Communication from Olivia

Hello,

You got sent to this page because you have received communications from my daughter Olivia — perhaps unending, annoying, persistent communication.

Olivia is autistic. She doesn’t understand the differences between friends, acquaintances, strangers as neurotypical people do, and she tends to communicate with everyone as though they are deeply connected to her, even if they’re only, say, the friend of a Facebook friend of someone she kind-of knows.

Olivia has also, in recent years, become obsessed with her birthday party, Christmas, and other occasions, and inviting many people, again without respecting typical social boundaries or norms, to celebrate with her, to send her cards and gifts, etc. She doesn’t understand how this can be perceived as inappropriate, demanding, or rude, depending on the recipient and the language she uses.

Additionally, when Olivia gets stressed or anxious about something, she will reach out indiscriminately to people, regardless of their connection to her, with strongly-worded, blunt statements, like “I need help!” or “I am not okay!” Know that if you’re receiving messages like this, they’re also going to people who are connected to her — family, roommates, support workers — and that she is being lovingly supported.

It’s perfectly fine to set boundaries for Olivia:

• You can simply say you’re not available for whatever she’s invited you to.
• You can ask her to stop communicating with you.
• You can block her on Facebook, or block her SMS number on your phone,
• If all else fails, email me directly and I can intervene with her.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Peter Rukavina