Have you met Wilma yet?  If you know Vicky from Actually_Aspling this may be confusing because you may be wondering who the heck is Wilma, that’s a photo of Vicky, LOL.  

Meet Wilma...

Wilma is Vicky’s new succulent which was a recent gift from her mom.  Vicky has been sharing lately over on “The Gram” aka Instagram about so many feelings she’s been experiencing lately.  Her words are so deeply relatable to me and this really stood out to me this week, “Not swayed by pleasurable words, or false offerings, but by my own heart, my own instinct.”   You can check out the entire post under the photo “Being your own person is freeing, learn to live” on April 7, 2022.  https://www.instagram.com/p/CcDInzyMyr0/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link 

Vicky is one of my dearest friends and we spend a good bit of time together chatting via text and every few weeks we meet up on zoom and have friend time.  We spend at least 2 hours laughing, sharing our lives and are just US.  We usually share a new stim tool, a new squishy, our latest crystal and our dreams amongst our conversation that flows from one end to the other and we are both ok with that.

Vicky and I share some of our usual banter when she is a guest on the Mind Your Autistic Brain Talk Show and you can check out her episodes here:

https://anchor.fm/socialautie/episodes/S2-E31---Accommodations-with-Vicky-from-Actually-Aspling-e162ho0 

https://anchor.fm/socialautie/episodes/S2-E5--Stages-of-Autism-Acceptance-with-Victoria-Ellen-of-Actually-Aspling-eq6ic7 

Meet Vicky…..

Social Autie:  What is your specialty or focus area of Autism? 

Vicky:  I don’t really have one area or focus. I tend to cover lots of different topics, predominantly based off my feelings and experiences. I like to try and discuss a whole range of things so that I am inclusive. 

Social Autie: Why did you begin advocating for yourself and others?  What makes this personal to you and Your Big Why? 

Vicky:  I began advocating to share my voice, after a late diagnosis, I wanted to understand myself and allow myself to grow, and this was a perfect creative outlet. I now want to help others, because I’ve been through it. 

Social Autie: What is/are the top tip(s) or insight(s) you have discovered for advocating for a) others and b) yourself?

Vicky:  I don’t really have top tips, I’ve just learnt to be myself. It’s a journey, and through Advocacy I’ve become my own authentic self again. I’ve learnt to self-care and take breaks when I feel overwhelmed, and to know I’m not alone.

You can find Vicky on Instagram @Actually_Aspling and on her Blog & Social Media Links.