautiful post and just love the title of it, too!
Blessings Jeannette!-Jenny
B on 1st July 2012 at 1:12 pm.
Indeed. Have to say only celeb I ever followed was Stephen Fry and when he wouldn’t RT a family trying to raise money for life saving treatment for their daughter, even when tens of us tweeted him to ask for him to just press a button I quickly unfollowed him. I don’t get the celeb thing, I have no interest in them, other than gossip but I am an old gossip so listen to people I don’t know on the street telling of their own sordid lives….. it’s a shame that most of them only seem to care when there’s an opportunity.
AutismMumma on 1st July 2012 at 6:38 pm.
That example you gave is so sad, so many followers and therefore so much potential influence. I much prefer “talking” to people who call a spade a spade!