Autism and Suicide - The Terrifying Mental Health Statistics
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- čas přidán 4. 07. 2024
- Do Autistic people experience mental health differently? What is it like to live on a psych ward? What happens when you MASK in therapy?
All my links: linktr.ee/thomashenleyuk
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro Music
00:37 Interview
Trigger Warning - Suicide, Self-Harm and Mental Health
Amelia is the creator of the Autistic Positivity instagram page, a page which focuses on illuminating the issues Autistic people face, as well as spreading awareness/acceptance of common Autism topics.
In this episode of the Thoughty Auti Podcast, Thomas Henley talks to Amelia about their experiences of mental health, misdiagnosis, psych wards, suicide and the different ways Autistic people may experience mental health disorders.
Kicking off the conversation, Thomas brings to light the poor QOL statistics around being Autistic, establishing that suicide is NOT an isolated and uncommon experience.
Amelia explains to us her experience being misdiagnosed Borderline Personality Disorder, Depression and Anxiety and the subsequent issues with self-harm and suicide attempts - Thomas shares his experience with these as well.
They talk about common medications they have used for depression, anxiety and psychosis and how they are often the wrong fit for Autistic people (SSRIs, MAOIs and sedatives), but also cover the ways they think Autistic people differ in their experience with mental health (Alexithymia, executive functioning, repetitive thoughts and MASKING both in therapy and life).
They highlight the many barriers to Autistic people managing and getting effective support for mental health, highlighting lack of specialised psychotherapy, education and research into these areas.
If you have an exciting or interesting story and want to appear on the next podcast, please contact me at: aspergersgrowth@gmail.com
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Autism Suicide Prevention Journal - ko-fi.com/s/04f3a8e22c
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So, I just found out I was autistic last year at 27. And my mom unalived herself in 2017. After realizing about myself, I think she was autistic and had bpd. I understand why she did it now. We can't keep jobs, she struggled with relationships and was always on the edge of poverty. She was beautiful and smart, but people (especially other women) hated her.
😭😳😭😭😭😭
Very sad, I'm sorry 😞
Im sorry about your mom. Really. I find it difficult to be in a job for more than 2yrs. Refused an high salary opportunity because they wanted me at the office 4x week there...i couldnt handle it before covid...and i cant now. So im in the same job for 4yrs but im on a sick leave (again). Its mentally hard to keep going. Also take good care of your physical health. I found out i have an auto immune disease. Just too much pain all over. Take care. I see, i also get a lot of bullying from women at the jobs. Men dont make fun of me.
sorry you had to go thru this. my mother unalived herself in 2012 probably for similar reasons.
I find re-connection to lost loved ones helps a lot, but its so unreliable and difficult.
39 yrs before I realized I am neurodivergent, and I still suicidal because of no employment, I'm tired of masking.
same here. I realized I was autistic at 38 - I’m 39 now and in a sort of shock about it all .. I’ve masked for so long that I have no idea who I am anymore . Oh and yes, the masking is getting harder to do and more draining
Me too 🐈
As an autistic person, my main goal in life is to survive and find thinks to be grateful for everyday.
For me a good day is a day when I do not feel suicidal
Keep that positive mindset!
The pych wards in America are way behind on psychological helping. Having experienced both, even though neither are ideal for autistics, I'd rate the one I was in in the UK FAR SUPERIOR to the one I was in in here in the states. The one in the UK had lots of things to do to fill the day, very friendly staff, and I was allowed to bring in some things from home to help me feel more comfortable. Here they take away everything and it's a cold, sterile environment. Literally cold. As in I constantly walked around with a blanket wrapped around me.
And you color
Then it’s $5k
@@BIBLE-a-s-m-r Yeah, but it's not worth it. Fortunately 2015 is far behind me.
They gave you a blanket?? Lucky you... they even took my shoestrings and bra..
@@kellypawspa That's terrible. They really have a way of making us feel even worse, don't they?
Your comment needs a LOT more air time. Let's start with suicide completion following "help" from "professionals." Psych wards are all about re-victimization, medicating into a coma so staff can sit on their phones all day and collect double digit paychecks for doing nothing. There is no "counseling." Cognitive Behavioral "therapy" is more shamed based, you are a fukc up, everything you do to cope is wrong, bad, and you are stup/id, stup/id, stup/id.
Good to hear this topic. Because I went through almost 29 suicide attempts within 20 years, I'm 33 years old with ASD 🥺 came from toxic parents.
Oh my, I’m so sorry you’ve had these experience… I can’t imagine what that would like for you.
Thank you for sharing, it’s always valuable to hear different voices ❤
went through one attempt, but it didn't work. felt like a loser afterwards because I couldn't even manage to do that. it sucked.
s. ideation was my go to fantasy to cope as a teen when I was feeling overwhelmed or didn't sleep enough for too long. it still sneaks up on me from time to time every few days but I am getting better.
If me and family would've known that there's stuff you can do to manage overstimulation and sensory processing sensitivity, it would have prevented a lot of sadness and trauma for me and my family...especially my small siblings.
@@ThomasHenley putting up with Neurtotypicals make most of us suicidal
Three attempt and toxic parents. Got diagnosed after the third attempt at 57.
Are you ok now?!!
my doctor told me that a lot of psychiatric medication doesn't work as reliable for autistic people as it does for non autistic people.
I am not sure if I can explain it scientifically but it seems to have to do with transmitters in the brain being either extremely sensitive (so the effect can be way to strong) or to insensitive (so it doesn't have much of an effect.).
So knowing that the patient is on the spectrum can have quite an impact on the choice of medication if the psychiatrist/neurologist is knowledgeable about how to work with autistic people.
So there's no hope for us
That tracks with my experience with ADHD stims
That is interesting because I am autistic and mentally ill and I have had major problems with medications. I am usually very sensitive to them and have to take low doses.
Maybe that's why one of the darkest times in my life was when they put me on the generic Prozac fluoxetine, I wanted to jump off the roof of my workplace.
I've unfortunately been in a LOT of different psyc wards in the states and they vary greatly depending on where you go. My worse experience as an adult was going through a low income scheme to get help, the stereotypical just a hospital floor little better than a prison with everything taken away. My best one was a place that focused on mental health and separated patients into based on diagnoses & symptoms & did multiple group therapy sessions. The main purpose of the lock wards here is just to stabilize on medications, then get you out the door. It is also very expensive, and a lot of health insurance plans have different rules where mental health has its own rules and exclusions.
Thank you and Amelia for making space for this conversation!
I went to psychological therapy with a professional that in theory specializes in autistic people, but I ended up teaching them what autism is and what is our experience. The therapy technically finished, but they just gave me tools that are based on gaslighting my autistic experience.
I’m struggling with depression and anxiety constantly as you two discussed, lately is rather worse, but I’m trying to listen about the tools that autistic people talk about and applying them is what has been keeping alive.
Thank you so much for posting this. The importance of talking about this cannot be overstated
Definitely, and of course don’t forget Amelia from Autistic positivity 🎉
What a sweetheart. She has a great understanding of English too which is very impressive to me.
Almost any mental health care is expensive in the US. If you can get Medicaid, which is almost impossible, then you can get pretty cheap care but it doesn't sound good.
I am awaiting autism testing in the next couple of weeks. I am overwhelmed with fighting 2nd level LTD appeal. Also filing for SSDI (also have Fibromyalgia and Rheumatoid Arthritis. I have called so many places and can’t get an Advocate for someone autistic. I self identify. I’ve been thru so many of your experiences especially last year checking myself into a dual diagnosis treatment center for 74 days. I was bullied and ignored when I begged to switch counselors. She disregarded my panic attacks and breakdowns and said it was DBT that was forcing me to get to the root cause…Borderline Personality Disorder. She said “YOU DO NOT HAVE AUTISM, YOURE NOT DYSLEXIC. Daily clinicals were help in an old firehouse and EVERYTHING echoed. I couldnt wear my hearing aids, and am overstimulated with them. Especially when I have to wear glasses…the hearing aids keep my glasses from sitting on my face and drives me insane.
Do you have any suggestions for getting help with my Long Term Disability and SSDI?
Please answer this persons question
@@meko3089I am on disability in the USA. Most people have to try 3 or 4 times before they get on. The first time without a lawyer. After that you have to hire a lawyer who will be paid with part of your back payment. Even with a lawyer there are no guarantees you will be accepted.
Life feels like a real long time when it feels like a game you don't understand or a movie you don't want to watch.
Her meds (clarification):
Venlafaxine is brand name Effexor. It is a serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI).
Quetiapine is brand name Seroquel, which is an antipsychotic.
His med: mirtazepine is Remeron, an antidepressant used for mood, sleep, and increasing appetite (note: does not always increase appetite).
Another note: autistics tend to have genetic differences affecting metabolism and general response to medication. For example, just like these two individuals take a sedating medication, other autistics may need extra stimulating/activating medications, like myself. Also of note, ADHD medication can be good for daytime as well as nighttime use, and can be given to autistics.
Why should I have to be on meds because a family member is abusing me?
@@sr2291 My parents abused me and I am on medicine. Some medication can help if you have been abused (depending on your symptoms). BUT, you should be on medication because it helps you and not just to please your parents.
Because they can’t sort their shit out.
@@sr2291 if you are being abused, please report it to authorities.
@@sr2291 this is something i ask myself daily. it seems like my pain wont ever end.
I got very depressed when I was 13 or 14 and was self harming as well. I was first hospitalized when I was 15. I was misdiagnosed with BPD as well. I attempted 4 times from age 17 to 35.
I was first put on Prozac. I got anorexia from the Prozac. I did much better on Sertraline (Zoloft). Everyone is different when it comes to medications.
I must either be extremely lucky or extremely rare because i am neurodivergent (AuDHD) with an (INTP) personality type. All of those "lables" are professionally attributed. Yet i can still work. I am in full-time work. Even tho it drains and depresses me, i can mostly withstand it. For those who can't work, i feel so deeply for you because i truly understand the terrible isolation.
School was also the most terrible time of my life. Surrounded by "trend following" irrelevant rubbish. Then it was the so-called teachers.
In the USA most hospitals are privet and you must pay part and if you have insurance that will pay part. People have received very high bills. In 1993 I received a bill for $8000 but I did not have to pay because I was not an adult. In 1998 I received a bill for $3000 for 4 days in the hospital. Luckily I did not have to pay because I was put back on disability. Now the bills could be way higher.
The state hospital is government run and free. But usually you only go there if things are bad or you are poor. My parents had no health insurance so I went there as a teenager. Luckily they had a good program when I was there. Their adult unit was awful though.
i’m 99% sure my dad is autistic and my whole life i’ve been paranoid that he would commit suicide. i had a very anxious childhood. this topic makes me so sad
I’ve tried twice. And I have learned a lot since. It’s the not understanding….
We do have public healthcare in the US, known as Medicaid. For people who are permanently disabled and elderly, there is Medicare. Medicare pays well, so services are not negatively affected. Medicaid is not adequately supported and so many people are depending on it due to many socioeconomic and political issues that you likely already have some awareness of. Many Medicaid funded services are lacking in quantity and quantity, because many doctors cannot rationalize going into so much debt for their education to then be paid by Medicaid. My autistic son, for example, needs to receive general anesthesia during his dental appointments. Neither his dentist nor the anesthesiologist will accept medicaid, even though he receives full coverage privately and through medicaid, in his case due to disabled status, not income. His next trip to the dentist will cost thousands of dollars, even though he has full medical and dental coverage. The providers don’t have to accept less money if they don’t want to. I do want to have safe care, so I want a well funded clinic. The same sorts of scenarios play out in every area of medicine, including psychiatry.
Medicare has its share of problems. It only pays a fraction of the total billed and many doctors do not accept their reimbursement amount. It does not cover dental, optical, hearing aids or prescriptions unless you buy additional coverage beyond Part B which pays 80% after you have paid your deductible.
For the majority of people I now it might as well not exist. They'll give any excuse to deny people seeking aid
Medicaid is better insurance than Medicare. Medicaid is not good for dental but Medicare doesn't cover dental at all.
I am on both.
@@Catlily5 sounds like you are one "amazing" Mom! 🥰
@@johedges5946 I am not a mother. Maybe you meant to reply to the OP?
The psychologist at the hospital recommended me to a specialist in adult autism and im still freaking out thinking that he will hate me and misdiagnose 😮 ive been an anxious person for as long as i can remember. Trying to keep it cool. Just calling and making the appointment hurts me inside 😢 it always helps me to see your videos and understand im not alone. Sertraline and escitalopram i also took. Without much of a result...escitalopram made me gain a lot of weight. I left those meds slowly. Now im on pregabalin for sleep and pain management. And diazepam but this one makes me more nervous, my doctor us weaning me out slowly.
Yeah people get locked up in the us and get given a giant bill
Very informative and helpful and healing podcast. I resonated with all of it. Amelia is a great contributor. Thank you for making it.
Really looking forward for this one!!
What frustrates me is knowing that I myself am neurodivergent, but I have no diagnosis even though I tried to get one. What's even worse is living in a neurotypical world, I feel like I'm in a prison. It's an oppressive prison that enslaves people for money and I have always hated it here. If I decide to leave this world, that isn't wrong. It's a preference to not be here that should be respected, not silenced. I would access MAID or Death with Dignity if I could.
Thank you for sharing these important eye-openers. Together we have hope! ♥🙏
Yes, mental institutions in USA bill insurance. Insurance might cover half of you have premium coverage 💸💸💸
what an amazing podcast! than you both so much. xxx
In place of “commit,” one can say attempt or complete.
I think completed is just as difficult or worse to hear somehow.
Very important topic!
Why not say the details, ? It helps to get perspective and the full picture makes it more real and helpful. Prayer and meditation helps, but it can be too difficult to get to do it when longterm sick, abused, sleepless and exhausted in isolation. We hav
e to research and learn to self-help. I agree that others than Drs helped more. In my case, the warm, alive gardener (a 5 week stay too). There was a dr who discovewred I was maltreated and said he wanted to help me. He never did, and my attempts by letters and phone calls were rejected by others. I suspect they put me in some bad light to him. He is the best and only one, and maybe I could have helped him with his Polio. His eyes were ruthlessly seeing and alive, no nonsense and efficient man. He watched me from a distance and got me. I am sad. 25 years ago. I send you compassion and good thoughts on your life journey. The natural habits and remedies are good.
the patients should not be helping us, and we should not be teaching the doctors...says a lot about the incompetence of our psychological healthcare system.
I am sorry for everyone in the comment section. Our society has failed all of us.
Disturbing subjectmatter. But good video
Quetiapine. I used it once and it messed me up.
Is there an antidepressant that suits autists better?
If you can do physical exercise, I found that Qigong helps and also a stretching book called Weight Control Through Yoga by Richard Hittleman. There are Qigong videos on CZcams.
It really depends on the person. You just have to keep trying various ones until you find a good one.
Bupropion takes the edge off, but its no miracle. I have 2 cats that help too.
@@gothboschincarnate3931 My cat is very helpful too!
I'd stay away from the SSRIs if possible. I was on Atavan for years. It's a benzodiazepine, and therefore "out of fashion" because some people make meth out of it. In the US it is prescribed mainly by psychiatrists. I was on a low dose, but felt totally normal and had no side effects. It was less addictive than xanax, and also more effective, because with xanax you would be waiting for your next allowable dose, and that caused anxiety. The worst one I was on was Zoloft--tons of side-effects, including severe depression.
the title didn't seem to get answered. or was it me not wanting all the errs and uuhms and tried to skip?
Don't watch it maybe? Find another video.
To me, the whole podcast felt just like two individuals sharing their experiences on autism, mental health and what suicide would look like among the autistic population (through their own lived experience).
The "foreigner" you mentioned is Polish and doesn't come from an English speaking background, and she's a teenager for goodness sake. She's probably had little to no experience being interviewed.
In my experience, I’ve found neurotypical people have no empathy for people on the spectrum and would prefer if we didn’t exist. Sorry I’m such a downer.
this is not nice to listen to, why not redo it without all the staccatos and eeers, uhms? Or edit? When sick, tired under the ice with little functioning-time one needs good speech, uplifting, good energy. You are both nice, it's not that, but tyhe presentation is important. Just saying. Maybe it's hard to do and you only had a foreigner. I wish her and you all the best.