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

Looking for Normal – An Autistic Boy Who Beat The Odds.

Looking For Normal is the memoir of author,
musician and filmmaker, Steve Slavin.

His obsession with music, as a child, led to a long career in the creative arts; albeit one plagued by clinical depression and the symptoms of a condition he was unaware of until 2008.

In recounting the 48 years that led to his autism diagnosis, this darkly humorous memoir will inform and inspire anyone with an interest in mental health and autism. But more than this, it is the story of an “emotionally disturbed child, without a future” who, against the backdrop of low expectation, became an ambitious, independent adult, with a wife, daughters, and a career stifled by the long shadow of his childhood dysfunction. Read More

TIMOTHY BLOSSOM – OFFICIALLY BRILLIANT!

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

The Spectrum Of Autism

‘People with autism person are more than just a diagnosis described in a medical text book. We are unique individuals with diverse personalities’

Diagnosed with high functioning autism

In 2008, I was diagnosed with high functioning autism. I’d had very little knowledge of autism before this diagnosis. I was being assessed by a clinical psychologist to see if I was suitable for cognitive behavioural therapy for my problems with anxiety. During the session she told me that she thought I was probably on the autistic spectrum and asked me if I would like to have a diagnosis. This came Read More