121. My AAC Journey, with Tiffany Joseph

Discover what’s possible when capabilities are more than meets the eye. 

Tiffany Joseph is an Autistic Self-Advocate, a single mother of three, and the digital creator behind the IG account Nigh Functioning Autism. She uses her platform to promote the changes she wants to see in the world regarding disability and intersectionality. Tiffany sometimes uses an Alternative Augmentative Communication device, or AAC for short. 

Before our interview, I sent Tiffany a list of questions so she could prepare her responses in writing. The voice you’ll hear for most of Tiffany’s side of the conversation is her AAC reading her responses out loud. In instances when she wanted to add more to her response, or answer a follow-up question I asked, you’ll hear Tiffany using her spoken voice, or "mouth words." 

After the recording, Tiffany mentioned that her mouth words work better some days than others, and that that day happened to be one that she felt comfortable answering some questions off-script. 

In today’s conversation, we discuss:

• Internalized ableism
• Coping with bullying
• The inclusion of Asperger’s diagnosis  under the umbrella of autism 
• Aspie supremacy
• Finding community online
• Tiffany’s AAC journey
• The different apps she uses depending on the situation
• Misconceptions about AAC
• Some of Tiffany’s ideas to improve the education system 
• Why she chose her IG account name Nigh Functioning Autism
• The intersectionality of being Black and Autistic
• What she thinks true inclusion should look like

To learn more about Tiffany and her work, please visit Nigh.Functioning.Autism. 

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