Looking to connect with people who understand me and have conversations. Feeling lonely and feeling like I’ve no one to talk to apart from my partner and my parents who sometimes I struggle to speak to. I don’t fully understand how to seek friends and join groups on here as I’ve only recently been diagnosed so any help please share thank you :)
Hi Dumbo - congratulations on your recent diagnosis and welcome to the community!
First of all, if you haven't yet seen them, I'd suggest reading through the resources here:
Looking to connect with people who understand me and have conversations.
There are plenty of autistic people here to chat with, so I hope you soon come to feel at home here.
I'm still working my way towards being more chatty here, but I do enjoy sharing resources that might be helpful. So I'll just mention some now:
NAS - Loneliness - includes links to other examples of autistic people's experiences of loneliness and how they cope.
NAS - Making friends - a guide for autistic adults
For more in-person interactions and connections, you might like to consider asking your GP for a referral to your local social prescriber (or their admin team might be able to tell you how to self refer). A social prescriber’s (non-medical) role is to develop a personalised plan that meets your social needs, as well as your practical and emotional ones.
That could include helping you to find local groups or socialising activities, for example. The article below explains more (it relates to England, but the same model operates throughout the UK):
NHS England - Social prescribing
You might also be able to find some local or other online socialising opportunities (including support groups) via the the NAS's directory, or through a local or online NAS branch:
NAS - Autism Services Directory
As a final suggestion, you could search on Facebook and/or Google for any local groups that might fit with your interests and hobbies.
I hope something here is helpful 
Hi Dumbo - congratulations on your recent diagnosis and welcome to the community!
First of all, if you haven't yet seen them, I'd suggest reading through the resources here:
Looking to connect with people who understand me and have conversations.
There are plenty of autistic people here to chat with, so I hope you soon come to feel at home here.
I'm still working my way towards being more chatty here, but I do enjoy sharing resources that might be helpful. So I'll just mention some now:
NAS - Loneliness - includes links to other examples of autistic people's experiences of loneliness and how they cope.
NAS - Making friends - a guide for autistic adults
For more in-person interactions and connections, you might like to consider asking your GP for a referral to your local social prescriber (or their admin team might be able to tell you how to self refer). A social prescriber’s (non-medical) role is to develop a personalised plan that meets your social needs, as well as your practical and emotional ones.
That could include helping you to find local groups or socialising activities, for example. The article below explains more (it relates to England, but the same model operates throughout the UK):
NHS England - Social prescribing
You might also be able to find some local or other online socialising opportunities (including support groups) via the the NAS's directory, or through a local or online NAS branch:
NAS - Autism Services Directory
As a final suggestion, you could search on Facebook and/or Google for any local groups that might fit with your interests and hobbies.
I hope something here is helpful
