Sia has recently come forward with the news that she has been diagnosed with autism, this coming two years after she issued an apology for the portrayal of autism in the film Music.
During an interview on Rob Has A Podcast, which focuses on the American reality show Survivor, the celebrity revealed that her diagnosis had provided her with a sense of release.
“I’ve felt like for 45 years, I’ve had to put on my human suit,” she added. “I’ve got to go put my human suit on.”
“And in the last two years that I have fully become myself.”
Chandelier, Titanium, and Cheap Thrills are just a few of Sia’s many songs, and her full name is Sia Furler. Sia is a singer and songwriter who is most recognized for her work.
But in 2021, she began her career as a film director with the release of Music, a musical drama about a woman who becomes the only caretaker for her half-sister, a teenager with non-verbal autism—the plot centres on the relationship between the two sisters.
She received much backlash for choosing to cast the neurotypical actress Maddie Ziegler, who had previously performed in numerous of her music videos, in the lead role.
During an incident of overstimulation, there was a scene in which Ziegler’s character was seen being restrained in a difficult, face-down prone position, which caused many people to become angry.
The restraint poses a risk of physical injury and, in the most severe circumstances, death from suffocation.
However when it was announced in 2021 that the movie had been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, the singer posted a series of apologies on Twitter before finally deleting her account entirely.
“I intend to remove the scenes of restriction from any subsequent printings. She added that during that period, “my research was not thorough enough, not wide enough.” “I listened to the wrong people, which is my responsibility,” she said.
In addition, she assured me that a disclaimer would be included in the movie stating that it “in no way condones or recommends the use of restraint on autistic people.” This was one of her other promises.
The Australian singer did not make any hints or references to the fact that she was neuro-atypical at the time. Nevertheless, during her interview on the podcast, she stated: “I’m on the spectrum, and I’m in recovery – there are a lot of things.”
The 47-year-old contestant, who recently finished in second place in the 44th season of Survivor, appeared on the program to congratulate Carolyn Wiger.
Wiger’s eccentric and uncensored demeanour won over a lot of viewers during her time on Survivor. As a result, some of those viewers were curious whether or not she had been diagnosed with autism.
In a later response, she clarified that she is not on the autism spectrum but has ADHD and is working through the recovery process for addiction.
During the podcast, Sia congratulated Wiger, praising her as someone who “didn’t put her human suit on.” Who just showed up there and was willing to be rejected, and who was ready to be the odd one out?
She continued, “The kook in me recognizes the kook in you.”
The concept of autistic masking is compatible with her described behaviour, which involves learning and performing particular behaviours to “fit in” with the people around you.
Masking is something that people do to cover or disguise aspects of their behaviour that might look odd to non-autistic individuals. Psychologist Dr Emma Colvert previously described masking to the BBC as “things that people do to hide or disguise aspects of their behaviour.”
“I think that one of greatest things is that nobody can ever know you and love you when you’re filled with secrets and living in shame,” she said. “I think that’s one of greatest things.”
“And when we finally sit in a roomful of strangers and tell them our deepest, darkest, and most shameful secrets, and everybody laughs along with us, and we don’t feel like pieces of trash for the first time in our lives, and we feel seen, for the first time in our lives, for who we are – then we can start going out into the world and operating as human beings with hearts, and not pretending to be anything.”
