Published on 12, July, 2020
Can i ask for any young people with autism that may be able to add there story so my son does not feel he is the only one going through his problem. He is 19 and goes to a special needs 6th form. He is worried and gets upset because he feels he can not handle college or getting a job. He only goes out if he has family or school with him, never on his own. Can i ask if any other young people are the same in this respect to share so he will not feel alone. Thank u.
Hello,
Moving outside of a small group into the wider world can be a difficult time for most autistic people. Does your son have have any special interests or hobbies? If so, he may be able to find an online group that he can join and start to converse with others. If there is a shared interest, it takes away the struggle to find something to say or contribute.
There also may be an autistic meet up group in your area. I find I am much more at ease speaking to some autistic people in a social situation than I am speaking to non-autistics.
Does he have any idea of what type of employment he would like to be in? There seems to be a movement towards accepting that autistic people make ideal candidates for working in the field of autism support. This may interest him, particularly as he has a head start in understanding autism.
You may also like to post your question on the twitter tags #AskingAutistics #ActuallyAutistic #neurodiversity There is quite a helpful community on twitter, and there may well be some schemes I don’t know about. All the best, Graham.
Thank you Graham this gives me a few things to think about. I would like to know if any other autistic teens have problems going out by themselves or have melt downs at the thought of getting a job.ny input would be appreciated.