World Autism Awareness Week: In conversation with one of our Shout Volunteers | Shout 85258

At 31, Shout Volunteer Pip was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. She spoke to us about her own experiences, why she enjoys volunteering for Shout, and some of the common misconceptions she thinks people should understand about autism.

We know that around one in 50, so 2% of Shout 85258’s text conversations, will mention autism or Asperger's every day. To put that in context, around 1% of the UK's population is diagnosed with autism and at Shout we see around 6% of texters reporting having autism*.

We know that many autistic adults say they're not getting the help that they need, despite the fact that research in 2018 showed 90% of autistic adults also have a co-occurring mental health disorder**.

There are so many issues that people with autism experience, like eating disorders, generalised anxiety disorder, depression. And it's not the autism causing that. It's trying to cope with the world that's not set up for you. And sometimes really small adjustments make all the difference.

Click below to listen to the full interview.

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Interview transcript: Shout Volunteer Pip speaks to Shout 85258 about autism

If you’re struggling to cope and you need someone to talk to, text SHOUT to 85258 for free, confidential support, 24/7.

For more support, take a look at our Autism support resources.

*Data from Mental Health Innovations. This is based on texters who fill out the survey following their conversation (around 15-20%).

** 3 Camm-Crosbie et al., (2018) - ‘People like me don’t get support’: autistic adults’ experiences of support and treatment for mental health difficulties, self-injury and suicidality