If you guys remember in one of my previous blogs that back in October 2019 I announced that I have been diagnosed with autism. Before and since then I have been open to the subject. Talking does make things better. So for the first few paragraphs I would like to take a couple of minuets of your time to tell you guys about how autism effects me. Autism causes me to:
finding it hard to communicate and interact with other people and the treatment for that is speech therapy.
finding it hard to understand what others are thinking or feeling
finding things like bright lights or loud noises overwhelming, stressful or uncomfortable. Now I don't find bright lights overwhelming, stressful or uncomfortable unless it happens unexpectedly but loud noises such as fireworks, being in a little room or a busy place surrounded by loads of people can cause me to get stressed or uncomfortable.
finding it hard to make friends or preferring to be on your own. That does happen to me from time to time.
seeming blunt, rude or not interested in others without meaning to. That does happen to me quite a lot.
finding it hard to say how you feel. That happens 'cause say like I got a stomach ache, told my mum about it, she asks me how painful it is and I can't express how much the pain is causing me to feel.
taking things very literally – for example, you may not understand sarcasm or phrases like "break a leg". That only happens with my dad.
get anxious or upset about unfamiliar situations, social events and liking to plan things carefully before doing them. For me it's my mum and dad being away for certain amount of time which means they can't leave me on my own unless they arrange for my sister to come over and stay with for the night, but until that happens they can't leave me at home on my own. For social events I do get upset if someone asked me to do something with them out of the blue and that has happened to me and my friend Becksy before when my ex-friend Jodie asked me or Becksy to come into town with her say for example tomorrow a few times because it's not planned weeks or months in advanced. However with Luv2MeetU social events are planned a month in advanced as us Luv2MeetU members receive a monthly event flyer towards the end of each month and whatever event I put my name down for a responsible adult is there to look after those members who are attending a social event and encourage us to mingle with each other.
take longer to understand information. That happens to me all the time.
having the same routine every day and getting very anxious if it changes. I have a fixed daily routine which means I do certain things at the same time everyday but if something interrupts it I get upset over it.
not understanding social "rules", such as not talking over people. This doesn't happen very much.
avoiding eye contact. This happens quite a lot with me
getting too close to other people, or getting very upset if someone touches or gets too close to you. I don't like it when people are standing quite close to me as it does make me feel uncomfortable.
noticing small details, patterns, smells or sounds that others do not. This happens on and off.
having a very keen interest in certain subjects or activities. This happens all the time and I can admit that.
So far I had three assessments to do with autism. The first was a screening assessment where they ask you questions about your childhood and your current situation. The second was a diagnostic assessment where they get you to do some tasks as well as ask you similar questions from the screening assessment and if they decide that you're autistic or not you'll receive an outcome appointment letter in the post. If they say you have autism further plans will be made. The third assessment was completing the Star Spectrum assessment which helped identify and prioritise areas that'll require some support. People react to the diagnosis differently. For me and some people it was relief to find out why they or their child think, feel and act the way whereas it can be a shock to some people so coming to terms with the diagnosis can take a while. But remember there is help and support even if things are hard now, they can get better, you or your child are still the same as they were before, autism is not an illness or disease with treatments or a "cure" and autistic people have things that we're good at and things that we need help with. If you or your child feels alone remember there are places where you can get support from:
Local support groups
national charities
other autistic people or parents on social media and forums
School, college or workplace
your local council
your GP or the autism assessment team that diagnosed you
You could also search online for autism blogs, videos or books.
But it is very important to remember that autism is different for everyone.
What happened to others might not be the same for you or your child.
Many other people with autism have other health conditions as well.
So before I continue this blog I would like to ask you guys to turn off, put down your smartphones, iPads, tablets or any other smart devices, grab a family member, gather members of your family or a friend and spend 2 minuets three or a couple of times a day talking because talking about the problems you have or what's on your mind improves mental health and wellness.
"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent."
- Eleanor Roosevelt
Anyways enough about this because today I went on my first Luv2MeetU event of 2020. We went to...
OMG! I loved this place. I met up with Kieran at Leeds bus station because I don't know my way around Leeds very well as my sense of direction isn't very good at all. Anyways me and Kieran made our way up to the bar and restaurant, it was quite a walk as it's located on the other side of Leeds. I have never walked that far in Leeds before but the walk from the bus station really does build and appetite. As soon as me and Kieran arrived we met up with the rest of the members including my best friend Becksy Preston. As soon as we got a table we ordered our drinks. Kieran had water (can't blame him for being healthy), three members including Becksy had a coke, 2 members had a alcoholic drink whereas I love having a non-alcoholic mocktail, the drink I had is called a Berry Boobtini. This drink contains: strawberry puree shaken with coconut syrup, cranberry juice, lime and apple juice topped with cream and raspberry. Slug And Lettuce have teamed up with CoppaFeel breast cancer charity that is on a mission to encourage and empower young people to check their boobs and pecks. When people but this mocktail the restaurant donates 25p to CoppaFeel charity on your behalf. Good thing I had this drink because one of my mums' friends died of cancer about two years ago. For my lunch I had a fish finger sandwich which is typical of me. I can't help it that I love this sandwich.
Whilst we were waiting for our food and drinks we threw ideas for next months events flyer and I think next month I'm going to try and do more than one event, even though next month is always my busiest month of the year because next month it's my 29th birthday and earlier this week I suggested a birthday event to take place on my actual birthday which I am looking forward to it so much and I can't wait for it. I do recommend the Slug And Lettuce as the service was great.
