Loneliness

Congratulations on your diagnosis and welcome to the community! 

I’m sorry to hear how you're feeling. Unfortunately, it's not uncommon for us to feel lonely or isolated. I’m currently working on the same issue myself.

I know that some others here have accessed autism support groups, so hopefully they will be along later to share their experiences with you.

In addition to their feedback, you might find some of the advice in these articles helpful:

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

You might like to consider asking your GP to refer you to your local social prescriber. I've had a course of appointments with ours and found it helpful.

Their role is to develop a personalised care and support plan that meets your social needs, as well as your practical and emotional needs.

This could include helping you to find local autism support groups and/or socialising activities. 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 socialising opportunities via the the NAS's directory, or through a local NAS branch:

NAS - Autism Services Directory

NAS - Branches

As a final suggestion, you could search on Facebook and/or Google for any local groups that might fit with your interests and hobbies.

Congratulations on your diagnosis and welcome to the community! 

I’m sorry to hear how you're feeling. Unfortunately, it's not uncommon for us to feel lonely or isolated. I’m currently working on the same issue myself.

I know that some others here have accessed autism support groups, so hopefully they will be along later to share their experiences with you.

In addition to their feedback, you might find some of the advice in these articles helpful:

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

You might like to consider asking your GP to refer you to your local social prescriber. I've had a course of appointments with ours and found it helpful.

Their role is to develop a personalised care and support plan that meets your social needs, as well as your practical and emotional needs.

This could include helping you to find local autism support groups and/or socialising activities. 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 socialising opportunities via the the NAS's directory, or through a local NAS branch:

NAS - Autism Services Directory

NAS - Branches

As a final suggestion, you could search on Facebook and/or Google for any local groups that might fit with your interests and hobbies.

Thank you for your reply Bunny. I’ve got an appointment booked with a social prescriber, so hopefully they will be able to help me link in with some other people.