Tabloid Report - TV Presenter Melanie Sykes has come out

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ASPartOfMe
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15 Nov 2021, 9:09 am

Melanie Sykes reveals she’s autistic and calls diagnosis at 51 ‘life changing’

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MELANIE Sykes has revealed she's been diagnosed with autism and revealed her relief as things start to "make sense".

The 51-year-old sent an email to the readers of her magazine, The Frank, and opened up about the "life changing" week she'd experienced.

She wrote: "This week has been truly life changing, or rather, life affirming. As many of you may or may not know, I was diagnosed with Autism late Thursday afternoon. And then, finally, so many things made sense."

“I cannot begin to tell you the sense of relief this is for me and how much I celebrate this diagnosis," she said. "I now have a deeper understanding of myself, my life, and the things I have endured."

Mel also recalled some of the struggles she faced over the course of her career, which are now making sense.


She said: "The sensitivities around working in television have come up. I have always struggled with earpieces, what they call talkback, where you hear what the director says. I have often accidentally responded to the director in my ear, live on air, as I cannot juggle the person I am interviewing and the person in my ear at the same time.

"My memory has always been problematic, and remembering pieces to camera could spin me out, resulting in sleepless nights beforehand. There have been many tears of fear and frustration."

Mel previously opened up about youngest son Valentino being diagnosed with autism at three-years-old, saying it gave her the push to leave her unhappy marriage.


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16 Nov 2021, 9:46 am

A non Tabloid source confirming what the tabloid reported
TV presenter Melanie Sykes announces ‘life-affirming’ autism diagnosis - The Guardian


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Professionally Identified and joined WP August 26, 2013
DSM 5: Autism Spectrum Disorder, DSM IV: Aspergers Moderate Severity

“My autism is not a superpower. It also isn’t some kind of god-forsaken, endless fountain of suffering inflicted on my family. It’s just part of who I am as a person”. - Sara Luterman


autisticelders
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17 Nov 2021, 7:13 am

all good, knowing one's diagnosis explains a lot!


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21 Nov 2021, 8:31 am

Melanie Sykes calls for education system to be ‘torn down and rebuilt’ to help autistic people

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The education system needs to be “torn down and rebuilt” so it can better support those who are autistic, the TV presenter Melanie Sykes has said.

Discussing her recent diagnosis at the age of 51, which she announced earlier this week, Sykes reflected on the struggles she has faced throughout her youth and career, some of which she had previously put down to being northern and a “straight talker”.

“I’ve often been told, ‘oh, nobody ever says that’ or ‘nobody’s ever complained about that’ and now I know why. I used to think it was because I was northern, and was just a straight talker.”

The presenter, who also hosted Let’s Do Lunch with Gino D’Acampo and Going Out with Alan Carr, had been working on a documentary about the failures of the education system with Harry Thompson, a writer and speaker on autism and PDA (pathological demand avoidance), when he recognised autistic traits in her and suggested she do an assessment.

“That included things like not doing very well in school. Although I was an avid reader, I couldn’t seem to quite grasp what I needed to do.

“I always put it down to being the youngest in my year. I left school at 15, and I just thought I was less mature than the others, but I now know the education system wasn’t set up in a way that I was able to function there. It crowbars you into a certain way of thinking and being, and if you don’t fit the bill you get left behind. That’s why we need to tear down the education system and rebuild it, so it suits everyone.”

Her documentary with Thompson is one of many projects she hopes to pursue after setting up her own production company. She says she’s keen to use her profile to incite change: “My activism has massively kicked in.”

At the same time, she continues to edit Frank Magazine, which she launched two years ago because “women’s lives, and the quality of their lives, is extremely important to me”.

Since revealing her diagnosis, she has been inundated with messages from people – including readers – thanking her for speaking out. Even today, somebody asked me how I was and I said, ‘Well, have you read the news?’ And they were like, ‘oh, I didn’t want to mention it’.”

Other traits, she added, include “an inability to tell untruths, a huge sense of justice, and when I get really interested in something, I investigate it further and further.”

Awareness of all this, Sykes said, was key to improving the system.


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“My autism is not a superpower. It also isn’t some kind of god-forsaken, endless fountain of suffering inflicted on my family. It’s just part of who I am as a person”. - Sara Luterman


Last edited by ASPartOfMe on 21 Nov 2021, 8:37 am, edited 1 time in total.

theprisoner
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21 Nov 2021, 8:35 am

I've seen her on TV


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12 Sep 2022, 1:46 pm

Close this content Yahoo Celebrity UK Melanie Sykes opens up about living with autism and anxiety

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The TV host was diagnosed with autism last year and in a confessional video posted on social media, Sykes talked about her ongoing anxiety battle and how her life has changed since being confirmed as autistic.

Sykes said to her 300k followers: "Something incredible finally happened, I've been trying to get myself a prescription for medicinal cannabis and I was finally able to get an appointment with a few GPs who agreed that medical cannabis would help with unmasking my autism."

She went on to say: "The more I unmask and start getting rid of my thick skin and being open with other people, I've become even more sensitive than I already am.

The TV host was diagnosed with autism last year and in a confessional video posted on social media, Sykes talked about her ongoing anxiety battle and how her life has changed since being confirmed as autistic.

Sykes said to her 300k followers: "Something incredible finally happened, I've been trying to get myself a prescription for medicinal cannabis and I was finally able to get an appointment with a few GPs who agreed that medical cannabis would help with unmasking my autism."

She went on to say: "The more I unmask and start getting rid of my thick skin and being open with other people, I've become even more sensitive than I already am.

"Therefore I have been experiencing a lot of anxiety. Some of you will know I've been in the process of coming back from a huge breakdown so I'm thrilled. It's going to be a huge experiment and hopefully it works for me so let's see."

Sykes also described how she has been taking CBD oil for a while to help with her anxiety, particularly when it comes to crowded places.

Talking to John Bishop for his podcast, she said: "There's no space for autistic people in this world.

"This is another thing that I'm going to change. Because there is no walks of life where it's okay, people are still scratching their head about autistic people and what does it mean."

Sykes currently presents Shop Well For Less alongside Joanna Page on BBC One.


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Professionally Identified and joined WP August 26, 2013
DSM 5: Autism Spectrum Disorder, DSM IV: Aspergers Moderate Severity

“My autism is not a superpower. It also isn’t some kind of god-forsaken, endless fountain of suffering inflicted on my family. It’s just part of who I am as a person”. - Sara Luterman