We are helping GPs become more aware of how to support Autistic people
Just over a year ago, I was privileged to be invited to the offices of the wonderful Sunshine Support team to take part in a training video for GP’s, organised by Cathie Long, an Autistic/ADHD social worker, and good friend of mine. This training video was sponsored by Health Education England and was intended to provide advice and guidance to General Practitioners when working with Autistic...Learn More
Noah’s journey
The story of Noah really highlights how, with the right support, autistic young people can flourish, and how self-esteem and confidence can be developed in a way that taps into the positive aspects of being autistic. Learn More
Autism – The tragedy of the missed and misdiagnosed
The inspiration for this blog article came from three separate directions. First, I have noticed on many Facebook group forums that young girls have not been given a diagnosis because ‘they don’t meet the Part B criteria of the DSM 5’ or that they have never even reached the point of being assessed because they ‘seem too sociable’, display empathy, or make good eye contact. The second...Learn More
Autism, Personality Disorder: Misdiagnosis and Stigma
Over the past twelve months , I have been writing another book, along with several very helpful contributors who have been kind enough to share their stories with me. Learn More
The impact of COVID 19 lockdowns on children
The impact of COVID 19 lockdowns on children’s development and the early identification of possible Autism. As a company, we have not historically tended to assess children under the age of four for possible Autism. The reason for this was because, in the past, very small children with developmental or speech delay tended to be identified at their regular Health Visitor checks and would...Learn More
Diagnostic concerns and revisions to the DSM 5
We have received a number of enquiries recently from people concerned about changes to the DSM 5 Autism diagnostic criteria. For those who are not aware, the DSM, (which stands for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), is the guideline where the criteria for diagnosing Autism are written down. The DSM is the American version of the criteria, the ICD 11 (International...Learn More
Back to school for children with PDA … five years on
Article Updated – September 2022 Since this article was first written in 2017 we have published two journal articles related to PDA. The first is titled “Modification of the Coventry Grid Interview (Flackhill et al, 2017) to include the Pathological Demand Avoidant profile” The second is titled “An exploration of the Pathological (or Extreme) Demand Avoidant profile in...Learn More
Autism, anxiety and the impact upon parents … four years on
This article is an update of our original article written in 2017 – long before we, and our children, were faced with the prospect of COVID 19 and the associated disruptions to school and everyday life. I am talking about about Autism and anxiety, an issue which has taken on a new meaning in the last eighteen months. Previous research suggested that up to 85% of autistic individuals will...Learn More
Online assessments – 17 months on
In March 2020, when the first lockdown to try and manage the spread of the COVID-19 virus began, many Autism assessment teams across the country were already experiencing a high number of referrals for assessment, and consequently families were experiencing long and stressful delays in getting a diagnosis and the support that they had hoped for. Even before COVID, waiting lists had been...Learn More