Published on 12, July, 2020
I have lived on my own independently for about seventeen years, not knowing I was on the Autistic Spectrum'. my Mum lives miles away in a cluttered house, my sisters in other parts
of the country where the housing is expensive. My Mum owns the house in which I live in at the moment and I happily pay her the rent, rather than to a private landlord. Most adult children
in the South of England have to live with ageing parents for years, face homelessness or dodgy landlords. However now I am over the fifty threshold with a label, professional people would
like me to move closer to my caring relatives. Today I explained why I am not budging, rental costs, where would I go, I have a back garden, know the community which I live and left an area where I felt even more isolated than I do now. Are the health authorities fearful that I am going to be a liability in later years and want to reduce the cost of caring for me in my own home, relying instead on family members. I pointed out that at one time, clinical psychologists wanted me to be independent of my Mum and now the tune has changed, I wonder why...I am going to remain firm and rooted where I live as I have seen too many homeless and rootless people on our City streets. Have any other autistic people been pressurised to live closer to their family?
My nearest living relative is my sister. The last time I saw her was at Christmas and we text once a couple of months.
And my mental health case worker is pressuring me to keep in regular contact with her. Such as arranging weekly coffee meetings. Unfortunately her husband and family consider me to be a weirdo and want nothing to do with me.