As I have now started putting my ramblings into an audio podcast form, I thought I would try putting up a transcript of the podcast for easy reference.  This podcast, I talk about anxiety, depression and suicide, as it’s a very important subject.

Anxiety and Depression
These are both problems that affect a large percentage of the U.K. population.  It’s estimated that 20% of people will experience some form of depression at one point or another.  Often, people who suffer from depression have difficulty in sharing their thoughts and feelings, and this can be much harder for people like me, on the autism spectrum, as we can have difficulty in labelling, understanding and communicating our feelings.

Anxiety disorders
This is a particularly common theme among people on the autism spectrum.  It’s believed that 40% of autistic people suffer or have suffered from at least one form of anxiety disorder or another.

For me, things that a neurotypical person might take for granted can be a problem: answering a phone-call, or going to places like the supermarket and doctors, etc, can fill a person with autism with an almost crippling feeling of anxiety.

Suicide
This is a very dark subject and one that we really need to start discussing, rather than brushing it under the carpet and pretending it doesn’t happen. The fact is that suicide is the most common cause of death for men aged between 20-49.  This is all males, not just autistic males, but in newly diagnosed autistic adults, over 60% reporting contemplating taking their own life.