Tag: autism diagnosis

Autism and Early Intervention

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to talk about a recent landmark study showing the importance of early intervention for long term outcomes for autists.

For many years, studies have reported great benefits for autists when early interventions are taken. The research suggests that the earlier interventions are put in place, the better the outcomes for autists. Putting the right behavioural therapies in place as early as 18 months, such as applied behavioural analysis (APA), can be effective in improving language ability, social interactions and IQ for autists. Other programs advocate practical social interventions, peer intervention programs and active family involvement.

Recently, a new type of early intervention has been in the news showing really interesting results. An Australian clinical trial was conducted on a group of autists that showed early behavioural signs of autism to assess the impact of preemptive interventions long before any autism diagnosis (the group were all between 9-14 months old). The intervention used in this study is called iBASIS-VIPP (Intervention within the British Autism Study of Infant Siblings- Video Interaction to Promote Positive Parenting. Talk about a mouthful!). This intervention is a parent led, video aided therapy which is used to improve social communication and development in infants by helping parents to understand their child’s communication style and to learn how to adapt to it. Parent-child interactions were filmed during 12, 2 hour sessions over a period of 5 months and discussions were held focusing on both child and parent behaviours and how to address them to improve social interaction.

So what did the study find?

Results showed significant reductions in the severity of autistic behaviours throughout early childhood. The most interesting finding however, was that this preemptive intervention had greatly reduced the odds for meeting the diagnostic criteria for autism than those who received normal care from 21% down to 7%- that’s 2/3 reduction! 😲 In other words, use of iBASIS-VIPP in early childhood greatly reduces the severity of autism symptoms, and the odds of receiving an autism diagnosis.

Although given how many of us pass through the radar undetected, implementing a program like iBASIS-VIPP on a wider scale is easier said than done. Some early signs may be too subtle to detect, so later bloomers may not reap the same benefits. Nevertheless, early intervention, where possible can have serious lifelong benefits for autists.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings!

Have a lovely weekend! 🙂

Aoife

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What I Wished I Knew About Autism

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like talk about some of the things I wished I had known about autism when I was first diagnosed. There’s so much to learn about the autistic spectrum, but here are just a selection of things I personally wish I had known:

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Autism is neurological not psychological– This is something that really stems from a lack of proper education about autism in the world. Because autism is so behaviour orientated, there is often a lot of onus on the psychology of the condition, and as such, people can be very dismissive of it. “If you just did this..”, “if you just tried to fit in…”- it’s not that simple. The autistic brain is wired completely differently to the neurotypical brain. There are chemical differences, differences in multiple structures in the brain, even differences in the number of brain connections. Behavioural changes can be made and coping strategies developed, but we need to be aware of the biological aspect- you can’t just swap out your brain for another. I wish I had understood that my own brain was hardwired to drop me into unfortunate situations growing up!

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Autism is a different way of thinking– The autistic brain is built differently, so therefore it thinks differently. It doesn’t mean that autistic thinking is not “normal”, just different. 

Autism is a spectrum- I know this one may seem silly as we’ve all heard of the autistic spectrum, but I wished I had known what being on the spectrum really meant. I had often heard the phrase “oh so-and-so is on the spectrum”, but took it to be a catch all term for people who were a bit odd, didn’t quite learn like everyone else, didn’t quite act like everyone else- basically people who weren’t quite “normal”. I never understood the minutia of the spectrum, that there were high functioning and lower functioning forms of autism. I wish I had known that traits were highly variable, that not everyone with autism is the same and that every case is unique. Perhaps if I had known this, I would have been far more understanding and less dismissive of my fellow autists growing up.

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Autists do experience empathy– We just may not be the best at expressing it. In fact as I’ve previously discussed, research suggests that we feel emotions on an even greater scale than neurotypicals. 

Autists want love– Asexuality is often thought to go hand in hand with autism. As I’ve previously discussed, most autists want to be loved, we’re just not sure how to communicate that or navigate the complexities of romantic relationships. Yes, there are a number of asexual individuals on the spectrum (as there equally are in the neurotypical population), but as with the spectrum of autistic traits, there is also a spectrum of sexuality. 

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That I wasn’t alone– For much of my life I felt like I didn’t fit in, like the world just didn’t understand me. I was always saying or doing the wrong thing, regularly subjected to looks of disappointment and dismay followed by lectures about my behaviour. When I would meltdown, I was ridiculed or punished as I sat there baffled by my own reactions, unable to explain to myself or others what had happened. Everything changed once I got my diagnosis; suddenly my behaviour was not so abnormal after all. There were articles, books and blogs filled with thousands of similar stories to mine. There was a name, an explanation, a community- I never have to feel alone again.

That I was “normal” (whatever that means) – As a result of being undiagnosed and misunderstood, I was constantly berating myself for not conforming to the accepted “norm”. The world told me that I was weird, that I was “wrong”, where nothing I ever seemed to do outside of academics seemed to be “right”. Had I truly known and understood that there is no such thing as “normal”, had I, and the world, known that being autistic is “normal” for millions of people, my life could have been so much simpler.

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Hope you liked this post dear Earthlings! 🙂 

Enjoy the weekend! 

Aoife

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Late Autism Diagnosis

Greetings Earthlings! 😀

This week after reading that British comedian Johnathan Ross’s daughter received an autism diagnosis late in life, I thought I’d write about my own experience of receiving an autism diagnosis as an adult.

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As you may know from my blog intro, I was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome a few weeks shy of my 24th birthday. With autism diagnoses on the rise in recent years, it seems hard to imagine that a person would not be diagnosed until their twenties, but this was my reality. As it turns out, I was far from alone in my predicament with such notable autists as Susan Boyle, Anne Hegerty, Dan Aykroyd and Gary Numan all receiving adult diagnoses.

So why are so many autists only being diagnosed as adults?

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Leading autism experts have described a “lost generation” of autists who grew up during a time where autism was poorly researched and understood. Many high functioning autists did not fit the criteria for classic autism, and as such slipped through the diagnostic radar. It is only in recent years following the introduction of the spectrum concept that many previously undiagnosed autists are finally getting the diagnosis they should have received decades previously. 

In my case, I was both academic and social in school, so no one really batted an eyelid or questioned that something was amiss. My meltdowns were put down to stress (you would not believe the amount of school reports to my parents that said I needed to chill!😂) or temper tantrums, or just plain being a drama queen- oh if my teachers/friends only knew that I wanted none of the attention that my meltdowns brought! 😛 It was only after I failed to grow out of my quirks in college and worsening social anxiety that my family sought to diagnose me (you can read the full story here).

In fact, statistically speaking, the vast majority of women with autism do not get their diagnosis until they are adults, often going unnoticed due to our ability to socially mask, or in some cases, misdiagnosed with conditions co-morbid with autism. Moreover, as I have discussed in numerous posts, women often present with completely different autistic traits to men, but these differences went unnoticed by the medical community for decades as the original descriptions of autism were based on a largely male cohort of patients.

So you’ve got your autism diagnosis, what happens now?

For many, the diagnosis comes as a relief. It feels as though you’ve got the final missing piece of a jigsaw puzzle, like you’re just seeing the full picture of yourself for the first time. However, it equally takes a while to get your head around it all, and the experience often leaves you with more questions than answers. You’re handed this life changing diagnosis, but realistically there are little to no supports available for autists over the age of 18 in most countries. So where does that leave you?

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Here are some tips that I found helpful for dealing with a late autism diagnosis:

Educate yourself- I’ve always had a thirst for knowledge, so whenever I don’t understand something I hit the books. Learning about autism was one of the cornerstones to helping me to better understand and embrace my diagnosis, allowing me to be a little kinder to myself in my symptomatic moments.

Check out some autism blogs/diagnosis stories- I found that reading the stories of other autists was quite comforting as I was coming to terms with my diagnosis. You’re not alone in this 🤗

Link up with local autism support groups/charities– there’s no better source of information and available supports than those who’ve gone through an autism diagnosis in your area. They will all have been through the same thing as you, whether as a recently diagnosed adult or as a parent to autistic child, and will be able to provide you with the best resources available in your locale.

Try CBT– as I’ve discussed in a previous post, CBT wasn’t really my thing for helping me manage my symptoms, but it was highly beneficial in those early few months after my diagnosis to have a professional there who knew about autism to talk things through and to help me to understand my behaviours better.

Talk about it with your friends and family– in many ways, an autism diagnosis is not a journey we walk alone; our friends and family walk it with us. They are on a journey to better understand you too and will want to be there to support you in every way you need.

At the end of the day, while it was not ideal receiving an adult diagnosis, the personal and mental benefits that I have attained in recent years have been completely worth it. I finally understand myself and feel comfortable in my own skin. At long last, I’m able to fully be me in all the weird and wonderful ways God made me to be 🙂

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Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Stay safe!

Aoife

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Greta Thunberg and Autism

Greetings Earthlings! 😀

So this week I’d like to discuss an inspirational young autist that I’ve been meaning to write about for some time- climate activist Greta Thunberg.

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For those of you who’ve been living under a rock (and I mean, seriously living under a rock, this girl has been all over the news 😛 ), Greta is a Swedish teenager who began striking from school on Fridays outside the houses of parliament in Stockholm for action against climate change in 2018 at just 15 years of age. Greta rationalized that the impending climate crisis means no future for her generation, so why should she go to school to prepare for a future that would not exist?

Since she began striking, Greta’s actions have spawned an international movement known as ‘Fridays For Future‘ where students the world over are striking from school for climate change action. She was even nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for 2019.

What a girl!

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In recent months however, attention has focused on the fact that Greta has Asperger’s syndrome (I’m in good company!). In her viral Ted Talk, Greta speaks of how learning about the climate crisis at 8 years old led to her diagnosis. Unable to process the inaction of the world, Greta became withdrawn, depressed and stopped eating, which led her to be diagnosed with OCD, selective mutism and Asperger’s Syndrome. As Greta so eloquently explained in her talk, this means that she only speaks when necessary. Now, in the midst of the climate crisis, is one of those moments.

You can see her viral TEDx Talk here:

 

 

Like me, Greta does not see Asperger’s as a disability, but as a gift, calling it her “superpower”. She recently discussed this on the Ellen DeGeneres show where she talked about how autists are important in a crisis such as global warming as we are different, and we need to think differently to find solutions. Her tenacity, her passion and her black and white, no nonsense speeches (all autistic traits), truly are superpowers in her fight to save the planet.

 

Greta Fun Fact- her mother represented Sweden in the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest 😀

However, the media have recently begun to turn on Greta because she is neurodivergent. A guest on Fox News recently described her as “mentally ill” sparking much discussion about the state of her mental health. As is often the case, once people hear the ‘a’ word, they automatically assign you a box…

Just a reminder– autism is NOT a mental illness; it’s a neurodevelopmental disorder. We may be greater disposed to having issues with our mental health due to higher stress levels, but an autism diagnosis is not synonymous with mental illness.

Whilst I would echo some journalists concerns about the strain of her current international exposure (fellow aspie Susan Boyle had to check into rehab for exhaustion after her viral appearance in Britain’s’ Got Talent), ultimately what Greta needs is action. Saving the planet is her specialist interest, and as I’ve discussed previously, we are consumed by our passions. She will stop at nothing or for no one to save the world.

Without a doubt, Greta is an extraordinary girl, and really shows that you should not allow yourself to be limited by your diagnosis. Indeed, there are people out there vehemently trying to write her off, but the rest of the world is listening.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 😀

Have a lovely weekend!

Aoife

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“You Don’t Look Autistic!”

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

After reading a write in to an advice column in the newspaper this morning, the parent of a recently diagnosed child rationalized that the diagnosis didn’t make sense as their child was doing well in school, popular and “good socially.”

I found this particularly annoying as this type of attitude is something that we high functioning autists encounter all the time.

“You don’t look autistic?!”

“You’re normal!”

“You can’t be autistic!”

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These are some of the most common phrases I hear when I talk to people about my diagnosis, as do many high functioning autists. Whilst this is a great compliment to my upbringing and acting skills, this kind of reaction can be quite damaging for autists.

First things first- no one looks autistic 😛

It’s a neurodevelopmental disorder, how are we supposed to look? Unless you have eyes like an MRI or some type of X-ray vision, you won’t physically see our neurological differences! Roughly 1 in 68 people are autistic- that’s 1 person per double decker bus, 1 person per carriage on the average train, and 3 people on the average international flight. Would you say that you’ve seen someone that “looked” autistic every time you’ve used these transport services? 🤨

We’re everywhere, looking exactly the same as you do.

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^^^ Sorry couldn’t resist giving my favourite musical a shout out- 10 points if you get the song reference 😎

With autism, it’s very much a case of “don’t judge a book by it’s cover”.

With the increased generalization of the spectrum, from the outside, our books look alike, each with the same rainbow-coloured ‘autism’ cover on display. The stories inside however are very different. There may be similar themes, experiences and symptoms between books, but ultimately each is unique.

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Contrary to popular belief, just like the child in the advice column, many high functioning autists have an active social life. In college I was at every party going and the last one on the dance floor- had you seen me, would you have said I was autistic? Appearances can be deceptive, you don’t know how hard some of us have to work on our social skills behind closed doors. Eye contact isn’t natural for me, but with practice and forcing myself out of my comfort zone, no one would be any the wiser when chatting to me now. I’m a social butterfly who doesn’t outwardly appear autistic, but I have a piece of paper and an autism spectrum quotient score that say otherwise

No, I do not “look” like the stereotypical image of autism, but it doesn’t mean that I’m not riding that spectrum.

This attitude towards autism’s outward appearance could in fact be quite detrimental. If we don’t recognize that a person is autistic when they don’t fit the preconceived mould; they may languish for years without adequate understanding and supports for their needs. This is especially true for females on the spectrum who have learned the art of social masking, often flying under the radar of male centered diagnostic criteria.

As I have discussed many times before, autism is a spectrum, everyone is different and therefore their traits will be different. Don’t judge us by the ‘autism’ cover adorning our story, delve deeper into the book and you may be surprised at what you’ll learn 🙂

Hope you enjoyed this post and have a lovely bank holiday weekend dear Earthlings! 😀

Aoife

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Autism and Eating Disorders

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to talk about a very common issue, particularly for women with autism- eating disorders.

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As discussed previously, mental health issues are quite prevalent among the autistic population. Because of this, many autists can go un-diagnosed as co-morbid mental health issues often mask the root autism diagnosis. This is particularly true of eating disorders for female autists where doctors will diagnose an eating disorder, but due to social masking tendencies will often overlook their autistic traits.

In fact this should really be one of the first things that doctors should assess when patients present with eating disorders as numerous studies have shown that there is a higher prevalence rate of autism in patients diagnosed with eating disorders (up to 20%). Evidence indicates that patients presenting with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder (BED) have greater numbers of autistic traits than the general population.

Autists will often not benefit from conventional treatment for disordered eating so it is critical that it is identified early.

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So why are eating disorders so prevalent for those on the spectrum?

The reasons are varied, but tend to be either psychological or sensory related:

Psychological:

Some people on the spectrum develop eating disorders as a means to fit in, to attain the kind of figures that they see in magazines and perceive to be “perfect” or “normal”. Others develop eating disorders as a means of control, where the routine and rigidity can be a source of comfort to an anxious mind running on overdrive (interestingly this may have a scientific basis as starvation decreases levels of serotonin, which is heavily involved in anxiety and is often elevated in autism). Moreover, if exercise or particular foods become specialist interests, an autist may obsess and inadvertently develop a disorder as a result.

In some cases an eating disorder may be a simple matter of mind blindness where an autist simply does not understand that their eating behaviours are abnormal or dangerous.

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Sensory:

Sensory issues are commonplace for autists both with and without an eating disorder. An autist may be sensitive to different tastes, textures and smells which can make for a very restrictive diet depending on the severity. In some cases, eating may be so stressful that they may not eat very much at all to avoid an unpleasant sensory event.

For further information about autism and eating disorders you can check out the link below for advice and support:

https://www.bodywhys.ie/understanding-eating-disorders/key-issues/autism-eating-disorders/

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Enjoy the weekend!

Aoife

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Autism and Gait

Greetings Earthlings! 😀

This week I’d like to discuss another lesser known aspect of the spectrum- autism and gait.

As I’ve discussed previously, coordination issues are part and parcel with autism, however, what you may not know is that these coordination issues tie in with an autists gait- particularly for those with Asperger’s syndrome. In fact one of the lesser known diagnostic criteria in the DSM-V is that of an odd or unusual gait.

New technologies are even using gait analysis as an early means of detecting autism:

I know it seems an unusual trait, (let’s face it, we rarely notice a person’s walk) but researchers have observed that autists can have greater or even reduced step and stride length, increased step width, have unusual posturing, tend to walk on their toes, and are lacking in “motor smoothness” when compared with their neurotypical peers.

So why is an autists gait so unusual? What does the science have to say?

Thus far only a few studies have investigated the underpinnings of gait and autism (although the association has been known for decades), but as usual, the evidence points back to the brain. There has been a lot of debate as to which region is responsible for gait differences, however there is evidence to suggest that neurological alterations in the cerebellum (regulates motor movement) and the basal ganglia (a group of nerves involved in voluntary control of motor movements) in autists are the likely culprits.

Furthermore, those autists who tend to toe walk can develop a leg length discrepancy which can also contribute to their odd gait. Gait issues such as this can have a negative impact on the body as this can shorten your Achilles tendon.  Research shows that children with ASD’s tend to have a reduced range of motion in the knee and ankle when walking which may imply weakness around these joints.

It’s not all bad news however, as special orthotics can be used to help improve some of these issues.

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Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Have a lovely weekend!

Aoife

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Autism and Mental Health

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

Did you know– autistic children have higher levels of depressive symptoms and are 28 times more likely to have thoughts of suicide than their neurotypical counterparts? 😲

bitmoji1256098968In recent years our awareness of and willingness to tackle mental health issues has increased significantly, however, the autistic community is often forgotten in our discussions.

Mental health issues such as OCD, anxiety, depression, eating disorders, ADD, psychosis, personality disorders and bipolar disorder are frequently co-morbid with ASD diagnoses, but aside from OCD and anxiety, you will rarely hear about these other issues in relation to autism. In fact, such mental health issues can even obscure ASD diagnoses in higher functioning autists as clinicians often diagnose the co-morbid condition without seeing the underlying ASD.

This is a particularly big issue for women on the spectrum as experts have found that we tend to exhibit greater depressive symptoms and higher anxiety levels than our male counterparts as we tend to internalize and ‘mask‘ our struggles. Moreover due to differences between male and female presentation of ASD’s and male bias in the development of the diagnostic criteria, women with autism are often misdiagnosed as having mental health issues, but the root ASD continues to evade.

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But are there any scientific reasons why mental health issues are so prevalent among autists?

A recently published study has suggested that perhaps the gut may influence an autists mental health. As gastrointestinal issues are often co-morbid with an ASD diagnosis, and as the microbes that live in the gut can have an influence on the brain and behaviours, it has been proposed that perhaps a “dysbiosis” or imbalance in gut microbes may have an influence on an autists mental health 😲

Interestingly studies have also identified an overlap between the genes that cause schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and autism wherein certain points on these genes encode proteins that are involved in the formation and strength of synapses (which act as chemical bridges between neurons) suggesting that these disorders may act through a similar neurological pathway. Moreover, dysregulation of neurotransmitters (biochemical messengers in the brain) has also been implicated in depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, ADHD and autism (as we have discussed in multiple previous posts) indicating further neurological overlaps.

In short, it seems that the biological basis of both autism and mental health issues are intertwined, which could explain why so often the two walk hand in hand.

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Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Until next time!

Aoife

 

 

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Early Signs of Autism

Greetings Earthlings! 😀

Happy New Year! 😀

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Still can’t quite believe I’ve been blogging now for over 2 years, it’s madness! 🙂

This week I’m going to take a look at some of the early signs of autism to look out for. ASDs are usually detectable before a child’s third birthday, with some signs appearing even earlier (a recent study detected signs as early as 6 months). A definitive diagnosis can only be obtained after the age of two, however, here are some of the early signs to look out for:

Diminished Visual Attention/Eye Contact– if a baby shows more interest in objects/toys than the people interacting with it, this could be an early indicator of autism. This behaviour may be noticeable as early as 6 months. Similarly a tendency to avoid eye contact may also be an indicator

Aversion to Cuddling– a lack of response to cuddling or a lack of interest in initiating a cuddle may too suggest that your child might have an ASD

Colic- There is some evidence to suggest that colic may be a very early sign of autism (yours truly for example was a colicky baby). Colic is defined as “episodes of crying for more than 3 hours a day in an otherwise healthy baby”. The cause is unknown, however many believe it may be linked to GI discomfort- and GI issues are often co-morbid in cases of autism. Colic rates do not appear to be elevated in the ASD population, however excessive crying may still be an early indicator of autism

 

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Fecal smearing– As discussed previously, fecal smearing (or scatolia) can be one of the earliest signs of autism, most likely thought to be a sensory response to periods of under-stimulation in autists.

Other early signs of autism may include a lack of physical gestures for communication, lack of interest in playing with others, a (perceived) lack of empathy or if your child fails to imitate movements and facial expressions.

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When it comes to autism, early diagnosis can be critical to getting your child the best possible interventions to allow them to thrive in later life, so it’s useful to know the early indicators to watch out for.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Enjoy the weekend!

Aoife

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Autism Profiles: Anne Hegerty

 

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to discuss a celebrity with autism that has been featuring in the news a lot lately- Anne Hegerty, better known as the Governess on the ITV quiz show ‘The Chase‘ in the UK. Anne is an elite quizzer, one of six, whom challengers head off against to win large sums of cash for their team.

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As an avid fan of quiz shows I’ve  been fascinated by Anne and her brain for some time, and even more so after I read about her diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome at the age of  45. Before her diagnosis, Anne was on the brink of homelessness and struggling to “keep it all together”. However, following her diagnosis, she was introduced to the world of elite quizzing by her social worker and the rest is history! 🙂

Most recently, Anne has been appearing in the news due to her participation in the ITV reality show ‘I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!”. For those of you unfamiliar with the show, a group of celebrities (although the term is often used loosely these days due to the decreasing calibre of celebs willing to participate 😛 ) are deployed into the Australian jungle for a few weeks and the public votes to subject their chosen celeb to ‘bush-tucker trials’ to win their campsite meals and luxuries. These trials are torturous ordeals where the celeb is often exposed to creepy crawlies, may have to wade through slime/crocodile infested waters, could be buried alive (with unknown nasties) and may even have to eat a range of unpleasant jungle critters- meals often including some “unsavory” parts of the kangaroo/crocodile anatomy…😬

As you can imagine, this is not exactly the most hospitable of environments for the average autist!

In fact, Anne broke down in tears on the first night in the jungle as she struggled to adjust to life outside her comfort zone, and was very close to saying she couldn’t do it.

But Anne has persevered, and even powered through some disgusting bush-tucker trials which you can see in the links below (I know I wouldn’t be able for them!):

She has been widely praised during the shows’ run for talking openly about her diagnosis with her camp mates and raising awareness about the every day challenges of living with Asperger’s.

Here she is opening up about her struggles in the jungle:

You can see her chat a little bit more about her life with Asperger’s here on the ITV chat show ‘Loose Women‘.

I’d just like to finish this post by wishing Anne the best of luck in her remaining time in the jungle (she’s one of the favourites to win) and to conclude with a fantastic quote from her about having Asperger’s syndrome:

“People say to me, ‘I understand you suffer from Asperger’s’ or ‘you suffer from autism’, and I’m like, ‘no, I have Asperger’s, I suffer from idiots!” 😂

Love this woman! 😀

It’s such a pleasure to witness to a real aspergirl showing the world that one should not be defined by a diagnosis, but by the strength of your actions 🙂

Have a great weekend Earthlings! 🙂

Aoife

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