Hey y’all! This October I have decided to run 100 miles for the National Autistic Society.

Now, if you have any spare pennies to contribute - please do! But if you don’t, please visit the National Autistic Society’s website and have a read. Knowledge is power, and knowing has the power to change people’s lives 💖

A few months ago I was officially diagnosed as Autistic. This is a diagnosis I should’ve had as a child. However, due to the vast differences in the way autistic women present and a serious lack of evidential research on Autism in women and girls in the late 90s/early 2000s - I didn’t get this diagnosis. I spent my childhood growing up knowing I was different. I spent my adolescence hiding who I was. I spent my adulthood struggling to cope with the expectations of being an “functioning” adult. I got diagnosed with depression, anxiety, panic disorder. I got assessed for bi-polar, OCD and cPTSD. I was medicated, I was taken off medication, I was given therapy. But nothing ever got better, nothing ever fit. I never got an answer.

When I was 25 I met a woman my age diagnosed with Autism in adulthood. She changed my life, I felt recognised, I felt like I fit in. And after that I started my long wait to be diagnosed. From this point, I truly started my journey of understanding who I am. All I can say is I have a beautiful community of Neurodivergent friends, I’m no longer taking any medications and I am slowly building a life that fits my needs.

✨ Thank you for reading my story. ✨