I used to worry a lot about my hands and feet. "Are they too fat? Are my fingers and toes stumpy? Are my nails too wide? Are my arches too flat?" But post-identification, and as I get older, I've come to recognize my hands and feet as some of the most dependable, likeable parts of myself.

I have come to love my feet. They hurt sometimes. However, they're totally functional and get me where I need to go. I walk a lot and don't often have the spoons to buy new shoes, meaning my feet have endured a lot of crappy footwear, and they still keep going. My feet are wide-ish, like hobbit feet. I have hair on my big toes. My nails are kind of weird and curved, but whatever. My heels get crusty, and I almost never have the spoons to use a pumice stone to make them smooth again. But I am grateful that my feet are so normal on the whole. I mostly don't even have to think about them, and that's huge for me and my limited spoons!

My hands are one of the most important and well-working parts of my body. I make a living by typing, and my perfectly-functioning hands are a blessing in that respect. Without my hands, I imagine that navigating the computer might become significantly harder. So many things would be so much harder! And with so few spoons to begin with, I'm constantly grateful that my hands barely ever cost me any. I regret that I don't treat my hands better. I pick the skin around my nails and the base of my palms out of nervousness, and I really wish I didn't! My hands patiently put up with it all. Things I've done for them: try to use lotion as much as I have spoons for; bought a vertical mouse to put less strain on my fingers and wrists; occasionally give my palms and fingers a massage.

Another reason I like my feet and hands is that they remind me of my family. My palms, the undersides of my fingers, and my nails look like my dad's hands. The top of my hands look like my mom's hands. My toes look like my dad's, and the skin of my feet is like my mom's. My feet and hands generally look like my siblings'. In that respect, my hands and feet have always made me feel like I fit in with my family, even when I felt my brain did not.

How about you? What is your relationship with your feet and hands?

Share questions:

• How do you feel about your feet and hands? How do they fit into your self-image and self-esteem? 
• What do your feet and hands do for you that's important to your life?
  
• Have your hands and feet ever helped you do something you're especially proud of? What was it?
• Do your hands and feet help you fit in to any groups in certain ways? How? 
• Have you ever made any lifestyle changes to better care for your feet or hands? 
• Have you ever had a disability or illness affecting your feet or hands? What was/is it like? 
• Has your perception of your feet and hands changed since you learned you are autistic?
• Any tools, resources, or strategies to share?
• Anything else to add?