‘We are not all like Rain Man’
People with autism in Wales have spoken passionately and honestly about what it means to them. Welsh affairs editor Will Hayward reports
THIS week is Autism Acceptance Week. There are an estimated 700,000 people with autism in the UK (around 1 in 100 people).
Almost everyone has heard of autism now but the National Autistic Society (NAS) says that too few people understand what it’s actually like to be autistic – both the different perspectives, passions and skills autistic people can have and also how hard life can be if you don’t have the right support.
Autism is a spectrum, which means that autistic people have varying and often complex support needs.
Some people may have an accompanying learning disability and require 24-hour care, while others simply need things like clear communications and small adjustments at school or work.
So what is it like to be autistic? Well, obviously, there is a very easy way to find out – ask autistic people.
With the help of the Swansea branch of the NAS, we asked autistic people of all ages to send in a video answering one simple question: “What do you want the world to know about autism?”. The responses were varied, insightful, witty, eloquent and fascinating.
Here are just some of the responses: Scarlett, 6, said: “I want people to know that I love who I am. I am proud of who I am. I don’t need to change who I am. I want people to understand and show support. Everybody is different.”
Leah, 22, said: “I am a full-time university student at Cardiff Metropolitan University. As an autistic person I want the world to know that girls can be autistic too and are often misdiagnosed with depression, anxiety and OCD etc. Sometimes autistic girls mask their traits to fit in with society. This can therefore play a pivotal role in the misdiagnosis of autistic girls.”
Charlie, 11, said: “As an autistic person I just want everyone to know that we want to be treated like everyone else, and we are not all like Rain Man.”
Alice, 44, said: “As an autistic person I’d like the world to know, different doesn’t mean less. Playstation games don’t work on an Xbox, we are just wired differently.”
Louis, 9, said: “As an autistic person I’d like the world to know that I create characters and comics and that someday they will be a cartoon on the TV.”
Minnie said: “As an autistic person I want the world to know that autistic people have minds of their own and they have their own personality. So if anyone tries to infiltrate that personality, don’t let that get in the way – just be yourself.”
Josie, 9 said: “As an autistic person I want the world to know that you don’t have to stare if we are having a meltdown, because it makes us feel worse. Sometimes we just have to let our feelings out.”
Isaac, 11 said : “As an autistic person I want the world to know that even though our brains work differently, it is a great advantage.”
Adam, 12, said: “I like Friday Night Funkin’ [a video game], Minecraft, Among Us and Pokemon. I have autism, it is my superpower and I am proud of my autism.”
Rhian, 27, said: “Autism is not just a superpower, autism is a way of life.
I wish more people would ask more questions to the individual rather than the person they are with. Something I am really passionate about is volunteering and helping others understand things better.”
Jac said: “Hello, I have autism, I want to raise awareness of people with autism, people like me, all around the world. Thank you.”
Storm said: “As an autistic person I want the world to know that I sometimes struggle to process all the information from my senses. This is particularly true of sound. Not so much how loud something is, but how many different sounds there are. So I will struggle to hear somebody speaking if there are other background sounds such as radio, other people speaking or mechanical noise. I often lip read.”
Henry, 17: “As an autistic person I would like everyone to know that we are hard working and we would like to be given the same opportunity as everyone else.”
Caden said: “As an autistic person I want the world to know that I can’t help it when I buzz like a bee”.
Isabelle said : “As an autistic person I like playing Minecraft and with Buster my dog. What is important to me is my friends and family.” Buster the dog actually made a brief guest appearance in the video.
Ben, 10, said: “As an autistic person I want the world to know that I love dogs.”
Jake, 14, said: “As an autistic person we are capable of anything.”
Jazz, 23, said: “Hi, I am Jazz from Swansea. I work as a mental health support and volunteer for the NAS Swansea branch. I want the world to know that not everyone is a little autistic, else the world would be very different indeed.”
Tomos, 15, said: “I love swimming and I am on the Paralympic pathway for swimming. I would like to represent Team GB one day.”
Jac, 15, didn’t speak to a camera. Though he did send in a cool video of him riding a mountain board over a ramp. Under it there was a caption saying: “I am autistic, I see you, now see me.”
Mason, 9, sporting an awesome Spiderman backdrop said: “Hi my name is Mason, I am autistic and I wish people knew how scary the world is.”