Mental wellbeing for Autistic young adults
Content warning: This video explores the themes of suicide and mental illness, which some viewers may find distressing.
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Establishing an early transcription skills program for Autistic children…
Children with developmental disabilities may experience difficulties in the early stages of learning to write, with some failing to become fluent writers over the longer term. In this presentation, Dr Ben Bailey will discuss recent findings on evidence-based writing instruction for Autistic children focusing on early spelling, handwriting and typing skills (transcription). The presentation will also introduce a new research project which aims to develop an early transcription skills program specifically for Autistic children (Start Write) in collaboration with Dr Karen Ray and members of the Autistic community, including Autistic adolescents, parents of Autistic children, educators and allied health professionals.
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Autism and self harm: Developing a better assessment tool
This talk contains content about self harm.
Victoria Newell will :
- review the prevalence of suicidality in Autistic people and self-harm as a risk factor
- review existing self-harm assessment tools in Autistic and general population adults
- discuss preliminary findings to develop a self-harm assessment tool with and for Autistic adults using focus groups and cognitive interviews
- discuss what’s next – exploring measurement properties using an online survey.
Finding him among the living
Content warning: The following seminar contains content about suicide.
Any mother would die for their child, but how do you live for them?
Dr Jessica Revill is a psychologist and parent survivor to the loss of her Autistic son Gregory. She wrote the memoir of his death “Find him Among the Living” in 2020. In her book, her investigations into the mental health system, suicide and Autism revealed not a ‘broken system’ but an absent one. Coming from the perspective of both lived experience and research raises questions about the following:
- Is the health care’s separation of health from mental health helping or hindering suicide prevention?
- Doctor education and disability.
- Public health’s approach to prevention comparing preventing road deaths versus suicide deaths.
- A mental health curriculum in schools. What would that look like?
- How does de-institutionalization help or hinder the mental health of people with disabilities and mental illness?
- Non-clinical support systems.
- The emergency room.
Understanding factors influencing inclusion and participation in community gym…
Georgia McKenzie will discuss the findings of her PhD research, which explored inclusion and participation in community gym settings for adults with cerebral palsy. Georgia will present the findings from a series of studies that have identified and examined key relationships between young adults with cerebral palsy and the environments around them that are influencing their participation in community gyms. Georgia will conclude the seminar with a discussion on the implications of the findings, and recommendations for change across the rehabilitation and recreation sectors.
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Facing Stress: Coping Strategies, Resilience and Mental Health Outcomes…
Coping Strategies, Resilience and Mental Health Outcomes in Autistic Adults
There is consensus surrounding the poor mental health outcomes experienced by many in the Autistic adult population. While the non-autistic literature suggests that high stress represents a key contributor to poor mental health and well-being, individual resources such as coping and resilience have the potential to mitigate the negative effects of stress, accounting for individual differences across mental health outcomes. Despite emerging research showing high stress in Autistic adults, investigations of coping and resilience in this population remain limited.
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Is a change in diet effective for Autistic children?
Complementary and alternative treatments such as the Gluten and Casein-Free Diet (GFCF), while not recommended in national and international guidelines on autism intervention, are extremely popular among families of Autistic children, with a reported use between 52% and 95%.
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How do I help my teenage son with Autism…
How do I help my teenage son with Autism to socialise?
Often with Autism, socialising for the sake of socialising seems pointless, and there needs to be a purpose for interaction with other people. So carrying out a task in the company of other people is one way of not becoming isolated. This might include a hobby club, a sporting activity, an environmental task in the community, learning a new skill, teaching or mentoring other students or getting a part-time job.
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Can the use of ICT support the learning of…
There are still very few studies examining the use of iPads in an attempt to support the learning of children on the Autism spectrum.
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What is the best evidence-based support for Autistic children…
A very good starting point for comparing different supports is the Raising Children Network’s ‘Parent Guide to Therapies‘ which provides a description of the most commonly used supports in Australia, as well as a rating for research evidence, time commitment required, and cost. Research Autism, based in the UK, provides a similar service and is also well worth a look.
Even when we consider only those interventions for which there is good research evidence, we find that there is currently no single best support program which works equally well for all Autistic children. This is no doubt due in large part to the fact that the individual skills and needs of each child, and his or her family, are unique.
Dr David Trembath
Published July 2019
Read more “What is the best evidence-based support for Autistic children in relation to communication skills?”