I am worried about my son's MH

Yes, it was a counsellor who suggested to me I might be autistic. It was meeting someone similar to me at a mental health drop-in centre which led to me pursuing my bipolar diagnosis.

This might be difficult but he might just need time. Let him know you are there for him and what his options are. What kind of help do you think he should get? I saw a lot of professionals over the years - psychiatrists, physicologists, therapists, different dietitians, eating disorder specialists. Their ‘support’ mostly didn’t  help or even made it worse. It took years until finally my dietitian approached me that she had been suspecting for a while that i might be autistic and could ask for a referral- my dietitian in general was a huge support- not just with eating but just with my mental health in general. I went through a lot of difficult times and in the end what helped most is getting the autism diagnosis (but it took months to start figuring this out and I am still learning), changing my situation (moving, becoming a student again) and having someone thst believed in me. It helped a lot too to reach out on this forum- maybe your son could join?

I also think if he found a hobby that would be nice (if he doesn’t already have one?)

Hi, It’s hard to judge without knowing your son. But one possibility is also that he needs this time to recover. It can be very exhausting, constantly masking and trying to fit in etc. It’s not uncommon to actually feel less able to do this once you find out you are autistic- I experienced this to some degree- I wanted to mask less, I also felt validated and felt less of a need to push myself to socialise etc. Getting the autism diagnosis was very positive for me but it also brings a lot of confusion and uncertainty with it. It is possible that your son needs to retreat and take some time away from everything to get back some energy- this can take a long time. It is hard to know when to push yourself to start doing more again. It is difficult to know what the best thing to do is- if it is autistic burnout doing more too soon will make it worse, but for depression the advice is the opposite.
Also  wanting to be alone does not necessarily mean he is unhappy. Not eating much is more concerning- do you know why? Is it because he is reluctant to leave room? Or no appetite? Digestive issues? Stress? Issues with eating are also very common amongst autistic individuals.

These are just some of the possibilities- there are so many reasons why your son might be acting this way.

If this is autism related, the GP probably will not be able to provide much help- there is not much support for autistic adults and almost none of the mental health support is tailored to autistic people. 

you can try to engage with him in some way?
i dunno, get to know him, what he likes, maybe ask him if he wants to go for a walk somewhere or something.

i bet he likes chocolate, you could randomly buy him some chocolate as that would make up for any bad calorie deficit he has going on. which is one thing you need to think on if you say he isnt eating.

you need a way to motivate him, but to know how to do that you must first know what he likes and so on so you can work off it.

does he like action heroes? anime? gaming? perhaps you can try get him to aspire to be like the badass hero characters he is attached to and get him to take up martial arts or some sort of training? that then would change him if its done right as making yourself physically healthier like that has a knock on effect to everything. i know martial arts worked to change me alot personally. small steps and all though. takes time, but a seed takes along time to grow into a tree.

Your son probably is fine. Just because his behaviour is unusual for you it doesn’t mean that he has mental health problems unless you have other reasons to worry which you haven’t posted. He may be refusing to engage with the diagnosis but realistically speaking there isn’t a great deal of help and support available apart from this community anyway. I would also be more concerned if he was older - his behaviour seems like normal teenage behaviour at least for an autistic teenager.

Hello 

I have historically been in a bad way mentally when I was younger and still living at home with my parents. When they shouted and riled at me for not doing what they wanted I retreated, got scared and hid in my room on my own which just made things worse. 

When they were tender and understanding and encouraging, this really helped. You want to start small. Maybe he won't come out of his room? Offer to make his favourite meal, so he comes down stairs. He won't leave the house? Pick something you really love, like maybe he loves animals and you suggest a trip to a petting zoo or a farm. It might have to be babysteps, but keeping on keeping on will be key. Not in a nagging way or making him feel bad way. Explain that you want to see him thrive and live a full life. 

Has he ever worked or had hobbies? Try and lean into those things more. 

I'm sorry you're going through this it is really hard to watch someone live in his shoes. Well done for trying. 

Unfortunately, pretty much. You can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped. My only suggestion is don't try to talk him round by pointing out how much his life sucks. My parents tried this with me and it just made me defensive and bad about myself. 

Try to find something interesting which he might want to go out and do/ engage with. People with poor mental health want to have something they actually like in life and makes them happy to be there.