Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi all,
I do not post often so in a very quick summary, mental issues over 30 years which were diagnosed as SAD but following a 9 month assessment with 7 people am on route to an autism diagnosis.
My yearly cycle of low mood, anxiety and thoughts of suicide (only thoughts and lived with decades) have started kicking in... I took these as being me and medicate in a month or so until Spring (SAD diagnosis).
I am now going through this for the first time where I am informed I have all the traits of autism and the testimonials I have read were like reading my life story.
The result is, I feel like I am going through this for the first time and it is scary... I am finding it isn't actually a me thing or a questionable diagnosis many don't accept... I've read the reains autism have low life expectancy so with feeling vulnerable, I am scared i'm not my energy draining self that fights every year...
I don;t know the question to ask or to whom, I think I am asking of you are similar and what you did as a diagnosed autistic/ have diagnosed autism... I am scared.
The autistic discovery journey can open up a whole raft of emotions we weren't expecting. Yes it can be scary and turbulent. You're trying to cope with all that on top of the struggles you typically have at this time of year. Don't be afraid to reach out for support when you need to.
The statistics on autistic life expectancy do make for grim reading. There was one study where the average life expectancy for autistic adults without learning disabilities was reported as just 54. As a 53 year old that makes very uncomfortable reading.
However the important thing to understand is that is an average. Many autistic people do live to a much older age and will not necessarily be reflected in the current statistics, as they may never have been diagnosed.
Trigger warning on suicide.
Sadly the suicide rates for autistic people do bring the average down. Other factors include barriers in accessing healthcare and a lack of understanding from healthcare professionals of the types of things that autistic people are at higher risk of.
Autistica have published a report about the issue:
https://www.autistica.org.uk/downloads/files/Personal-tragedies-public-crisis-ONLINE.pdf#asset:1499
Something needs to be done to ensure that autistic people can access mental health services which actually help.
https://theconversation.com/autistic-people-are-six-times-more-likely-to-attempt-suicide-poor-mental-health-support-may-be-to-blame-180266
The above article states that autistic women are 13 times more likely to die by suicide than women who are not autistic. That is shocking
Next month (12th September) Autistica are hosting a free webinar entitled:
Anyone can sign up for a free ticket on their website https://www.autistica.org.uk/get-involved/join-an-expert-webinar
Thank you - Very much appreciated and also starting to read through the links.
The first one seems to infer that epilepsy rates increase with age but I cannot find any further information via g00gle on this. G00gle searches provide documents that suggest you either have epilepsy prior to teenage years or not so I am not too sure here.
I reiterate that I have zero intention of acting upon the thoughts however draining they are.
Thank you
Valdez said:The first one seems to infer that epilepsy rates increase with age but I cannot find any further information via g00gle on this. G00gle searches provide documents that suggest you either have epilepsy prior to teenage years or not so I am not too sure here.
My understanding of that document is that if the autistic person already has epilepsy then the risk of dying from it increases with age. I don't think it is suggesting that autistic adults are at risk of developing it later in life.
Epilepsy appears to be more of a risk for autistic people who also have a learning disability. For autistic adults without a learning disability one of the main risks is suicide, sadly.
Valdez said:I reiterate that I have zero intention of acting upon the thoughts however draining they are.
That's good to hear. I hope things improve for you and the thoughts start to subside.
Thank you.