Autism is not a mental health condition but it does predispose you to poor mental health. There are many reasons for this, not least living in a world not set up for neurodivergent individuals, although communication differences, masking and negative experiences such as bullying can also have an impact.

Sainsbury (2000) states: “…the propensity for anxiety is exacerbated by living in a world that is
often terrifyingly chaotic and unpredictable”.

The most common diagnoses for autistic people is anxiety and depression, but some people can also be diagnosed with co-existing conditions such as sleep disorders, obsessive- compulsive disorders, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia / psychosis.

What can help?

Therapies and Counselling

Therapies and counselling may be able to help but often therapies need to be adapted to work better for neurodivergent people. This document from the National Autistic Society sets out good practice for professionals delivering talking therapies to autistic people.

The document Psychological Therapy for Autistic Adults- A Curious Approach to Making Adaptions, gives clear guidance to mental health professionals on how to adapt therapy to work better for autistic people. To see the document click here. Stark, E., Ali, D., Ayre, A., Scheider, N., Parveen, S., Marais, K., Holmes, N., Pender, R. (2021). Psychological Therapy for Autistic Adults (1st digital ed.). Authentistic Research Collective. Retrieved from https://www.authentistic.uk/

Make sure you let the service know you are autistic before your appointment and ask for reasonable_adjustments to ensure you feel comfortable and are able to engage fully.

Cheshire Autism Practical Support offer adapted CBT. To find out more click here.

NHS Talking Therapies offer a range of evidence-based talking therapies and which therapy you are offered depends on which one has been shown to be most helpful for your symptoms. To find out more or refer yourself in to this service, click here. 

Healthbox offer counselling via GP referrals. The adult counselling service offers one to one counselling which can help people learn tools and coping mechanisms, build strategies and have a safe space to reflect and explore their challenges. To find out more click here.

The Hub of Hope is the UK’s leading mental health support database. It is provided by national mental health charity, Chasing the Stigma, and brings local, national, peer, community, charity, private and NHS mental health support and services together in one place for the first time. To find help in your area click here.

Resources For Self Help

The National Autistic Society has information and resources about a variety of mental health conditions and how they are related to autism. To find out more click here.

Knowing what ‘normal’ looks like for you can help you and others around you recognise when your mental health changes. Use this toolkit from Ambitious About Autism to note down things like things how much sleep you get, how much time you spend on your interests and hobbies and how this makes you feel, so that if this changes, it’s easier to explain to people who may not understand your autism that something feels different.

Get Self Help (Get.gg) have some great self help resources on their website for various different mental health and co-existing conditions including GAD, PTSD, and OCD along with other things like unhelpful thinking habits, and distinguishing fact from opinion.

Neurodivergent Insights is a great resource from Dr Neff, a late-diagnosed autistic/ADHD psychologist who talks about all things mental health, neurodiversity and wellness including how autism and trauma are related, and the links between autism and bipolar.

We recommend the book Avoiding Anxiety in Autistic Adults: A Guide for Autistic Wellbeing by Dr Luke Beardon. “Dr Luke Beardon has put together an optimistic, upbeat and readable guide that will be essential reading not just for any autistic adult, but for anyone who loves, lives with or works with an autistic person. Emphasising that autism is not behaviour, but at the same time acknowledging that there are risks of increased anxiety specific to autism, this practical book gives clear strategies that the autistic person can adopt to minimise their anxiety and live comfortably in a world full of what may seem to be noise and chaos.”