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Can you help with advice for young people with Autism?

NAS82808
Hello,
My name is Jessie and I'm a speech and language therapist at a NHS mental health hospital in London. I work with young people and adults who have autism.
I am compiling a collection of advice that might be useful for young people to make sense of, or better understand their experiences. I also aim to dispel some of the common myths around autism, for example that people with autism lack empathy.

I want to ask if there is any advice that you wish you had been told as a child growing up, as a young adult or even now, or any experiences that you would like to share.

Please see below some of the questions from the young people I work with.

If you would like further information please feel free to contact me at: jessica.lee36@nhs.net

Many thanks,
Jessie

- Do you tell people / boss' that you have autism? How do you say it?
- Have you had any experiences with the emergency services? How was your experience and did you tell them that you have autism?
- Do you use public transport?
- Do you get annoyed when people say "I'm a bit autistic" or "everyone is on the spectrum" etc.
- Do you have repetitive thoughts and how do you deal with them?
- Do you have friends? Do you want friends?
Parents

  • I’m not sure what advice I would like to give myself as a child, as I am still looking for useful advice for my current situation. I don’t really know at all what might have been useful to me as a child. I tend not to listen to advice very well anyway, which is probably not a useful answer.

    As for the questions:

    • Disclosing to boss: I did it accidentally with my current boss, when he read an article I had written online under my own name about living with autism. It went OK, but it wasn’t the best way to do it. My previous jobs were before my diagnosis.
    • Experiences with emergency services: I haven’t had any experiences since my diagnosis. I had limited experiences before then (a couple of trips to A&E and I reported a mugging to the police), and they went fine with no communication issues.
    • Public transport: I don’t drive (haven’t learnt due to anxiety about coping with driving) so have to use public transport. I feel uncomfortable on busy transport, but usually cope by focusing on a book or music. Occasionally strangers will try to talk to me (they usually seem to be drunk), which I don’t like and often ignore them or give very short answers to discourage them.
    • Repetitive thoughts: I have had depression and OCD in the past, both involving repetitive thoughts. At other times I can get stuck on a particular thought, usually obsessing over an interaction that I felt went badly or a mistake I made at work or something I am anxious about, but sometimes on some other thought, particularly about a special interest. I don’t have good coping strategies for dealing with this, but try to be mindful and stay in the present. I tell myself that my thoughts are not always my friends and that I can sit with my feelings.
    • Friends: I do have some friends. They fall into two categories, those I see in person, who I see irregularly, but can reconnect with after a long break, and those I know online, who I am in contact with more regularly (usually via blogs), but who can suddenly drop out of my life forever with no warning. I would like to have more friends. I feel I should also mention in this context that I am married, as I regard my wife as my best friend and vice versa.
Reply

  • I’m not sure what advice I would like to give myself as a child, as I am still looking for useful advice for my current situation. I don’t really know at all what might have been useful to me as a child. I tend not to listen to advice very well anyway, which is probably not a useful answer.

    As for the questions:

    • Disclosing to boss: I did it accidentally with my current boss, when he read an article I had written online under my own name about living with autism. It went OK, but it wasn’t the best way to do it. My previous jobs were before my diagnosis.
    • Experiences with emergency services: I haven’t had any experiences since my diagnosis. I had limited experiences before then (a couple of trips to A&E and I reported a mugging to the police), and they went fine with no communication issues.
    • Public transport: I don’t drive (haven’t learnt due to anxiety about coping with driving) so have to use public transport. I feel uncomfortable on busy transport, but usually cope by focusing on a book or music. Occasionally strangers will try to talk to me (they usually seem to be drunk), which I don’t like and often ignore them or give very short answers to discourage them.
    • Repetitive thoughts: I have had depression and OCD in the past, both involving repetitive thoughts. At other times I can get stuck on a particular thought, usually obsessing over an interaction that I felt went badly or a mistake I made at work or something I am anxious about, but sometimes on some other thought, particularly about a special interest. I don’t have good coping strategies for dealing with this, but try to be mindful and stay in the present. I tell myself that my thoughts are not always my friends and that I can sit with my feelings.
    • Friends: I do have some friends. They fall into two categories, those I see in person, who I see irregularly, but can reconnect with after a long break, and those I know online, who I am in contact with more regularly (usually via blogs), but who can suddenly drop out of my life forever with no warning. I would like to have more friends. I feel I should also mention in this context that I am married, as I regard my wife as my best friend and vice versa.
Children
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