Final Article

Autism is a lifelong neurodevelopmental disability that affects communication skills, sensory processing, social interaction and developing and sustaining relationships. Although this is the main basis of the disability, there are many more traits and ways different individuals are affected by the disability. 

Being an autistic female myself, I have first-hand experience on these issues and wonder why females are diagnosed less and what can be done about it. From reading nursery and primary school reports, some of the things mentioned are things that I can now recognise as autistic traits that could have been noticed if professionals were properly informed. Instead, it was not until I reached crisis aged thirteen that I was referred to CAMHS (child and adolescent mental health services) and treated mainly for anxiety and depression. It wasn’t until I mentioned to them that I thought I could be autistic that I was put on a waiting list for an assessment which took two years of waiting and being treated for anxiety and being given methods that are proven to be unhelpful to autistic people such as CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) that I finally received my autism diagnosis at 16 after years of struggling with my mental health, self-harm and suicidality which I think could have been avoided or lessened if my traits were picked up on earlier, I was diagnosed earlier and able to access help and support earlier.  

I am going to talk about a lot of these things in more detail throughout this article and consider and speak about the experiences of others. 

For a long time, it has been wrongly assumed by many medical professionals in the past that autism only or mainly affected young boys. One of the main reasons this has been assumed is due to the diagnostic criteria and overwhelming research being carried out on males compared to females. Recent studies suggest that the traits that males display compared to the traits that females display differ quite widely so by males being extensively researched, their traits have been recognised while it was assumed females present the same, so no research was done on any differences in gender presentation and female traits are not as recognised or widely known so why is it that males are diagnosed more than females? 

A lot of female autistic people are more likely to do something called masking. This is where the autistic person hides or ‘masks’ their autistic traits and copies others around them to blend in and not be seen as different. This can be seen in autistic males but is mostly seen in autistic females which is why they fly under the radar and their traits are missed. While in primary school, many autistic girls find it easier to mask their traits as there is a lot less social demand and it can be quite easy to blend in with friends, but this mask breaks down when they reach secondary school. Research has found that in autistic females, over 55% were diagnosed after eleven years old, which is the age you enter secondary school while 71% considered themself to mask their traits fully and 25% considered themself to mask their traits in public but less around family and friends. This research shows autistic females are diagnosed later in life than autistic males who are usually diagnosed when they are ages five to eight in primary school. This earlier recognition of males allows them to access support and help earlier in life and allows this support to be more consistent and accepted as they were diagnosed when they were younger.  

The transition to secondary school increases the amount of pressure on autistic females and forces them to mask more due to the increase in social demand and need to fit in which then eventually causes them to go into crisis with a lot of autistic females self-harming or becoming suicidal. I also think the hormonal changes of becoming a teenager and growing into an adult causes autistic females to struggle around this age as their body is changing and everything becomes unexpected. As these autistic females begin to struggle in secondary school, they can engage in harmful behaviours such as self-harm, drinking, drugs, suicidal tendencies, eating restrictions and school avoidance which then can allow them to access mental health professionals. Although medical professionals are said to be trained on the traits and signs of autism, this is not the case in many autistic female's experiences.  

Again, based on research, over 50% of autistic females feel they have been mistreated or misdiagnosed by medical professionals when trying to access help. The most common diagnosis's given to autistic females either before or with their autism diagnosis is anxiety, depression, OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder), an eating disorder and BPD (borderline personality disorder). Although a lot of these diagnosis’s are co-morbid with autism, they were given in place of an autism diagnosis and were given when autism was not even considered as an option. This can be related to gender as males presenting these traits would likely have autism considered from the beginning of accessing medical professionals while as the traits differ from males to females, autistic females are just pushed off as being anxious and depressed. Even then, if the medical professionals finally consider autism, the waiting list for an assessment can take years meaning the autistic female gets no or little support while still struggling immensely. Not only that, 33% of people waited over a year for an autism assessment while 30% are still undiagnosed or on a waiting list. 

Moreover, 75% of autistic females feel their traits present differently to autistic females and over 80% feel their traits could have been noticed and questioned earlier if people were properly informed of the difference in traits between males and females. I think if teachers, other professionals and even parents were more informed on autistic traits in females compared to males, a lot of females would be diagnosed earlier and could access support from a young age meaning they don’t reach this breaking point and are less likely to engage in harmful behaviours as they are supported and believed. From speaking to the SENDCO’s (special educational needs and disabilities coordinator), Heidi Sellars and Natalie Young, at UTC Sheffield they have agreed with my research and stated when asked ‘Do you think it is harder to recognise autism in females than in males? If so, why? Stated that “I definitely think it is harder to recognise in females because I think females can recognise what they need to do in order to fit into society so therefore they mask and can follow what they think the social norms are” and when asked ‘What do you think needs to change for autism in females to be more recognised and understood? Stated that “I think the schools need to be more aware of the smaller things so home I think that because it's a safe space you'll see a lot more traits maybe meltdowns because they hold it together at school because they know what they should be doing. I think that people need to be aware as well that conflict of this is how I am, but this is how I must act and that doesn't match, and I think that needs to be recognised and schools need to be a safer place for all students to be themselves.” 

Overall, more research into autism in females compared to males needs to be done as it is unfair to allow these people struggle and have to reach crisis in order to access help.

If you need support or want to read more about this topic, see the links below.

- For immediate help call 999

- Samaritans https://www.samaritans.org/ or call 116 123

- Childline https://www.childline.org.uk/ or call 0800 1111

- Kooth https://kooth.com/

- Young Minds https://www.youngminds.org.uk/

- National Autistic Society https://www.autism.org.uk/

- Autistic Girls Network https://autisticgirlsnetwork.org/

LO4 - Regulation

IPSO is the regulator for online and printed newspapers. They have a code of practice that journalists must follow in order to have their work published on these newspapers or online news articles.

I have followed this code of practice in my article and justified how I have followed the clauses relevant to my article.

Clause 1 - Accuracy

'The Press must take care not to publish inaccurate, misleading or distorted information or images, including headlines not supported by the text.'

I have ensured I have followed this clause by ensuring all of the information I have gathered and used in my article is factual to the best of my knowledge and that it is information I have found myself or from trusted sources such as an article from The National Autistic Society, The Guardian and Very Well Health. I believe these to be accurate due to the trustworthy and reliable sources which I have further justified on my Justifying Resources post.

Clause 2 - Privacy

'Editors will be expected to justify intrusions into any individual's private life without consent.'

I have ensured I have followed this clause by ensuring the information I have gathered from my Google Form is private and anonymous and that I have gained consent from Natalie Young to use her name and interview in my article. I have not used any identifiable information without consent in my article.

Clause 3 - Harassment

'Journalists must not engage in intimidation, harassment or persistent pursuit.'

I have ensured I have followed this clause by ensuring all of the information I have gathered was voluntary and I haven't pressured anyone into completing my Google Form.

Clause 5 - Reporting Suicide 

'When reporting suicide, to prevent simulative acts care should be taken to avoid excessive detail of the method used, while taking into account the media's right to report legal proceedings.'

I have ensured I have followed this clause by ensuring my use of self-harm and suicide in my article are brief and don't go into detail.

Clause 12 - Discrimination

'Details of an individual's race, colour, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical or mental illness or disability must be avoided unless genuinely relevant to the story.'

I have ensured I have followed this clause by only mentioning gender and disability in my article as these are relevant to my article subject. Due to the nature of my article, I have ensured I have spoken from my own point of view and have been as truthful as possible. The research was based off of people who answered that do have or may have autism.

Clause 15 - Confidential Sources

'Journalists have a moral obligation to protect confidential sources of information.'

I have ensured I have followed this clause by ensuring the people who filled in my Google Form are anonymous and gaining consent from my interviewee. I have only asked people to take part in my Google Form and interview who have been willing to take part and have chosen to.

LO4 - Explain Structure

When addressing my audience in my article, I have used a formal teacher to student form of address as I am teaching the audience about something and want my article to appear formal and professional. This can be seen in quotes such as 'This is where the autistic person hides or ‘masks’ their autistic traits and copies others around them in order to blend in and not be seen as different.' and 'Based on my research, over 50% of autistic females feel they have been mistreated or misdiagnosed by medical professionals when trying to access help.' as I am telling the audience something and have used words that ensure the audience my information is reliable and factual.

I have used elaborated code throughout my article to again keep it formal and professional for the audience. This can be seen in quotes such as 'no research was done on any differences in gender presentation and female traits are not as recognised or widely known.' and 'This earlier recognition of males allows them to access support and help earlier in life and allows this support to be more consistent and accepted as they were diagnosed when they were younger.' as I want to keep my article professional and help the audience see the information as factual and correct.

By being formal and using elaborated code throughout my article, it helps the audience understand and take in the information as it sounds professional and like information they can trust. I have done this because I want them to be able to understand the information easily and apply it or use it in their own lives as it may help others.

In my article, I have included some information about my own experience being an autistic female and being diagnosed later in life. I have done this in order to create more engagement with my audience and make them feel less alone and able to relate to my experiences which will be especially good for the teenage audience who may be struggling with their own identity and experience.

LO4 - Sub-Editing

From feedback I have recived on my article, here is my sub-edited version. My sub-editing includes grammar and spelling checks and corrections and I have been asked to add a small section at the bottom containing help lines and services for readers.

Autism is a lifelong neurodevelopmental disability that affects communication skills, sensory processing, social interaction and developing and sustaining relationships. Although this is the main basis of the disability, there are many more traits and ways different individuals are affected by the disability. 

Being an autistic female myself, I have first-hand experience on these issues and wonder why females are diagnosed less and what can be done about it. From reading nursery and primary school reports, some of the things mentioned are things that I can now recognise as autistic traits that could have been noticed if professionals were properly informed. Instead, it was not until I reached crisis aged 13-14 [EBE1] that I was referred to CAMHS (child and adolescent mental health services) and treated mainly for anxiety and depression. It wasn’t until I mentioned to them that I thought I could be autistic that I was put on a waiting list for an assessment which took 2 [EBE2] years of waiting and being treated for anxiety and being given methods that are proven to be unhelpful to autistic people such as CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) that I finally received my autism diagnosis at 16 after years of struggling with my mental health, self-harm and suicidality which I think could have been avoided or lessened if my traits were picked up on earlier, I was diagnosed earlier and able to access help and support earlier.  

I am going to talk about a lot of these things in more detail throughout this article and consider and speak about the experiences of others. 

For a long time, it has been wrongly assumed by many medical professionals in the past that autism only or mainly affected young boys. One of the main reasons this has been assumed is due to the diagnostic criteria and overwhelming research being carried out on males compared to females. Recent studies suggest that the traits that males display compared to the traits that females display differ quite widely so by males being extensively researched, their traits have been recognised while it was assumed females present the same, so no research was done on any differences in gender presentation and female traits are not as recognised or widely known so why is it that males are diagnosed more than females? 

A lot of female autistic people are more likely to do something called masking. This is where the autistic person hides or ‘masks’ their autistic traits and copies others around them to blend in and not be seen as different. This can be seen in autistic males but is mostly seen in autistic females which is why they fly under the radar and their traits are missed. While in primary school, many autistic girls find it easier to mask their traits as there is a lot less social demand and it can be quite easy to blend in with friends, but this mask breaks down when they reach secondary school. Research has found that in autistic females, over 55% were diagnosed after 11 [EBE3] years old, which is the age you enter secondary school while 71% considered themself to mask their traits fully and 25% considered themself to mask their traits in public but less around family and friends. This research shows autistic females are diagnosed later in life than autistic males who are usually diagnosed when they are ages 5-8 [EBE4] in primary school. This earlier recognition of males allows them to access support and help earlier in life and allows this support to be more consistent and accepted as they were diagnosed when they were younger.  

The transition to secondary school increases the amount of pressure on autistic females and forces them to mask more due to the increase in social demand and need to fit in which then eventually causes them to go into crisis with a lot of autistic females self-harming or becoming suicidal. I also think the hormonal changes of becoming a teenager and growing into an adult causes autistic females to struggle around this age as their body is changing and everything becomes unexpected. As these autistic females begin to struggle in secondary school, they can engage in harmful behaviours such as self-harm, drinking, drugs, suicidal tendencies, eating restrictions and school avoidance which then can allow them to access mental health professionals. Although medical professionals are said to be trained on the traits and signs of autism, this is not the case in many autistic female's experiences.  

Again, based on research, over 50% of autistic females feel they have been mistreated or misdiagnosed by medical professionals when trying to access help. The most common diagnosis's given to autistic females either before or with their autism diagnosis is anxiety, depression, OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder), an eating disorder and BPD (borderline personality disorder). Although a lot of these diagnosis’s are co-morbid with autism, they were given in place of an autism diagnosis and were given when autism was not even considered as an option. This can be related to gender as males presenting these traits would likely have autism considered from the beginning of accessing medical professionals while as the traits differ from males to females, autistic females are just pushed off as being anxious and depressed. Even then, if the medical professionals finally consider autism, the waiting list for an assessment can take years meaning the autistic female gets no or little support while still struggling immensely. Not only that, 33% of people waited over a year for an autism assessment while 30% are still undiagnosed or on a waiting list. 

Moreover, 75% of autistic females feel their traits present differently to autistic females and over 80% feel their traits could have been noticed and questioned earlier if people were properly informed of the difference in traits between males and females. I think if teachers, other professionals and even parents were more informed on autistic traits in females compared to males, a lot of females would be diagnosed earlier and could access support from a young age meaning they don’t reach this breaking point and are less likely to engage in harmful behaviours as they are supported and believed. From speaking to the SENDCO’s (special educational needs and disabilities coordinator), Heidi Sellars and Natalie Young, at UTC Sheffield they have agreed with my research and stated when asked ‘Do you think it is harder to recognise autism in females than in males? If so, why? Stated that “I definitely think it is harder to recognise in females because I think females can recognise what they need to do in order to fit into society so therefore they mask and can follow what they think the social norms are” and when asked ‘What do you think needs to change in order for [EBE5] autism in females to be more recognised and understood? Stated that “I think the schools need to be more aware of the smaller things so home I think that because it's a safe space you'll see a lot more traits maybe meltdowns because they hold it together at school because they know what they should be doing. I think that people need to be aware as well that conflict of this is how I am, but this is how I have to [EBE6] act and that doesn't match, and I think that needs to be recognised and schools need to be a safer place for all students to be themselves.” 

Overall, more research into autism in females compared to males needs to be done as it is unfair to allow these people struggle and have to reach crisis in order to access help. [EBE7] 

 

Subediting comments 

[EBE 1- EBE 4] Rather than putting the number for the age put ‘eleven years old’ ‘fifteen years old’  

[EBE5] Change to ‘for’ 

[EBE6] Change to ‘must’  

[EBE7] To round off the article, as it is aimed at teenagers’ have a sentence at the end that gives contact details for charities/organisations that teens can contact for support