Autism is still widely seen as mysterious – so much so that the most widely recognised symbol of it (unpopular in the autistic community) is a puzzle piece. Various psychological theories of autism haven’t helped all that much, largely because all of the most...
autism
I was diagnosed with autism aged 27, and all of a sudden my life made a lot more sense.
But why did I go under the radar for so long? And are there many more women out there who don’t know that they are autistic? What distinguishes girls and women...
As an autistic academic and parent to an autistic son, it is usually with some trepidation that I approach media representations of autistic people. This program was no exception, having followed on from a survey entitled 'How autistic are you?'. The program was, however,...
When I graduated, oppositional defiance disorder had yet to be ‘discovered’. Borderline personality disorder, autism/Asperger’s syndrome, and ADHD were still obscure footnotes. Today, mental disorders dominate explanations for ‘problem’ behaviour. Explanations from mainstream...
While rates of autism are seemingly disproportionately high among British Somali people, a new study has revealed that more than half of families do not fully understand the condition, and many face huge barriers to receiving treatment. The report by charity Autism...
Having read the original award-winning novel by Mark Haddon several years ago as a psychology undergraduate, I was eager to see the stage adaptation as a more mature and experienced neuropsychologist. I attended the show at Theatre Royal in Nottingham in April with a friend...
The daughter of a Scottish father and Northern Irish mother, Fiona spent her childhood in several locations in the Scottish Highlands, with the family settling in Inverness when she was 11. She obtained her undergraduate degree from Dundee University. ‘I loved languages and...
The Blue Room, a unique immersive virtual reality that helps children with autism overcome their fears and phobias, is now being offered on the NHS. Research on the treatment, published in PLOS One, revealed eight out of nine children treated with this technique were able to...
Angela Southall, Director of Services at Midlands Psychology, is understandably enthusiastic about the organisation. ‘We’re a unique health provider – a not-for-profit social enterprise, committed to localism. We aim to understand the communities we work in, in depth. These...
Rates of autism among the Somali community have been shown in several studies to be high, yet in the Somali language no word for the condition exists. People in this community with children who have been diagnosed with autism therefore encounter stigma, fear and a general...