How to Be a Good Friend: Tips for Making Friends with Autism

Some people are born with talents and abilities that they don’t have to work on in order to succeed. This may mean learning to ride a bike for some, memorizing the names of every dinosaur ever, or mastering every level of a brand new video game for others. However, there are abilities in life that need a little more time and effort to develop. People with autism may find it difficult to learn social skills, such as making and keeping friends.

It may be beneficial to have some more experience in establishing friends with autism, depending on where you are on the spectrum and your prior life experiences. Because of the many positive effects that friendships may have on the lives of people with developmental disabilities, the two concepts should go hand in hand. For a young person to begin building the foundation for a self-sufficient existence, they must first have the courage to put themselves out there and form new friendships.

In Person Group Activities Can Help

A person’s ability or disability does not change the nature of friendship. They form organically, as a result of participating in an activity together. You simply need to know where to seek and be willing to put in the effort to learn the ropes to make them happen, whether that’s online, through a social app, or in person. It may appear that young children with autism have an easier time establishing friends than adults do, but in reality, even youngsters might have a hard time striking up discussions with strangers. It’s not enough to spend time with someone, as in a playground or a classroom, and expect friendship to blossom out of thin air.

Joining and participating in a group membership is the best method for people of any age to meet new people and form lasting friendships. The mission of All Friends Network is to provide people with autism, cerebral palsy, and other developmental disabilities access to programs and activities that foster meaningful connections over the course of a lifetime. The real secret to creating a new friend is discovering something in common with that person. Even if a friendship doesn’t go the distance or develop into anything more than blood ties, it’s still a chance to practice and improve your interpersonal skills.

Making Friends with Autism

Making friends might be difficult in today’s society, but many young people find it easy to do so online. Regrettably, not all online communities are secure; many serve as breeding grounds for rudeness, dishonesty, and abuse. Since everyone was abruptly confined to their homes during the epidemic, there were few opportunities to make new friends outside of the virtual realm. Some of our members still choose to meet up online and connect via our Live-LINK social program, even though many restrictions have been lifted and life is returning to normal.

We only allow members to participate in our events. The mission of this online community is to provide a welcoming environment where members of all ages may learn about and practice methods for befriending people with autism, cerebral palsy, and other developmental impairments. We arrange events and trips for our members to socialize in person, and establishing friends online may be a terrific first step toward making friends in person at these gatherings. Learning how to have a conversation, talk about yourself, listen to the views of another person, and have mutual respect with them is facilitated by finding others online who share similar interests, which can be done rather easily thanks to the internet.

Connect with Other Young Adults

If you’re interested in joining our organization and helping us spread disability friendship resources and possibilities, please get in touch with us. All of our members who are interested in making friends are encouraged to read up on how to interact with people who have autism, cerebral palsy, and other developmental impairments. Our focus will be on helping young adults, who may have a more difficult time meeting new people and forming lasting relationships, but we hope to engage with people of all ages. Call us at 941-587-7172 to talk to a helpful staff member about joining All Friends Network.