02/04/2026
Today is World Autism day and this is my youngest who got his Autism diagnosis last week after 5 years of waiting.
His reaction to being diagnosed was relief. Relief that he had a reason for being and feeling they way he does.
But it's more than that.
He has been so much happier since. He is lazer focused on getting good grades in his GCSEs next year, and then finding an apprenticeship on the railway. It's the one way he fits into the ASD trope - he is a rail nerd (his words not mine!)
If you met him, you wouldn't assume he is autistic, he is chatty, seems confident and capable.. it's behind the mask his autism shows up as perfectionism, anxiety and over thinking. He has the tools to help manage this, and make them skills.
Being on this journey with him has been eye opening. Learning to parent him carefully so he feels supported was priority, but also discovering the things he masks, are the things I mask too, was humbling.
So big up to all creatively, differently wired brains today. If we were all the same, wouldn't life be dull?
