Published on 12, July, 2020
Depending on how things go I’m either going to move soon or not. If not … well I already know there is nothing for high functioning autistic adults where I live. If I do move I’ll be in a new place and there is a good chance there will still be no social groups for high functioning autistic adults there either. Plus there will be no support network of family etc if I move.
so they say be the change you want to see. Can anyone advise me on the logistics of setting up a support / social group of high functioning autistic adults?
i imagine the big issues will be resources. Especially getting a venue and putting out PR. Has anyone done anything like this and could lend some pointers?
I'd be interested but would want to know what the focus of the meetings would. Im not shy but find "free talking" difficult. Talking with a purpose is easier. Would it be to chat about autism difficulties, or is it more a social thing? The one near me use Facebook to discuss what each meet up will entail to make it "democratic" but that excludes those of us not on social media. So while stuff like Facebook reaches to a wider audience it doesn't capture everybody. How would you advertise it? They used to meet in a cafe for their venue. I'm sure there would be places you could use for free in the first instance. Some of the groups near me, which I don't feel would meet my needs anyway meet during the day. This is difficult if you are working. There are some local family friendly bars and pubs near me which advertise clubs etc on their noticeboard. I live near a major city but havent found much there either. Maybe if you held the group in the biggest town or city near to you that you can, you might get more people. I actually find it really difficult to find anything out without the socials but I'm sticking to my guns.
While i havent given any solutions, these are things I've come up against when looking for a group but I'm sure you have already factored in lots of these aspects anyway.
I live in a city next to a bigger city so that’s where I’d probably run events. Very much more social than anything else. And probably evenings for the people who work.
but stuff like venues etc is exactly where my difficulty’s start.
Do you mind me asking which city?
I did try to message you that information but you'd need to accept my friend request first