"Goodness me, isn't being #autistic expensive?"

Or

I'm autistic and bloody skint.

A thread. Please share.
This is mostly from my own experience, my reading and interactions with other #autistic people. /1

One thing about #autism that isn't spoken of a great deal outside of #autistic circles is how damnably expensive autism makes everything. I'm not saying it makes prices higher, that would be silly - more that you end up losing considerable cash due to #autistic traits. /2

There are so many ways that #autism can hit your bank account it's hard to know where to start... but I think I'll get stuck into diagnosis to begin with. This is not necessarily applicable to NHS users. /3

It seems to me that if you happen to be American and #autistic, then getting yourself a diagnosis is going to cost an absolute fortune. Especially if you seek diagnosis as an adult. Now, as I understand it, you guys have insurance to help, but often this doesn't cover it? /4

The American health care system is obviously very strange to non-Americans, and I've struggled to make sense of it, but I gather that we could be talking about thousands of dollars to be declared #autistic, meaning its well out of reach of most people. This seems silly to me. /5

In the UK its possible you may need to go private if your doctor is unhelpful enough, and in this case again you'll be talking lots of pounds sterling to get the all-important dx and asboid being treated as some kind of #autistic shill (which self dx can cause, sadly) /6

So the act of finding out that you definitely are #autistic can cost a bomb before you even start. Ironically though, if you are autistic, you're likely to have less money than your peers,for various reasons. /7

Let's talk about how executive dysfunction costs you money.

I lost £40 this month on parking fines. It should have been £100 but I appealled the other two. /8

The trouble is, being spectacularly forgetful and absent minded can be really expensive. Think about all those overdue bills, fines, unchanged fuel and phone tariffs, forgotten subscriptions... for #autistic people, the amount of cheeky charges adds up. /9

Those 'first month free' subscription offers are evil for people with #Executive dysfunction. #autistic people will, I'm sure, be a key demographic when it comes down to companies making money out of subs left uncancelled, especially if cancelling involves a phone call... /10

I had a subscription to a magazine for three years after I moved house and failed to inform them. Three years of a magazine being delivered somewhere at my expense. I just kept forgetting to do anything about it. That could be foolishness, but I think #autism plays a part /11

Then you've got panic buying for when we've forgotten to get something. Like realising you've forgotten your phone charger on holiday - if you have the cash, you buy a new one. This adds up very quickly. /12 #autism

There's also the executive dysfunction issue of food, made worse if you're also anxious or depressed. Cooking can seem unachievable, so convenience food, takeaways etc can eat into your budget. This was a serious issue for me recently,as I simply hadn't the spoons. /13 #autism

The interaction of mental health (especially depression) can be devastating. Spending to cheer yourself up, to 'fill the hole' - it's a common theme and very tempting. But all this presupposes you have the money to spend in the first place... /14 #autism

The problem with #autism is that until awareness and acceptance are *significantly improved*, employment can be very hard to find and maintain. So poverty and homelessness is a serious threat for #autistic people. /15

Interviews are actively stacked against #autistic people, being far too preoccupied with often irrelevant intersocial skills. Getting a job when #autistic can be unreasonably hard. /16

Then there's workplace bullying, lack of promotion opportunities, being dismissed due to sickness - the world if work can be hostile to #autistic people. /17

So if we manage to get money there's no guarantee we'll be able to reliably continue to get it. This makes independent living extremely difficult, and home ownership beyond the reach of many #autistic people. /18