Published on 12, July, 2020
I attended a zoom group this morning and came across PDA , which is a new one for me as nobody really talks about it even though it affects so many people. I am aware that you can have this form of Autism , but it is super hard to get diagnosed. I just wanted to see how it affects you , the traits etc on a deeper level. When it was being discussed I suddenly had a lightbulb moment and now i'm addiment my brother has it so wanted to dive into it further. Would be super grateful for any advice on this matter,
Kind regards Amy
PDA is a specific autistic profile - meaning that the autistic person has a persistent drive for autonomy and that the nervous system can perceive hierarchy, inequality or authority (loss of autonomy) as threats to survival. There are many other PDA experiences, here are some links to more information:
https://youtube.com/@kristyforbes?si=8VZw1mCxYy0Q-IRy
This YouTube channel is by Kristy Forbes who is an adult PDAer who specialises in supporting other PDAers and families. Really important information about the PDA nervous system on this channel.
More videos about PDA by PDAers:
https://www.youtube.com/live/ryWUrEoZgDY?si=mAng1ROmdrYdLuPm
https://www.youtube.com/live/cqf9hlpSz5E?si=-1rcYoZEbuNbiayf
You may also want to visit the Autism Understood website and search for PDA specifically.
I hope this helps.
itsamybby03 said:I am aware that you can have this form of Autism , but it is super hard to get diagnosed
It will help to clarify the terminology for these discussions I think,
PDA is an trait often associated with neurodiversity (of which autism and ADHD are subsets). You can have this trait without being neurodivergent, but it is an indicator.
Autism is a classification used when people have a sufficient number of neurodivergent traits (under the general banner of autism) at a severe enough level that it is considered a disability.
Many more people exhibit some neurodivergent traits but are not "severe" enough to qualify with the full diagnosis.
PDA is a trait shared with autism and ADHD and you an also be both autistic and ADHD.
This is all just labels however - once you identify the trait then the focus should be on how to minimise its impact for you.
There has been a lot of chat on here about PDA - have a look on the RELATED section to the right of the screen and you will see a bunch of posts about it. Using the magnifying glass at the top right of the screen (to the left of the pink Donate button) will let you do a more detailed search.