11/12/2025
This breaks my heart 💔 We have much to learn from this story. Like John and many others both before him and even now, late diagnosed autistic adults are misunderstood. They are pushed around the mental health system. Prescribed medication.. often for misdiagnosed conditions like schizophrenia. When in fact they are actually autistic. Complicated by layers of trauma, being ignored, gaslit, judged, shamed, dismissed, stigmatized... they are not broken human beings who need to be fixed. Autistic adults want to be heard, listened to, and accepted for their differences, and to be supported in a way that gives them quality of life.
I specialise in supporting autistic women and I have many clients who have been misdiagnosed, only then to receive their autism diagnosis. This is not without layers of shame, frustration, anger and trauma after decades of suffering.
Nat ❤️🩹
For most of his life, Helen’s brother John didn’t know he was autistic. He was diagnosed in the 1970s — a time of limited understanding of neurodiversity and access to professional support.
"The doctor had a very strong Scottish accent, and we hadn't heard the term autism before, so we thought he said 'artistic'.
"John had been living without a diagnosis for almost four decades. I believe him not having validation and professional support severely affected his mental health."
To read Helen's full article, tap here: https://bit.ly/48IQmKr
