Autistic Masking
Autism, Neurodiversity Emily Autism, Neurodiversity Emily

Autistic Masking

I was diagnosed with autism when I was 16. Like many autistic people (though not all), I grew up masking my autism. Doing my best to suppress parts of me I recognised seemed different to other people, parts I grew to be ashamed of as things happened which taught me I should be. I didn’t know that what I was doing was called masking…

Read More
The Misdiagnosis of Autistic Distress in the Mental Health System

The Misdiagnosis of Autistic Distress in the Mental Health System

When I am asked why I wrote Girl Unmasked, I say that I was angry. Which is true. I was angry at finding myself sectioned on a psychiatric unit at the age of 16, at the doctor there telling me I just had high social anxiety not autism, at the fact they described my autistic meltdowns as ‘hysteric attacks when she doesn’t get her own way’…

Read More
Reflections on 2023
My Journey Emily My Journey Emily

Reflections on 2023

2023, a year of the highest highs and lowest lows.

The first year of having the comfort of the routine of a 9-5 job and my body no longer being in a constant state of anxiety. The year I learned I have ADHD and started life-changing medication. The first year of…

Read More
What I Wish Schools Knew About Supporting Autistic and ADHD Children
Autism, ADHD, Neurodiversity Emily Autism, ADHD, Neurodiversity Emily

What I Wish Schools Knew About Supporting Autistic and ADHD Children

I struggled a lot at school. This started with anxiety and panic attacks when I was 13. I was eventually diagnosed with autism at the age of 16. I ran away from school, struggled to go into lessons, was described as on the verge of a school refuser and then missed a lot of school when I was unwell.

So what do I wish that teachers (who didn’t already know) had known?

Read More
What IS Autism?
Autism, Neurodiversity Emily Autism, Neurodiversity Emily

What IS Autism?

It is hard to sum up autism in a sentence when autistic people are all different. But, if I had to, I would say that autism is a neurodevelopmental condition which affects the way I see, interact, experience and respond to the world around me. Autism is not an illness, a disease, or something which…

Read More
Autism and Anxiety
Autism, Mental Health, My Journey Emily Autism, Mental Health, My Journey Emily

Autism and Anxiety

You know that feeling where your racing heart-rate won’t slow down, your face feels sweaty and your insides are churning? Where your thoughts are spinning around your head in endless circles? Where you feel dread and complete nausea from everything? I live with that every day.

Anxiety isn’t intrinsic to autism. Not all autistic people even experience anxiety, but…

Read More