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Tyler Baltierra knows what some people are saying about him out there.
And he’s not about to sit back and simply take it.
Two weeks after the Teen Mom cast member told the public he had been diagnosed with autism, Baltierra and wife Catelynn Lowell responded to comments they had seen accusing him of faking his diagnosis.
“I don’t know what’s going on,” Tyler said on the September 10 episode of his and Catelynn’s Cate & Ty Break It Down podcast.
“Society is either losing empathy, we are getting hardened. I don’t know what’s happening. The comments were so appalling.”
Referencing various remarks claiming he didn’t actually have autism but instead was “just an a–hole” or “narcissistic,” Tyler expressed how disheartening it was to see such criticism.
“What do I gotta do? Pull out my whole report and show it to you?” Tyler asked listeners.
“Have we gotten here to society where we’re, instead of saying, ‘Oh wow. Can you explain more about that?’ Or, ‘What is that like?’ You’re gonna question people’s diagnosis? You’re going to literally shame them for having it, tell them that they’re liars for having it? What is going on?”
In late August, Tyler explained on this same podcast that he was “ADHD hyper” as a child and was recently diagnosed as being on the spectrum, adding:
“It’s just the way my brain works Instead of trying to fix it, let’s just try to live with this thing and I think knowing this information makes me better aware.”
As many may recall, Tyler also received a diagnosis of bipolar disorder several years ago.
Of the backlash he has somehow received ever since telling the world about his autism, Baltierra said this week:
“It’s ableism. It really is.”
Catelyn, for her part, minced no words about the negative commentators in standing up for her long-term spouse.
“If you’re judging anybody because they’re sharing that they have an autism diagnosis,” the 33-year-old, who shares four kids with Tyler, said, “you are a sick, cold-hearted individual.”
We can’t say it any better ourselves.
The thing is, this questioning of Tyler has consequences far beyond being offensive to just one individual.
“You’re not just saying it to me,” Tyler emphasized. “You’re saying about anyone who’s reading these comments who have autism, or any kind of thing.”
Thankfully, it hasn’t all been negative. Said Baltierra said on this new podcast:
“I’ve had private messages of people writing to me and saying, ‘Thank you so much for being vulnerable and sharing this diagnosis publicly and talking about it and just getting people talking about autism.’”
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