To think more people do have autism nowadays?

I think autism could be caused by a number of different things.

I wonder if bracketing it as one condition, (a description of symptoms/behaviours really) impedes the research into causes and treatments?

A bit like the way all infectious diseases used to be called fevers.

Certainly there seems a big difference between what used to be called aspergers and more severe forms of autism. I wonder if with the latter it is sometimes a different more global disability that also impairs social communication but that is diagnosed as autism even though other areas are affected.

That said it seems that siblings can often be affected by autism, some very badly and some less so, which would suggest a common link. Definitely more research needed.

@Gobacktotheworld I'm so sorry that happened to your sister.

My husband has dyspraxia and in the report (he is 35 and was diagnosed at 14) it says he has "autistic traits" - his mum has always been convinced he is autistic, but just didn't quite tick enough of the boxes back then. Not saying he doesn't have Dyspraxia, but rather that it's likely he's autistic with dyspraxia also.

Our son is almost 5 and awaiting assessment for autism. I'm not sure if he will be diagnosed... his HV, Paediatrician, nursery workers and now reception teacher all sat the same thing - "there's definitely something there" always comes up. But whether it's autism, something else on the spectrum or he's just a super sensitive, quirky kid, I'm honestly not sure. We just want to try and make sure he has the support he needs and that we can learn enough to teach him good coping skills for when he is having a hard time with things.

Oddly enough, it's my dear old batty Nan that I think of most when I see things in my son. She died a few years ago at 90 - at 85 we were told she very likely had (and had always had) OCD, anxiety and possibly autism, but obviously as a child in the 30s these things weren't picked up on.

Unpopular opinion for some reason I think it is on the rise, especially the more complex end of the spectrum.
Better recognition only really accounts for people who struggle socially but can live independently (like myself who was diagnosed aged 30).

My son however, whatever decade he’d been born in would have classed as severely disabled regardless of what he had been diagnosed as since he is has the mental function of a toddler, nonverbal and in nappies, at age 9.

I had to fight to get him a place at specialist school. The woman at the education department said on years gone by, even ten years ago, they would get
maybe 5 or 6 children with such complex needs starting school and they could all be accommodated at the local specialist school however now they have at least 20 kids with complex autism needing 1:1 or 2:1 care starting each new intake and they are struggling to meet their needs.

it doesn’t matter what the diagnoses is, there just weren’t loads of severely disabled kids needing that level of care.

Dont know why that’s seen as in controversial to say so.

It’s good there’s better diagnosis and understanding but rates of severe ASD have skyrocketed and they need to find out why.

Years ago, only severe forms were really diagnosed.
But think how many children in schools were known by other kids as a bit ‘odd’. I can think of a few from my school that, looking back, were probably on the autistic spectrum. But because they functioned, however strangely, there was no cause for any diagnosis of anything.

i think the numbers are the same (percentage wise) but modern schooling/living demands are pressurised and have exasperated many who would have otherwise managed ok in mainstream 20 years ago. Going further back in time lots of people were locked up for a multitude of inappropriate reasons.

Looking back I know a few people who would have benefited from some sort of diagnosis. I know someone in their 80s who recently passed away whose family think likely autism at play alongside other things.

My mother was not typical and I wonder if autism could be at play or ADHD or bipolar. But something was at play.

I wonder about myself sometimes.

My youngest is likely on spectrum. Awaiting assessment but psychology professionals in NHS think they are almost certainly on spectrum. I suspect my other DC are also on spectrum. The genetics are there in grandparents on both sides. Probably in parents too.

I think a lot of people conform to social norms but I think this conformity was greater in the past. People today I think are more likely to live a life more true to how they feel. One of the things a psychologist picked up on with my youngest was their expressionless face. I recall being told same thing all my life. I still have to tell myself to smile etc.... to confirm socially.

This. Undiagnosed autistic people tend to find eachother anyway, even marry eachother, and find out they are autistic after their children are diagnosed. When children aren't diagnosed it's sometimes because their parents just think their neurodivergent behaviour is perfectly normal because they were just the same. I don't believe there's ever been fewer, they were just unrecognised and forced to fit into a neurotypical mould if they possibly could .

They've studied ADHD diagnosis trends and think it's relatively stable in terms of its occurrence in the population. We are just dealing with increased diagnosed and a huge backlog of people who now realize that they may have it. So it seems like 'everyone is ND nowadays' but it is just the health services dealing with a huge backlog.

Our schooling system probably highlights differences more starkly than it did 50 years ago. Expecting 4 year olds to sit and learn phonics etc rather than be children.

I feel like I am contradicting my earlier post. But, do you think some of this is lack of socialisation / eye contact in babies?

IE. Parents looking at phone, not child.

Anecdotally researchers think numbers are increasing over and above diagnosis at a lower threshold, better recognition in women etc. Why however they are not sure.

There's so much we don't understand about autism, i actually think personally that in 50 years it won't even be a diagnosis because the traits of autism are just that and researchers will work out the underlying causes which will be varied, we already know there's serious genetic disorders that have autism as one of the symptoms but researchers are trying to unlock the genetic component to "milder" autism running in families like mine, exh and dd have given blood towards it, know the researcher).

Don't jump down my throat using mile because you know exactly what I mean, what runs in my family cannot be compared to my friends son who needs 3:1 carers 24/7 outside of his secure custom arranged living space (he has 1:1 or 2:1 for certain times there).!

I'm wondering if our modern lives are causing autistic traits somehow, pretty sure it's causing adhd, my own concentration has sunk since smart phones for instance. Research is at an early stage but something is afoot

Yes we are better at recognising it, but looking at the numbers of pre-verbal pupils in early year, there has been a really big increase over the last few years as well.

Several studies have shown that women over 40 are 50% more likely.

It is unfair, but biologically we (the human race) are designed to have children when we are younger. From a biological health perspective, and the ability to cope with lack of sleep etc. And possibly on the basis that we haven't yet matured enough to know better.

I have a childhood diagnosis of dyspraxia. I am sure if I was diagnosed today it would be autism.

I think it is diagnosed more.

We are seeing more children with it at the nursery I work at.

There's more awareness now. I wasn't diagnosed until my 40s but it's a lifelong condition. Looking back at the way I was as a child, I'd be diagnosed in infancy nowadays, but back in the 70s ordinary working people like my parents had never heard of autism.

I have worked with children for 30 years back then i barely worked with anyone with adhd or autism diagnosis . However now armed with many years of working with neurodivergent children i could identify many that would be recognised ASD/ADHD.

Lots of really complex and children with learning disabilities/difficulties were also hidden away from the world where as many parents now rightly give them as much of a ‘normal’ life so are seen out and about much more.

We seem to be hyper aware nowadays and people see through masking, or previously ‘odd’ or a ‘bit different’ behaviour.
I’ve met babies with possible ‘signs’ but would not encourage too early diagnosis bvecause we alll develop so differently.

I think it's increased and awareness is better, so a combination of the two.

I can recognise it almost instantly in someone. I see it in a lot of people.

Highly suspect I'm autistic too.

This 👆

Also, along with increased occurrences per capita, the population is increasing, and the recognition of such conditions is happening more regularly.

*has profound autism

I think it's increased. Why? Because my son she profound autism, non verbal. He goes to a special school -

There are far more children now in need of special schools than even 15 years ago, and early years/reception classes have reported a sharp increase within the last 5 years

I think it's partly because in small children autistic behaviours overlap with toddler behaviour so it can be hard to tell if they're autistic or just being a toddler.

Ive heard this with fathers but not mothers and I’m not sure the link has been proven. Anecdotally though none of the parents of autistic children I know were particularly old when they were born. And before fully reliable contraceptives, it was actually really common to have children late in life. Not your first child, granted, but subsequent ones.

Looking back I can see quite a few folk who appear to have/have had quite a few 'characteristics' that may well fall/have fallen into the criteria for being autistic - whether they all are/would have been I'm not 100% sure but less folk were both diagnosed and willing to speak about it than currently. The same goes for ADHD. I think autism has always been thought to be more associated with males but more females are also being diagnosed these days. I wish anyone well who is on the diagnosis journey or who is trying to figure out what a diagnosis means.