I am probably autistic.
I generally use the term autist, not “person with autism”.
The latter term:
- Is generally for the comfort of whoever is using it, rather than the autist, and may, in that context, imply there is something shameful about being disabled;
- Can be, and too often is, misused to hide the needs of autists – especially by promoting the myth of “bravely overcoming problems”;
- Has a hidden suggestion that autism is separate from the autist, and can be put down, or “healed” – which is cannot, as it is due to brain and other neurodevelopmental differences.
In my case, I have chosen not to get a formal diagnosis, as being autistic was identified – and backed by my GP and a counsellor – after I was 65, which meant (in Australia) I could no longer access the NDIS and thus had no access to any support services.
On that, claims that people are identifying as autistic to gain access to benefits are absurd, as those supports are only available after a formal diagnosis - which is expensive, traumatic, and subject to prolonged delays.
I would rather my family kept the money, and was spared me going through the trauma.
Another problem is that autism diagnoses often require speaking to people who knew the person being assessed during their childhood. In my case, my adoptive parents are dead, and others in my adoptive family do not know have the necessary knowledge of me.
Various forms of neurodivergence are present in my birth family, but none of them knew me during my childhood, so that doesn’t help me to get a formal diagnosis. (I was asked to be friends with some children who were “developmentally slow” – I had patience to explain, respond to questions, etc.)
In my case, I was close to a diagnosis for around ¼ century before the informal diagnosis, however:
- the informal tools were poor quality back then, partly reflecting the limited understanding of autism – especially of masking and of autism in women, and
- online questionnaires were in early developmental stages. The questionnaires now on sites like Embrace Autism have far more rigour and knowledge in their development and use.
In addition, I thought autism was supposed to look like Raymond in the film “Rain Man”, but that is not the case, as Raymond also had savant skills, and my reading has suggested could be anywhere from less than 100 in the world to around one in a million people. Around 29% of autists have some sort of exceptional skills, but those are considered splinter skills, not savant skills.
From the Wikipedia article on that film (at https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rain_Man&oldid=1305218490#Legacy):
“Rain Man is known, in particular, for its portrayal of a man with both autism and savant skills, leading much of its viewing audience to incorrectly assume the intellectual capabilities of autistic people at large. Characters like Raymond Babbitt, whose characterization has been criticized for adhering to stereotypes, are portrayed as having an otherworldly intellectual ability that, rather than disable them from living a "normal" life, instead assists them in a nearly magical way. Although having savant abilities is certainly a possibility for autistic individuals, the combination is incredibly rare. Conversely, Rain Man has also been seen as dispelling a number of other misconceptions about autism, and improving public awareness of the failure of many agencies to accommodate autistic people and make use of the abilities they do have, regardless of whether they have savant skills or not.”
Not being diagnosed led to a number of problems, some because I lacked the knowledge to manage a health condition, some because of workplace conditions – and both will be considered in this presentation.
In the context of workplaces, not having a formal diagnosis is, IMO, not necessary. Adjustments to suit the wide range of variation in human characteristics, such as differing preferences for quiet or noisy work environments, or differing temperature preferences, or preferences for working early or late, is a key part of good management of staff to optimise productivity.
I have used both my lived experience, particularly during my decades working in corporate environments, and what I have learned from professionals and my peers to craft a presentation which is intended to provide sound introductory knowledge to adults in corporate environments who have little or no knowledge of autism.
The starting point for the presentation is a brief list of seven points about autism that I wrote some time ago.
The presentation is around 45 minutes long, and a PDF of the 45 presentation slides and a separate 14 page PDF of some additional resources will also be provided to attendees.
If anyone is interested, a PDF version of the notes I prepared and used to put the presentation together are for sale on a Ko_Fi shop I created in relation to my Paganism education activities, at https://ko-fi.com/musingsofgnwmythr/shop
Some example extracts from the presentation are posted below.
