Adults with autism usually cannot live independently on their own

[RhinoKey]

According to the Daily Mail (I know, I know) here

AIBU in hoping that this is wildly exaggerated (for my DS2's sake if nothing else).

I have several friends with AS. All live independently - two are single, one married with a baby on the way. The two single ones both have jobs they are successful in and enjoy, and the married one has just returned to education for a postgraduate degree after working in a field he didn't enjoy. They have problems sometimes - but they manage, and as far as I'm aware they're all happy.

Equally, I know people whose now-adult children have autism or AS who will never be able to leave home. It is, as someone said upthread, a spectrum. It is not a clear cut 'people with autism/AS can or cannot leave home' matter. It depends on the person.

I'm sure most of my family members have ASD (sinse getting the dd's diagnosed it has become clearer).

I think my dd1 will live independantly, i don't know if she will find a partner who will put up with her (she's bossy, likes to be in charge and can talk for england) but i would like to think she will.

Dd2 i'm not so sure about, she is independant in the way she can brush her hair clothe herself ect..(she's only 5) but i don't think she will live independantly unless she finds a very understanding friend or partner.

I have met many adults on the spectrum who live independantly, have children have good jobs so its deffently possible and gives us all hope.

I know several people with autism (aspergers I suspect)and they are fine, most have postgraduate degrees, friends and relationships. Obviously like any condition there are different levels of severity, but the people I know with it are fine, if a little tactless and socially inept.
i also have known people with down's syndrome who have basic jobs, and live in supported flats (a bit like sheltered housing).
i really think as with anything no two people are the same.

I've just read the article. They really haven't done their research.

'It is far more common in boys than girls, with a male to female ratio of more than four to one.'

Incorrect. It is far more commonly DIAGNOSED in boys than girls but the up to date research indicates that is equally common in girls (if you know what you are looking for).

People who have autism find it difficult to communicate with others and generally have low empathy skills. They also often show obsessive and repetitive behaviour.

Incorrect. Current research shows that people with autism have much higher empathy skills than others. This causes an emotional shutdown as a coping method for overwhealming emotions. This looks like low empathy skills to fuckwits who report shit without finding out the facts first the uninformed.

I don?t want to upset people but I'd like to make the point that someone can get through the education system, into a job and relationship, and be living independently enough, only to have something catastrophic happen, that causes a total shutdown, and they emerge far more affected by the symptoms of autism than they were prior to the event.

I?ve witnessed this twice now, and in the process of trying to get them help, discovered it?s not uncommon, but it?s brushed under the carpet.

There?s insufficient research into how to put lives back to together when people on the spectrum suffer catastrophe and they're often written off.

JustGettingOnWithIt That's exactly what happened to me. Years and years of acting normal, bringing up daughter, working and living alone (with daughter) etc. Then complete and utter shutdown (didn't get out of bed for 3 years) that eventually led to diagnosis and years spent trying to put the pieces back together.

Well, DS1 has AS.
He moved out 2 years ago aged 18,holds down a full time job.Degree at night school, once a week.
He shares a 4 bed house with 3 other work collegues. Pays all his bills etc..
He has spent alot of time finding out about himself and has very good coping skills and has made friends where he works!
Most people where he works are like him ( electronic engineers,physicists, etc..) He fits in really well. As he says, they get him!

Just Getting absolutely, pretty sure that's what happened to Uncle- one of the great many people without a dx but who fit the pattern and gentics so we do know IYSWIM- fine (ish) until his DD died, in and out of psych care ever since.

In fact we had the specialist who runs the adult dx clinic into university and she said that she gets people who have been fired, made bankrupt or divorced referred to her: it is the crisis that triggers the search for answers

Kladdkaka, sorry to hear that. I'm acutely aware of how easy it is for people on the spectrum to be seen as having 'passed' some 'grade' that means it's all going to be ok now, and we can pretend the playing field's level, when the reality is that persons running uphill on overload to maintain 'normality' and if they can't keep it up, there's a reluctance (or perhaps ignorance) to recognise they need and deserve appropriate help/services.

I watch my degree educated friend who used to run a team of 20 I/T blokes programming ?stuff?, now fracturedly trying to manage to work out how to take a shower, and want people to know there isn?t a magic point beyond which ?it?s all ok? and we need to improve things for the future.

Kladd not quite right about empathy (exactly my field of research)- research shows that empathy varies within autism; some people do indeed ahve high empathy levels, others none: my personal favourite article breaks it down into types rather than levels- cognitive and emotional. Cognitive is manipulative, intellectual empathy- ds1 ahd this ins pades, ds3 none at all- it is about understanding how people work, how tehy feel. The other side is emotional which is feelings and where some people are very hypersensitive: ds3 has this in spades as do I, ds1 has zero.

My research is based on parent's reports of their child's ability levels 9kids on spectrum) and up for ethics soon.

Empathy iblance theory, that was the term

it's there. just differnet iun many people.

Peachy my son?s father did fine until his father died, then one day he walked out of his life unplanned, because he?d stopped knowing who he, his family, myself or his child really were. He's lucky, there were enough people who cared about him. My friend isn't so lucky.

Peachy, this was the research I was referring to, although I probably over simplified it. Is that what you're talking about? Anyway, the point still stands, the Daily Mail article is factually wrong and based on ignorant views of what autism is.

x post

Uncle won't ever be well now,, sadly, in his seventes now and marriage etvc all lost- think he became an abuser but it's hard to pick up what's asd and what's PTSD of course.

Kladd will be looking for peple to do online sirveys soon (and wnyone else0 would lvoe your input please? I now how the AS afects my empathy- it's hyper sensitive, can't watch things like children in need any mor as I get so distressed. I think it makes me who I am and is the cause of what I like in myself but causes me problems as well. DS3 is a bit like that (with all the extra crap he has on top) but ds1 is so differnt; controlling, manipulative, My little boy and dearly l;oved but he is nonetheless.

That's one of them yes

Will see if I can't find the other one I am referring to somewhere for oyu later, am dreading Baron-Cohens next book zero empathy soon; already lots about ewvil and his names automatically associates him with ASD.

have yet to pull tis apart but related

Got to run without locating oter one- if you email your addy I am more than ahppy to send over my research proposal with refences, I have to edo a little but it should interest you

Markram

Osteen here

But like I said, an imperfect version of my proporsal is freely available LOL

i am a support worker whose workload includes people with autism and also aspergers many of them only have around four to five hours support per day. many of the service users i work with eventually become so independant they decide to get rid of us with only a phone call for help so do not believe the dm it all depends on the individual

Well thanks to our diabolical education system and early intervention for children with autism, it is more true than it needs to be.

I think it's really sad that I constantly sought help for myself in the UK for years and was told I was suffering from depression and pumped full of anti-depressants that had no effect.

I constantly sought help for my daughter in the UK from when she was 2 and was told there was nothing wrong with her. I was just a rubbish parent. Here have some stronger anti-depressants.

She was teenager when we moved to Sweden. Within 6 months she was being assessed for autism. Once she was diagnosed the doctor referred me to a specialist and I was diagnosed too. He took me off the anti-depressants, depression was never my problem.

We both started to receive proper help and support.

In other words, we had to leave the country to get help.

Yes, where I am tehre is someone who dx's adults (I cant use her as I know her through uni but she si there at least); I know of people on MN who ahve been told tehre are no such services in their county- closed door.

DS1 was picked up only becuase work asked me to arrnage a charity to give a talk on AS: as they stood there delivering said talk I went @O M F G' internally. The rest really is history.

Kladd Yes that is sad. VERY.

it is the cognitive impairment that is important as well - level of learning difficulty - for independent living.

if the person as an adult functions as a five year old they will never live independently - an adult with aspergers wil most likely be able to function daily lfie skills -tho may need to learn them

my ds will never be independent because of his level of leanring diffiuclty much more than his autism tho both combine

Kladd and Peachy, very interesting research - no time to read links now, but thanks.