What autism is and is not

Description

What Autism Is… And Is Not

What is autism? It seems like every website on earth has an answer to this, every person has an opinion. The problem is, these descriptions vary, creating a confusing mess… and almost all are actually very, very wrong.

In this sweeping, detailed discussion, Evaleen Whelton from AUsome Training and well-known Autistic theorist, educator and author Kieran Rose look at autism through a distinctly Autistic-oriented lens. The goal is to make sense of the last century of misapprehensions and wild theories which have given us the ‘medical model’ and assess the impact (often harmful) this has had on peoples’ lives.

This is contrasted against the Social Model of Disability and the Human Rights Model it aligns with. We consider the concept of Neurodiversity and Neurodivergence and what these perspectives can tell us.

They also look at the many conditions which have been mixed up with autism, even to the point of forming part of the formal diagnostic criteria, or framing public perceptions of what ‘Autistic’ means and looks like. Common conditions get incorrectly labelled, subsumed under a broad “oh, it’s just the autism.” Mental health conditions can be ignored or misinterpreted as ‘bad behaviour’ simply because they are experienced by the Autistic person… often leaving medical conditions and mental health issues undiagnosed or ignored.

Evaleen and Kieran discuss the important role Stimming plays. They also look at Autistic communication and how it has been misinterpreted for decades.

This course is an insightful exploration and discussion on how the history of autism has influenced attitudes towards Autistic people today. We help you make sense of what it’s like to be Autistic, but also raise some important questions around the pathologizing of Autistic people and our characteristics.

Kieran Rose is internationally recognised as a leading authority on many aspects of Autistic life, notably relating to history, Autistic masking and Autistic burnout. Widely in demand internationally as a speaker and educator, his writing on Autistic masking has helped transform our understanding. His paper A Conceptual Analysis of Autistic Masking brought this thinking into the academic space. More recently Kieran released the groundbreaking book Autistic Masking: Understanding Identity Management and the Role of Stigma co-authored with Dr Amy Pearson. Kieran has, quite literally, written the book on masking, and transformed the lives of Autistic people everywhere.