Paige Layle (born August 2, 2000) is a Canadian YouTuber, author and activist who specializes in content regarding the Autism Spectrum, as well as ADHD and OCD (all of which she has been diagnosed with), including her own lived experiences alongside current issues and responses to common stereotypes and misconceptions (mainly regarding autism).
She currently has 2.7 million followers on TikTok
, 176,000 subscribers on YouTube, and 156,000 followers on Instagram. She can also be found on Twitter.
Her first book, But Everyone Feels This Way: How An Autism Diagnosis Saved My Life, is scheduled for release in March 2024.
In 2020 and 2021, Paige stated that she is pansexual; in the first part of her 2023 video series "Spectrum of Love", she additionally stated that she has had experiences with attraction to men and women, and mentioned that she had one-night stands with several women before she found her current boyfriend. She currently uses "she/they" pronouns.
Paige Layle's YouTube videos contain examples of the following:
- Abusive Parents: While Paige was fortunate enough to avoid this trope herself, she discusses how autistic children and teens are disproportionately likely to be abused.
- Bullying the Disabled: Paige's opinion on Applied Behavior Analysis "Therapy" is that it is an institutionalized version of this. She often points out the various distress signs that autistic children and teens give off in response.
- Content Warning: Paige's Reaction Video to footage of ABA "Therapy" includes a Trigger Warning for abusive practices.
- Crossover: Paige's TikTok content has been featured on other Autistic YouTubers' channels, including I'm Autistic, Now What?.
- Hollywood Autism: Discussed and deconstructed. Paige spends a couple videos discussing why this trope- and the resulting stigma against neurodivergents- is not only offensive, but can and will result in real-world harm to Neurodivergent people.
- No Periods, Period: Downplayed. Paige used contraceptive hormones to suppress her menstrual cycle for over 10 years straight, because of sensory issues. She only started menstruating when she was 22.
- Of Corsets Sexy: Paige is sometimes seen wearing corsets and/or bodices in her outfits as part of her "Light Academia" aesthetic.
- Offing the Offspring: Paige covers a True Crime example with the murder-by-inaction of Lacey Fletcher. She uses this as an example of how autistic children and teens are disproportionately likely to be abused or killed by their parents or legal guardians.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business:
- When the normally upbeat and cheerful Paige is dead serious, you know the topic is going to be dark.
- When the normally apolitical Paige starts talking about politics, it is because of a serious political issue that is directly affecting Autistic people.
- Reaction Video: Paige has done several reactions to Autism-related content.
- Sorry, I'm Gay: Her coming out as Bisexual in her videos on Autism and Sexuality is done via an off-hand reference to having had one-night stands with other women (prior to meeting her current boyfriend), with no fanfare about her orientation whatsoever.
- Very Special Episode: Her video on the murder-by-inaction of Lacey Fletcher is a True Crime video about the abuse and eventual death of an Autistic teenager, much darker than her usual fare.
- Western Zodiac: One of Paige's Special Interests is Astrology.
