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“People with autism are more than just a diagnosis. They are unique individuals with diverse personalities.”

Social Anxiety Kept Me From Meeting George Michael

In 1986, twenty-two years before my autism diagnosis, I had a chance to meet one of my musical heroes, George Michael. I hadn’t met George before, and the prospect of spending hours with him in the close confines of a recording studio thrilled and terrified me in equal measures. At around 10 pm that Friday evening, I was told that George was on his way to the studio and that I should make my way over. Immediately, the panic set in. My stomach began to churn with anxiety, and the excuses began as to why I couldn’t attend the session. Read More

Psilocybin: the magical new psychiatric drug for depression?

autism, depression, psilocybin

Psilocibyn: The Magic New Treatment For Depression. In 2020, I took part in a psilocybin trial. Psilocybin is the psychedelic ingredient found in magic mushrooms. The trial was carried out at a London hospital and designed to study the potential benefits of psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression—a condition I have struggled with for fifty-five years. The program consisted of five therapy sessions, a single dosing day, then six weeks of integration Read More

TIMOTHY BLOSSOM – OFFICIALLY BRILLIANT!

TIMOTHY BLOSSOM

Timothy Blossom sees the world differently to other people.
Barbara, Timothy’s mother, says this is due to his ‘special wiring’, a concept he struggles to understand – as does Bert Blossom, probably the grumpiest dad in East Winslow.

Timothy is twelve years, three months and five days old. He also happens to be the brainiest kid at Highcrest Manor School, but only when it comes to science. When it comes to tying his shoelaces, well… that’s another matter.

‘Officially Brilliant’ is about the year Timothy finds out he has Autism Spectrum Disorder. Or the ‘A-word’ as he calls it. It’s also about his blossoming friendship with, of all people, Adrian Wilkes; the single most annoying excuse for a human on the entire planet.

How will Timothy cope with the complexities of making friends and becoming a teenager?
Find out in ‘Timothy Blossom – Officially Brilliant.’ Read More

Clinical Depression – How Meditation Saved My Life

MEDITATION AND AUTISM

In February 2019, my world crashed into a life-shattering wall of all-consuming clinical depression. Following 6 months of increasingly poor mental health, I could go no further in any direction. I feared that I had plunged so deep into the well of despair and hopelessness that perhaps life was simply to painful to carry on. Read More

Autism and the City

AUTISM IN THE CITY

Autism In The City Autism and the City It could be the autism talking, but I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m just not cut out for city life. Or, perhaps I should change that to: I would love city life if it wasn’t for all the people, the noise, the traffic, the dirt, the concrete, the pollution, the distinct lack of greenery, but mostly it’s the people–there are just Read More

Autism Meets OCD

AUTISM OCD

OCD-ACTION Annual Facilitator Day – Birmingham 2017 On November 4th, OCD ACTION kindly invited me to speak about autism at their annual facilitator’s event in Birmingham, UK. This is due to the rise in people with OCD asking them for advice who are also on the autistic spectrum. I spoke for around an hour to groups of OCD support groups from around the country, that are brought together each year Read More

Lets Talk About Stereotypes

AUTISM STEREOTYPICAL BELIEFS

Lets Talk About Autism Stereotypes CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO Once I overheard a doctor say; ”Oh, so he’s on the autistic spectrum… they are very high achievers, you know.” Now there’s a doctor who needs to check her facts. So lets bust some other myths about autism. STEREOTYPE NUMBER ONE Yes, I have a clinical diagnosis of high-functioning autism. but does this mean I have a passion for Read More