Anyone in the UK feel like me!

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In the UK diagnosis is focused almost entirely on young children, and that's if you can find a doctor who has a clue about AS in the first place. OTOH as an adult diagnosis is a two edged sword.. It would be nice to know for certain, but having to disclose AS to future employers could easily kill my career stone dead.

The local 'autism clinic' is for parents of severely autistic children to be given some time off from caring for them. Clearly such services are needed but it shouldn't stop there.

Our GPs knowledge of AS is so poor my wife (*obvious* AS/HFA symptoms and history) was actually referred to Gamblers Anonymous! (which is multiple levels of fail - apparently her obsession with WoW was a 'gaming additiction' and the GP clearly hadn't heard of computer games...).

Subsequently she dropped out of college unable to cope (couldn't take in what the lecturers were saying, and even missed entire lessons because they weren't on the printed timetable and - because she had no friends - nobody told her). The college, far from helping, chewed her out for not listening properly!

I think we're about 5-10 years behind the US in this stuff.

Last edited by TonyHoyle on 27 Oct 2012, 9:45 am, edited 1 time in total.

I'm not looking for sympathy, just explaining my own experience.

I dont' see why you can't tell your college about any difficulties you experience - they have a duty to support people who see themselves as having a disability and I can't see them asking for written proof of anything.

What difficulties do you have that you want them to know about?

The government is s**t all around, and are only brilliant if you are rich (the current tory government, that is).

But most UK governments seem to think that disabilities are a case of all or nothing, so if you're diagnosed with a condition that holds you back from getting a job (due to lack of social skills and poor understanding from 9 out of 10 employers), but you can get a bus on your own and buy something in a shop, then you are not entitled to disability living allowance and will be prosecuted if you claim it and are seen out alone.

f*****g BS that is! It's not fair!

I've got Asperger's Syndrome and have had no problems getting IT Support and Administrator jobs throughout my adult life. This is probably because I got a decent vocational qualification ie a BTEC HNC in Computing and have ensured that when not working I've done some sort of voluntary work.

The government is not responsible for giving you a job - you have to get the relevant qualifications and keep applying.

My lack of social skills has not held me back from getting a job.

What vocational qualifications do you have?

I've got a lot, but that still doesn't seem to get me into any jobs, no matter what I go for. I do lots of voluntary work in retail, but I can't get a job stacking shelves in a supermarket.

What are the qualifications though? - name them

Why not try a different field ie computing qualifications - they stand you in good stead for administration type jobs.

What was the last job you had an interview for?

BTEC computer skills
2 other computer courses passed
Basic skills pass (english and maths)
Customer service pass


I have applied for plenty of administration jobs, but every single one I have looked into said they want ''excellent communication skills''. I am looking for an easy job where I'm just inputting data on to a computer, but these are hard to come across, and I did go for an interview for one I managed to find, but somebody else got the job.


The last interview I had was for a cleaning job, what I am quite capable of doing for a first job, because I do plenty of that at home. But apparently I was too slow and they didn't want me.

I also have 7 GCSE grades.

Most jobs these days ask for good communication skills - it just means you need to try and not fall out with others, keep your manager and relevant colleagues informed about stuff they need to know and don't gossip about others. Just try and do your job well in other words; it doesn't mean you have to be the life and soul of the party.

Are you implying that British autistic people (or British people in general) all have lower IQs than their American counterparts?

If so, I find that remark rather insulting, and it's statistically likely to be untrue. I can't think of any genetic reason why any particular race would have a higher IQ than another.

If you're talking about general knowledge / level of education / willingness to debate philosphy, religion, current affairs etc, those are not actually anything to do with IQ. IQ is supposed to be a measure of innate intelligence.

IQ is unrelated to education or background. It is genetic. Also, it is pretty impossible to tell merely by reading people's posts on an Internet forum what IQ level they have. Poor spelling or vocabulary, ranting, aggressive language, etc are no indication of low IQ. IQ is all about things like maths, problem solving, and logic.

If what you meant was "general knowledge level" or "level of culture and education" perhaps you'd better say so, rather than using the term IQ. Otherwise, as I said, it comes across as pretty insulting and racist.

(By the way, I am not irked by this because I have a high IQ myself. I don't. I actually have an average one. It's just that I'm British and your statement seems like a pretty racist and unfounded thing to say).

If you read my post you will see that I said I liked talking to people from other countries - there are people on WP from all over the world; not just Britain and America. I've made no comment on the IQ level of people in America as compared to Britain. I meant that the more people on the site, from a wider area of the planet, the more likely the discussion will be varied and interesting.

My exact words were:-

"I like the mix of people from different countries on WP - it makes for far more interesting and intelligent discussions"

You have in fact demonstrated in your post the exact reason I dislike UK-based forums - they are full of posts like yours; accusing a person of something they haven't done because you either can't be bothered to read their post properly or are unable to understand it. Plus there's the small-minded little-Englander mindset that seems to think it's just Britain and America represented on WP! How insulting is that towards the people from the many other countries on here?

I recommend the Aspie Village discussion board for you - you'd fit in perfectly on there!

The current culture in Britain/the UK positively revels in being stupid; 'Dumbed-down' doesn't even begin to describe it! I have every right to point this out and express my utter contempt for it!

IQ is certainly not an innate measure of intelligence either - I was using the term as a general reference to intellect. Intelligence is made up of far more aspects than IQ. Emotional intelligence is not measured by IQ and that is very important in terms of getting on with people/success in life.

I have not noticed this myself but let's assume it is true that Brit AS forums seem to show us in an unintelligent light. That does not neccesarrily mean that Brits are stupid. It could say something more subtle about how our culture for, some reason, means that those who come accross as more intelegent prefer not to use the boards either because something about Brit culture dissuades them or because something else in Brit culture fills the gap.

I don't have an opinion on it but it is possible you are both right.

Well I know I'm not the sort to fall out with people, and I don't cause trouble. I am an extremely passive person, probably too passive for my own good; I let people speak to me the way they want and I find it difficult to stand up for myself, and each time I do, it always backfires, and I don't like working in a hostile environment. It has happened before, and it made me feel very uncomfortable all day.

But it's not just that. I remember at my work experience I had in a supermarket a few years ago, they kept on sending me home, but there were also 3 or 4 others there of my age doing the same work experience and they all did the set 9 til 5 hours. Although I thought I was pretty good, and they were also aware of my disability, I don't think they could be bothered to have me there because they knew I needed eztra support, and they probably didn't have time for me.

I'm afraid hostility is a feature of most work places at some point so to try and avoid it is not going to help as you need to learn how to cope with it.

What kind of extra support did you need in your shelf stacking job?

What area of Essex do you live in?

Last edited by nessa238 on 27 Oct 2012, 11:36 am, edited 1 time in total.

Yep - there's another common feature of the discussion forum - fence sitting

I do feel to a certain extent that too much of the help offered to people with AS in this country is for children only. Once you hit 18, then it seems you are just thrown out to face the world alone, ready or not.

That being said there are groups available, ive been to one meeting (danda) but didnt really feel like I fit in there, mostly because everyone already knew each other and didnt seem too open to new people. But your experience may well differ to mine. You wont get treatment handed to you on a plate like the kids do, but if you search around there is stuff out there for adults, even if you have to travel to get to it. And dont play down how much the mental health team and therapy can help. Talking about it with someone, even if they dont immediately fully understand, can definately be helpful.

Last edited by roccoslife on 27 Oct 2012, 11:39 am, edited 1 time in total.

Er, wow.

First of all, I did read your whole post. I quoted only the part which I wished to comment on. That is a common practice on Internet forums by people who wish to avoid irritating others by cluttering up the page with things that are not relevant to our reply. We select only the part we wish to comment on. Assuming that people have only read the part they are quoting is a very wrong assumption to make indeed. I assure you I read everything. I am a very fast reader. Even if I don't quote it, I've read it. I'm hyperlexic.

Nonetheless, in case you should accuse me again of not reading all of your post just because I choose not to quote all of it, I'll quote all of it this time. In the process, I will, of course, be needlessly cluttering up this page and annoying other users by making them read exactly the same thing twice, but hey. Appreantly the only way to prove I've read what you said is to quote it.

Secondly, I didn't make any comment about the IQ level of Brits compared to Americans, either. I merely pointed out that you had made a racist statement about British people, and pointed out that it was offensive. I'm aware that there is a proportion of WP users who are from other countries than the US and the UK. I am not small-minded at all. I have lived abroad and have mixed with people from many other cultures. I'm aware that there are people of many races on here, and have interacted with some of them. But how is that relevant to your racist implication that British people have low IQs? It isn't. It's just a distraction technique to try and take the focus away from your racism.

Thirdly, IQ does not measure emotional intelligence. Since you are apparently so intelligent, I'm sure you know perfectly well that it stands for "Intelligence Quotient." It's no use trying to back down and say "I was using a word that is stated in the dictionary to mean XYZ, but inside my head, I was using it to mean something else." No. You know perfectly well what you were saying. If you had meant to refer to emotional intelligence, you would have done so, but you didn't. You said IQ. You were insulting British people, and calling us all thick. That is racism. If somebody said "black people all have low IQs" that would be racist. Likewise, saying that British people all have low IQs is also racist. If you talk like that, you are a racist, pure and simple.

Lastly, who are you to tell me to go away and use another forum rather than this one? Who are you to patronise me and tell me where I fit in, and where I don't? This forum is supposed to be for ALL autistic people. I am welcome here as long as I abide by the rules. You are also welcome here as long as you abide by the rules, so I am not going to respond in the rude manner that you did to me, and tell me to go away and post somewhere else that would be more suited to my (what you perceive to be) lower, "British" level of intelligence. You should not be doing that to people. Only mods have the right to tell people to go away and use another site instead, and you are not a mod.

You should not be sneering at people and telling them they aren't clever enough to post here and answer your comments just because they are British. If you write comments here, people are going to see them, and respond to them. Telling me I am too stupid to be posting here and should go somewhere else, where the low IQ British people are, is wrong.

1. It's a personal attack. 2. It's very racist and rude.

Firstly you have attacked all British people in a racist manner and implied we have low IQs, and secondly you have sneered at me and implied I don't belong here and should go and post on a lower-level intelligence sort of forum, just for pointing your racism out.

That's not very nice, is it?