Author: Aimee Grant, Associate Professor in Public Health and Wellcome Trust Career Development Fellow, Swansea University

ViDI Studio/Shutterstock When people talk about autism, they often think about a child who is different and may be distressed by their surroundings. Or if the conversation moves beyond childhood, the focus might be about an autistic adult with analytical superpowers, such as The Good Doctor or Patience, who still has difficulty with their surroundings […]

The term “neurodiversity” is still relatively new. Even now, there’s no firm agreement among experts about what it should include. Does it refer only to neurodevelopmental differences such as autism, ADHD and dyslexia? Or should it stretch further, to include mental health conditions too? Until recently, no one had asked neurodivergent people themselves what they […]

Around a third of autistic people – children and adults alike – are unable to share what they want using speech. You may have heard the term “non-verbal” to describe them, but that’s nearly always inaccurate. Many people without reliable speech still make noises which those close to them can interpret. Others use a small […]

The phrases “autism spectrum” or “on the spectrum” have become part of everyday language. They are often used as different ways of referring to someone who is “neurodivergent”. The term was coined in the 1980s by psychiatrist Dr Lorna Wing, whose work transformed how autism was understood in the UK. At the time, her “autism […]