Announcing autism on facebook

[TigersRoll]

A friend has just received her autism diagnosis and has announced it on Facebook with wording such as “after years of thinking I was weird, turns out I’m just autistic” and “if you think someone acts a bit odd, accept them for who they are, there’s probably a reason” etc etc (not exact wording but that’s the gist)

Anyway mutual friend thinks it’s attention seeking and unnecessary. AIBU to think it’s a good post? It raises awareness if nothing else?

No more attention seeking than anything else on FB tbh.

Mutual friend is being awful. I agree, good for the friend and I hope she gets lots of support in response.

Agree with you on this one!

My friend did similar a couple of years ago after receiving her diagnosis. I didn't think much of it at the time, to be honest. She did what she was comfortable with.

I mean im not a huge facebook user i generally dont get the announcements but i cerianly used to use it to voice my thoughts. Surely this is what your friend is doing.

Certanly when i first got my diagnosis and went to a specialist autism college i was relieved to find i wasnt weird i was autistic so i totally get your friends post.

Is your mutral friend one to maybe belittle other friends oddness? Whicb is her autism

YANBU but I don’t like the part about ‘odd’ people probably having a reason why they are so.

Good for the friend. I'm sometimes tempted to put it on Facebook and then tell everyone to fuck off, especially the mood I'm in today. It's a good job Facebook is down at the moment, that's all!

Why the hell shouldn't you announce your diagnosis, or your early pregnancy, or any other thing you chose? It's your page, write what you like on it.

Its not just about raising awareness, she is hoping people will give her some support and understanding of any difficulties she may have in their relationship. Maybe be accepting of any changes she makes to help her.

I can see why she'd want to tell people.

Yanbu
I think for years people with autism have gone undiagnosed and it has led to some serious MH issues. They thought they were weird when actually they were just wired a little differently from the rest of us. Good on your friend.
There is an awful stigma around these type of MH conditions.
My son was diagnosed with ASD last year, and I'm forever getting the head tilt / pity look from people.
He's an amazing little guy and highly intelligent. He just has to find a different way around things than the rest of us do

Good on her. The 'friend', does not sound like much of a friend.

The whole point about social media is that is NOT mainstream media. In that the user gets to control it. She’s is totally entitled to put whatever she’s wants on it. That’s the whole point of social media.

It doesn't sound attention seeking at all. A big thing has happened to her and she's sharing it. I don't see why sm should just present a glammorised version of your life.

I have a dx & been mulling over putting stuff on FB. I happily tell people in person but I've held back on FB.

I'd be so upset if it was thought I'd done it for attention. It's a relief & helpful to have a dx as it explains so much. I'm already fed up of the word label!

"Im autistic"

Sorry but what's the difference to I'm pregnant/got cancer/woke up with cold - it's all medical update? Add in Got married/engaged/had a baby/someone died and its a general life update. This is what personal social media is about.

Some people share their whole life on Fb so I personally wouldn’t think anything of this. Maybe she just wants to get it to a wider audience without having to explain it to individual people.
Your other friend doesn’t sound very understanding

I think it's quite a brave thing to post and would commend her for it.

I don't like social media in general but I don't see anything wrong with her post. Isn't everything on Facebook posted for attention? At least an autism diagnosis posted might provide some insight for other friends who have never known anyone with diagnosed autism.

mutual friend is being a dick, and sounds like one of those annoying people that want to be on facebook just to tell other people they use facebook too much or for the wrong things.

Getting an autism diagnosis after years and years of misdiagnosis and poor self esteem can be a lifechanging validating moment. Its normal to want to share it with friends. Its not your friends fault that not all her friends have goodwill towards her

i didnt make a formal announcement about mine, because tbh, even though i knew, I still had a lot of mixed feelings about it, but ive been pretty open in my post, and in reality, anything anyone posts on facebook is for attention in some way. Since when did attention become a dirty word. Whenever we speak to anyone or tell anyone anything, we want some sort of attention. Its a basic human need, and accusing people of attention seeking - ESPECIALLY if they actually really do need a bit of damn attention, is quite cunty

Yanbu.
I got diagnosed with adhd and felt like telling the world. All my life I thought I was just weird.

It's her private medical information so she can broadcast it or hide it as she pleases.

I'm sure she's delighted to find there's a genuine medical reason for her differences which she'll have had pointed out to her all her life. that's what she'll be wanting to share, the elation and relief that there's a reason.

Autism in women and girls is severely under-diagnosed.

She could do with some backup information to educate people because the general public's knowledge of autism is absolutely shocking - going by what's posted on the main boards on here that is.
There are some interesting views here www.mumsnet.com/Talk/guest_posts/3549294-Guest-Post-Why-have-we-overlooked-autism-in-women-and-girls?pg=1

" In the diagnostic clinics we have worked with, there are women coming for first diagnosis of autism in their 70s, after a lifetime of being misunderstood, and sometimes mis-medicated for mistaken psychiatric diagnoses. If their autism had been recognised, supported and their differences respected, their lives might have been very different. They might not have been so vulnerable to bullying, abuse, and isolation, with all the negative effects on their self-esteem and mental health. Raising awareness of girls and women on the autism spectrum is the first step to change that." by Francesca Happé, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at King’s College London who leads psychological research on autism.

I'm with you, OP.

My eldest is auti, I wasn’t originally going to put anything on Facebook when we got his diagnosis, until a friend was told and she said ‘oh that’s such a shame’. That wound me up so much; he’s not a write off, he’s not something to be ashamed of and no part of him should be hidden. He is who he is. Best part was it helped another friend who was struggling with getting her child’s diagnosis, she didn’t think she was strong enough to handle it and worried what other people would say. Seeing someone else going through it and being open about it helped her do the same.
So good on your friend for putting it out there! Now people have a direction to go in supporting her which is awesome 😎 the mutual needs to bore off 🙄

It's a big thing and probably comes as a huge relief. What a shame she has such snidey friends though.