One Year of Girl Unmasked
It is the 28th March 2025 - one whole year since the publication of Girl Unmasked: How Uncovering My Autism Saved My Life. One year ago today, at my book launch, I stood at the front of a room packed with almost everyone I loved and cried for a solid twenty minutes....
Autism, ADHD and Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD)
I recently worked with the National Centre For Autism and Mental Health (NCAMH) to record some podcasts as part of course content for their diploma. One of these was on autism and Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD)…
There is a Life After Rock Bottom
There is a life AFTER rock bottom. I wish I could have known that there was a life waiting for me away from feeling ‘stuck’ in the system. Away from assumptions. Away from ‘she has EUPD’ and ‘at risk of repeated admissions’ and away from…
Neurodiversity Celebration Week
It’s Neurodiversity Celebration Week - a week for neurodivergent people to celebrate their neurodivergence (if they want to), to challenge stereotypes and misconceptions and to advocate for more inclusive and supportive environments where everybody can flourish…
International Women’s Day 2025: The Fight For Neurodivergent Women and Girls
It’s International Women’s Day 2025 and gender inequality and health inequalities still have major consequences for neurodivergent women and girls. Whilst there have been changes and improvements (for example, the narrowing…
School-Based Anxiety and Attendance
Sometimes it feels like the only thing that matters to politicians and education leaders is school attendance. And when they declare that the best place for children to be is in school, it makes me feel like my school experience doesn’t matter, and makes me feel angry for all the children…
Authentically Emily Update - Book Guide, Girl Unmasked Paperback, Giveaway and Talks
Hello and happy Monday!
This is a bit of a rambly post with a few updates rather than my usual blog post.
Autism and ADHD Book Guide
ARFID is Not ‘Fussy Eating’: The Truth About Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder
Sky News published an article yesterday titled ‘ARFID: The little-known eating disorder that is on the rise’ and the responses on social media highlight the extent of stigma and misunderstanding surrounding this condition…
Managing a Trip to Thailand as an Autistic Person
I absolutely love seeing and exploring new places, but when my boyfriend suggested that we plan a trip to Thailand, I was initially hesitant. Being autistic means that some things can be more challenging, and I felt anxious about many things, like…
Autism and ADHD Book Guide - for Children, Young People, Parents and Professionals
To quote Elle McNicoll, incredibly talented and awesome neurodivergent author, “Every child deserves to see themselves reflected positively in stories…The world needs unapologetically neurodivergent characters.”
In this book guide you will find book recommendations…
An Autistic Guide to Christmas
Some people love Christmas and some people hate it. I imagine most of us who celebrate fall somewhere in the middle. There have been Christmases where I’ve felt so excited and full of joy. There was also a Christmas when I lay on the sofa in another room, too low to join in…
How to Manage a Long-Haul Flight as an Autistic ADHDer
I just had the most amazing two weeks in Thailand (like two of the best weeks of my life). We flew to Bangkok where we stayed for 2 nights before going to Chiang Mai for 4 nights, then Koh Samui for 3 nights and Koh Tao for 5 nights before heading back to…
Anti-Bullying Week: Autism and Bullying
This week (11th - 15th November) is anti-bullying week, which takes place every year. Considering that approximately 30% of children are bullied each year, with 1 child in every classroom experiencing bullying…
The Mental Health Bill: Autism and Sectioning
I survived OCD, anxiety and depression, and growing up autistic without my needs being understood. But I also survived the mental health system - which is something that can be hard to explain.
In September, 2,020 autistic people/people with learning disabilities were in mental health hospitals across England…
World Suicide Prevention Day - Suicide Prevention, Autism, ADHD & Suicide, and a Message to You
Today, September 10th, is World Suicide Prevention Day. In 6 days, it will be 7 years since I was admitted to hospital for the first time. I was 16, had just started sixth form and the years of anxiety and OCD had become too much. I didn’t think I had a future. But I was wrong...
Authentically Emily Store - My Mindmaps
OWN PRODUCT/AD
Hello! A word of warning - this is less of a blog post and more of an update.
I now have a store on my website where you can buy the PDF downloads of my mindmaps. I have been asked so many times about making a way to buy these so I have finally...
You Are Allowed To Make Your Own Adjustments: How I Managed a Hen Do as an Autistic Person
It was my friend’s hen do recently and I was worried about how I would manage it. I struggle socialising in big groups, I don’t enjoy bars or clubs and there was lots of things that I felt anxious about, but I really wanted to go and celebrate my friend...
Autistic Masking
I was diagnosed with autism when I was 16. Like many autistic people (though not all), I grew up masking my autism. Doing my best to suppress parts of me I recognised seemed different to other people, parts I grew to be ashamed of as things happened which taught me I should be. I didn’t know that what I was doing was called masking…
The Misdiagnosis of Autistic Distress in the Mental Health System
When I am asked why I wrote Girl Unmasked, I say that I was angry. Which is true. I was angry at finding myself sectioned on a psychiatric unit at the age of 16, at the doctor there telling me I just had high social anxiety not autism, at the fact they described my autistic meltdowns as ‘hysteric attacks when she doesn’t get her own way’…
Challenges Autistic and ADHD People Face in Healthcare and What Can Help
Research tells us that there are a range of barriers to accessing and receiving healthcare for autistic and ADHD people, at all stages across an individual’s life (Malik-Soni et al., 2022; Young et al., 2021). Autism and ADHD are both associated with lower life expectancies…