Females with AS unite! Our struggles are being recognised!

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I didn't see your comments Tyri0n, but I appreciate your honesty. Don't worry, we all have days like that and we all vent at times.

In my humble opinion, we women have it difficult because let's face it -- we are often told we have male interests, we are expected to flirt and knit sweaters and get our nails done and read romance novels and go shopping and bake cakes. Some people wonder if we are lesbians because we like "male" topics like math and science. Females, in general, in my own experience, are more judgmental towards other females. So, if someone seems strange or different, other women have absolutely no qualms with making sure we know we aren't welcome.

I have fewer problems making male friends, but since I am now married, I am not allowed to pursue those friendships. So, I end up friendless.

Hope I didn't miss the point.

I'm staying out of this one

Seriously.

Where do I sign-up for my free stuff?

All that does is change up the idea that more males have autism and are affected by it worse....to girls are effected by it worse and there aren't more males than girls with autism.

Why does it have to be a competition of which sex has it worse?

How does one become a research subject for this sort of thing? I'd be more than willing.

+1

It doesn't have to be (and that's not what the article, or myself, are saying), but women with autism have been living in the face of hugely biased research, diagnostic criteria and clinicians' attitudes for way too long. It's a Halleluja moment that they are finally waking up to the truth, that's all. At the end of the day, it's not relevant who has it worse (those types of debate get no-one anywhere), it's just that diagnostic criteria need to be based on correct and balanced research, autistic women that are being failed far more than autistic men at the moment need their just desserts as many out there in society struggle on undiagnosed due to the failures of the system.

Here's a list of all the professionals mentioned in the article (including the journalist) so you could Google their names and how to contact them to find out:

Ami Klin, a psychology and psychiatry professor who directs Yale’s autism program

Janet Lainhart, a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at the University of Utah

Catherine Lord, a veteran autism researcher, a psychology and psychiatry professor and director of the Autism and Communication Disorders Center at the University of Michigan.

At the University of Texas Medical School, Katherine Loveland, a psychiatry professor

prominent British researchers, Michael Rutter and Patricia Howlin

Susan Folstein, a prominent Johns Hopkins researcher

David Skuse, a psychiatry professor at the Institute of Child Health at University College London

Simon Baron-Cohen, Autism Research Centre at Cambridge University (everyone's favourite !)

Geraldine Dawson, a psychology professor and director of the University of Washington Autism Center

Dr. Richard Besser, the acting director of the C.D.C.

Emily Bazelon is an editor of the online publication Slate.

smart man

Early studies of Asperger's actually threw out women subjects though it was recognized within them. Learning Disabilities (LD) are less likely to be defined in women too.

This is partly this due to girls not acting out as much in class etc. and biases within society.
This is why women do find later in life they have LD or A/S etc.

Not knowing until later in life, makes life paths that much harder ie dropping out of college or drifting from job to job etc. Would early intervention have changed the route of their lives? Most likely, it would have helped to a moderate to a high degree.

BTW, the sex based bias in studies is recognized and this why researchers purposely do separate studies now with women or mix the two sexes etc.

I don't take most research seriously anyway as it never makes any difference to my day to day life

They could say women with Aspergers suffer the most out of anyone in the whole of society but how would just making that statement, even if backed up by extensive research, make the slightest bit of difference to anyone's actual life?

Research rarely ever translates into actual supportive action - I don't know if you've yet to realise that.

Please let me know when all this research about women with autism's difficulties translates into an actual improvement in your life as I'm thinking you'll have a long wait.

I totally understand what you mean, I'm in the UK too and it's a slow process here. However, you may know about the new NHS NICE guidelines, and I do know that the professionals are panicking about what they need to do and listening. This is at the moment about the assessment process, but naturally that will feed into the care pathways too - they are also mentioned in the guidelines somewhere.

http://www.nice.org.uk/CG142

I don't think there will ever be enough of the right type of care, certainly not from the NHS as it's so cash-strapped.

I have been battling for years to get services for adults with Asperger's Syndrome set up in my home town and the most that's happened so far was a support group that I set up myself, with assistance from the council. Some of us have been trying to negotiate with the local Clinical Commissioning Group to get services set up for adults with Aspergers/ASDs but they insist on using the word 'Autism' which means they will still be able to focus mainly if not solely on people with Autism who have a learning disability, who already have services available to them via learning disability services, and continue ignoring those of us with Aspergers Syndrome. Guidelines are just that - guidelines - they are not legally enforceable. The Autism Strategy is legally enforceable yet they aren't even following that properly so NICE Guidelines have got no chance!

What services for adults with Asperger's Syndrome exist in your home town?

To my knowledge, without having done much searching, there is a charity that has a social group and mentoring for adults with AS and a body which might be something to do with the council, that offers support to adults with AS. There might be more, as I say I haven't really searched (I have two children and without child care I can't go to any groups, and I also don't like the idea of groups anyway).