Anyone else noticing the uptick in open hostility towards people with ASD?

[FFSakeDrinkSake]

As the title says. It feels like it's open season recently. In the last few weeks alone I've seen many threads questioning the validity of Asd, the credentials of those diagnosing the condition, the 'explosion' of diagnosis', the 'fact' that you qualify for extra benefits if you are autistic and/or have ADHD, the apparent drain on resources kids with ASD have on the educational sector depriving others and most recently the idea that someone (self diagnosed) can 'outgrow' autism. Most of which contain the worst misinformation about what we're trying to deal with on a daily basis and making it sound like we're just trying to .. i dont even know tbh.. scam our way through life?

Disclaimer NATAAT.

If you had a kid that was a flight risk, or was completely overwhelmed by new places and would have to leave double quick to avoid them hurting themselves or others I'm not sure you'd be saying one disability requires a parking space more than another

So whilst you understand that some wheelchair users are also able to walk at times you don't understand that some autistic people can appear NT in some situations event if this causes consequences later
In your view they must be fake autistic not masking. But your son walking around isn't fake wheelchair user is he?

Wow, the thread perfectly shows the ops point.

Bravo Mumsnet.

That's a bit of a stretch and not at all near to what I've said.

Oh my god I would love for my child to not have slow processing disorder, unfortunately they do and it impacts their learning. They won't do any exams because the education support has been dire

In my area there are various routes, it's so baffling

My son was diagnosed by a paediatrician, however my nephew went the cahms route. Both live in the same small town!

Yes, maybe so. But it was really difficult to be struggling with my poor elderly mum when people were pulling up into disabled spaces with their sporty little jobbies, and strolling off into the store. There needs to be more balance in terms of what is offered. I am not saying no ASD should qualify. But there are way too many people with disable badges at the moment.

Apologies, I thought you were saying that there were people faking autism

It’s been an extremely distressing read, considerably worse than I thought it would be tbh.

I agree. It's really sad. I don't know what we can do about it, people aren't willing to change their preconceptions and would rather believe media hyperbole, than listen to those on the ground experiencing it.

I hope someday non visible disability will be viewed the same as physical. But I doubt that will be in my lifetime.

Apart from the complex communication diagnostic service in our Borough is run by a CiC, commissioned by the Borough and NHS jointly (the 'joint' bit being to save them both money).

So it is LA money. Post 2012 LAs were able to run commissioning for lots of health services themselves; ours went all in for as much as they could. The paediatrician is not employed by the NHS, the SALT is LA, OT is LA. Etc.

No, I think some people are able to buy a dx if required/ wanted although highly doubt they'd go around every day doing so.

I believe people are impacted differently by autism. Some people have families and careers and others will require constant supervision and help with every detail of life. I think the dx should be separate so that there is a clearer meaning and understanding of what autism looks like for that person. I agree with the proposal to pull out and separate profound autism which has been floated around recently.

I believe autism is a disability even if those with a dx don't see it that way, as to get the dx you'd have to have decifeit in functioning.

I can't imagine why anyone would want to have autism let alone fake it. I have said if I could I'd cure my son in a heartbeat.

I agree there is too much competition for disabled spaces at the moment. It makes life impossible for those who physically can not get out of the car without a larger space. My sister who is a permanent wheelchair user just parks over two parking spaces and appeals the inevitable tickets. But I know some people just go back home.

Genuine question - I've always been told there's no specific disorder that is 'low processing disorder'. A child having low processing can be a factor in another diagnosis for the child, but it's not a standalone diagnosis. Is that wrong?

Not challenging your child's need for/right for adaptations, just looking to see if I've misunderstood the position myself!

@Perzival there are people who fake all sorts of illnesses and disabilities from cancer to epilepsy.

For what it's worth I agree too. I just don't think that people should be talking about me and someone with profound autism as part of the same classification. Our needs are clearly different and (from my perspective) obviously the person with profound autism's needs should trump mine 99% of the time. It doesn't help anyone.

They must have mh needs surely. I do know someone who lied about having cancer, she definitely has unmet needs.

"I think those spaces should be reserved for mobility related disability."

ASD can cause difficulties, sometimes severe difficulties, with mobility.

Completely agree with this- increasing numbers of people coming into a first session (I am a psychotherapist) demanding letters saying they cant work and shouldnt have to apply for jobs. They are often genuinely amazed (and really angry with me) when I tell them that I am certainly not going to say any such thing before they have undertaken a full course of treatment and made a genuine attempt to engage with it. It makes me so angry that there are people like this blocking up the system for people genuinely in need. And from being very liberal and supportive, it is pissing me off when people game the system by claiming MH. If the person is genuine, I will go to the end of the earth to support and advocate for them. But I have no time for the piss takers.

Guardian article: queries on numbers

There are some genuine concerns about some centres passing more cases. I listened to a radio programme about this - particular concerns around some private clinics with extremely high percentages.

@Laughingoverspiltmilk I don't think needs should be trumped although I understand what you're saying. I just think they're so vastly different that describing them by the same dx doesn't help anyone.

I'm a teacher and I agree wholeheartedly with every word you've said here.
It is creating an obscene amount of work for us and we just don't have the time or money to deal with this demand.

In reality, a diagnosis doesn't really do anything. It might write a document listing all the things that can be done to support your child, but if there's no money or time to actually do any of these things, it's a pointless piece of paper.

So many parents as well expect their child to be given a 1:1 adult as a result of a diagnosis. It just isn't that simple unfortunately.

It can be MH needs. People also lie for personal gain. To grift money, to get out of trouble at work or school or other reasons where they gain something. Most people would never dream of doing this, but a small minority do. I remember in a Disney facebook group a mother said she lied about her DC having ASD so the family got a DAS pass which cut queuing. It is because of people like this that most places ask for proof.

To be completely honest, I think that people who don't have direct experience of ASD often struggle to understand what it actually is (myself included). It seems to be an umbrella term which is used to cover an enormous range of different things. It can mean anything from very severe disability, where someone wears a nappy and is unable to speak, to someone who is high functioning with a successful career, who is just slightly neurodivergent.

I'm no expert, but to me, as a layperson, the definition of ASD is not meaningful or helpful. It would be easier if it was broken down into separate disorders or graded in some way. When something is described as a spectrum disorder I think it takes away from just how serious this condition can be for some people.

I agree and realise this. Like I said upthread I've seen this sort of thing in rap queues and there are Facebook pages advising on how to do it (theme parks).

I can't I.agine someone going around flapping or swimming etc or faking meltdown.