To think if ASD is costing the UK 32bn per year we need to better early screening?

[Pelot]

Autism costs the UK 32bn a year. That's more than cancer, heart disease and stroke combined.

Yet we don't routinely screen all children and get them the services they need early enough. Often the system waits until a child is so unable to cope that they become disruptive in school that a referral is made. Often families don't realise (because no one tells them) that their child is displaying multiple red flags and that they will likely have higher care needs. Those families go on to have multiple affected children because they had no idea what the care needs of the first would be. Surely getting intervention and support sooner would be more cost effective and allow families a chance to be more fully informed when making decisions about subsequent children?

I'd be very surprised if anyone bothered paying for a diagnosis to "validate why they're not sociable", that's unbelievably offensive.

Personally I was suicidal because I was repeatedly entering burnout from trying to mask and couldn't explain why.

My GP, my family, my colleagues probably think I'm fine and don't need a diagnosis BECAUSE I MASK. It's fucking exhausting. It's not that I'm "not sociable" it's that it takes an extreme effort to put myself in a "social situation". Where by "social situation" I include work meetings and doctors appointments. I don't have any fucking energy left for actual social situations, of course.

Reading my school reports, if I was a kid now I'd absolutely be diagnosed. Why shouldn't I be diagnosed as an adult?

Any GP suggesting individuals or parents are buying a diagnosis is utterly moronic.

It isn't worth the reputational risk to a private practice to get it wrong by diagnosing when one is not Autistic. Having sat through my son's entire assessment the depth and detail is so significant you just couldn't slap this on someone lightly at all.

I was shocked how much I didn't realise about my own child and his masking when I observed the assessment.

It probably is a lucrative industry right now with the NHS as it is, yet, the NHS is on its knees and professionals will of course take financial advantage in private practice.

Watch Patience on TV. She's autistic and quite high functioning in her specific role. I'm pretty sure many autistic people, can function pretty well and contribute instead of cost, to the economy.

Oh dear. 😬

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5773391/

Sorry, this was to the PP who asked for the source re birth spacing. I didn't know about this before so thought was interesting

I used to define myself as “I am autistic” but I don’t care if someone says I am someone “with autism” because I am. I see it as what it is, a disorder and disability that impairs my life in every way

I was diagnosed when I was at Uni I was 40ish, I worked as a teacher so functioned well, both my children have ASD and both work full time and manage the world very well. The reason I was assessed was because the tutor was talking about ASD and noticed something about me and arranged the assessment, if they hadn't said anything I doubt I would know now.

It is fictional, and is meant as entertainment.
Look up the stats as to how many autistic people are in any sort of paid employment.

@WeylandYutani

15% of autistic adults are in full time employment. The system for supporting autistic people is truly broken. The few who do manage are the very small minority. It makes very scary reading as a mother of autistic children.

committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/67636/html/#:~:text=Research%20indicates%20that%3A,%25%20in%20part%2Dtime%20employment.

Don’t let that make you too anxious. Remember loads of people in their 50s would never have been diagnosed. There are lots of working, capable people who don’t have a diagnosis but would have been diagnosed if they were a child now.

My verb tense is totally lost in that sentence but hopefully you know what I mean.

I have a friend recently diagnosed, he has always had good jobs. DH’s family are all clearly autistic, through modern eyes. Out of 6 of them, two/three excelled at work, one is a mum and in regular employment though not at a high level. One in very basic employment and still lives at home.
One has had significant mental health challenges (may well have been far better had anyone realised autism).

All of them would have done better had they had a diagnosis to help them navigate challenges.

Your DC are in a good position, with your support and today’s better understanding of the challenges.

Sorry but this made me laugh you really don't understand genetics we learnt this stuff in school age 12. You realise two dwarfs can have a child without dwarfism and one with it. Same goes for pretty much everything even eye colour.
Sorry if I was rude just saying it made me laugh