By Jack Pemment There are two things that can severely determine a person’s social fate: A criminal verdict and a mental health diagnosis. Regardless of the true events behind the criminal verdict, the return of guilty by a judge will sway most public opinion in a direction where the recent defendan…

By S. Scott Sanderson Sometimes I feel A bubbling coming up Inside me It cannot be contained When I was younger, I used to give in I would dance, a happy dance Limbs flailing wildly Dancing back and forth And in circles Sometimes, I’d clap Into the air No reason needed Just an unbridled enthusiasm O…

By Aaron Bouma As an autistic that studies conflicts around the world I have been monitoring the situation in Ukraine for a long time. Of course I knew it was coming but February 24, 2022, was anything but a normal night. When missile strikes and armoured units started coming across the Ukrainian bo…

The rate of suicide among autistic people is three times higher than the typical population. Autistic females as well as people with additional psychiatric conditions are disproportionately affected. One potential reason for this higher risk may be that autistic females are typically diagnosed and …

“The question is not what you look at but what you see’’ Henry David Thoreau By Laura Brind Current data tells us that approximately 4 times as many boys are diagnosed with autism than girls. In respect of the International Women’s Day theme ‘choose to challenge’ this article explores how th…

By Joel Ashton-Fogle Duel Diagnosis No, this is not a miss-spelling! For every day is a battle; a combat between symptoms, treatments for them, side-effects of the treatments and subsequent treatments to alleviate the side-effects, leading to more side-effects and more treatments. And so it goes o…

May is Mental Health Awareness Month By Margaux WoskIt’s no secret: mental illness is still stigmatized. The discrimination is emotionally overwhelming. In my case, it piles on top of me like a ton of bricks I can’t carry. Being an Autistic person, I already struggle with understanding social …

Practicing art helps me to come out of emotional pain of my past and reduces everyday stress. By Linish Balan Until the age of 28 I didn’t even draw a single flower properly. In childhood I never tried to draw anything by myself though I had a great fascination for visuals. In school days drawing c…

by W.E.Powers What is it? I see it in the eyes of those battling mental health issues. I see it as a wet, dim band of light cutting through the blues, browns, and greens of those impacted by autism. Sometimes it reflects a struggle against depression or PTSD. It is often a scoreboard worn on the fac…

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. The Art of Autism is focusing on blogs of those who have a dual-diagnosis. By Jacqueline Lee At the beginning of January, I started two government internships concurrently. The first internship was a paid one which essentially laid me off once they were done – w…

May is Mental Health Month. The three largest mental health facilities in the United States are jails. By Debra Muzikar Last night Lesley Stahl on 60 Minutes profiled Tom Dart, The Sheriff of Cook County and the person who oversees the largest mental health facility in the United States – Cook…

I often imagine words in fancy fonts swirling out of my mouth only to fall on the floor unheard. So many misconceptions about selective mutism exist. By Kimberly Gerry-Tucker Like many people who have been diagnosed autistic (in my case Aspergers), I have an overlapping condition: Selective Mutism. …

May is Mental Health Month. The Art of Autism throughout May would like to focus on stories about those with dual diagnoses. By Jeanette Purkis I have a diagnosis of an Autism Spectrum Condition and atypical schizophrenia. In my 42 years I have accessed a large number of publicly and privately funde…

“I’ve got a cure for mental health… spank your children more,” Stephen Bannon Yesterday as I watched the Conservative Political Action Conference a key presidential advisor Stephen Bannon put forward his world view which included something he called the “Deconstruction of the Administrativ…