Published on 12, July, 2020
“He is wired differently to you and me, this child of mine. He doesn’t like loud noises, or dark spaces, or strangers touching his head”. These are the first lines from a poem a mother penned about her son 11-year-old son who has Asperger’s syndrome.
Sophie Billington goes on to explain how her son Tristan’s brain works differently: “He can see in an instant the pattern, the layout, the solution to a puzzle”, but that “the world judges” and “sees only the outbursts and over-reactions”. It seems the poem struck a chord – going viral after being posted on Facebook.
Although autism is predominantly diagnosed in childhood, increasing numbers of adults are finding out that they too have autism. This issue, of later life diagnosis, was brought to light recently after nature photographer and TV presenter, Chris Packham, went public with his experiences.
About 1% of the adult population has been diagnosed as on the autism spectrum – with more people diagnosed with autism than ever before. And yet, generally, the focus on who has autism is still mostly on infants, children and young adults.
This is despite the fact that autism can be defined as a lifelong neurodevelopmental disorder – characterised by differences in social communication and interaction with people and wider society – making it very much a label for people of all ages.
theconversation.com/how-it-feels-to-be-diagnosed-with-autism-later-in-life-92633
It was very upsetting when I first encountered the idea.
Now the understanding of it seems a lot better.
I do wonder what my parents were told. It was not called that in the 60's but other, scarier things. Whatever it was did include rigidity and lack of social intuition though. I do remember once being asked to draw something and the good doc decided I was drawing coffins - I had no idea what a coffin was. He had wanted to have me admitted but my mother put a stop to that.
I think in the end it is how you as the cards you were dealt with, not to get too hung up on what these cards were. I am not sure what a diagnosis could do for me, even if I could get one but I don't live in the UK. I do think the misconception s and dislike my family had for my difficulties did not help though. On the one hand lauded for being in the verbally gifted range, but made to feel by peers at school like an idiot and the lowest of the low - not great.
Now at the day job, teaching, it is a question of being aware of learning difficulties with my students, what can be helped with and what not.