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Suicide rates for #autistic people are much higher than the neurotypical population, at around 7.5 times more frequent. As someone who has had experience in this area, I feel this needs to be held up to the light and closely considered.
CW - suicide and depression
A thread /1
CW - suicide and depression
A thread /1
There are probably many, many reasons why suicide rates are so high for #autistic people and I can& #39;t hope to cover them all here, so I& #39;ll base this on my own experience and understanding. Feel free to add to it. /2
One clear and obvious reason is the likelihood of #depression caused by the experience of being #autistic in this wacky world of ours. Depression is very common among #autistic people, and this you& #39;d expect suicide rates to inflate too. /3
Depression is comorbid so frequently due to so many things. Social issues, loneliness, feelings of failure, career and job problems - being #autistic is to skirt depression an awful lot. I& #39;ve been seriously depressed myself at least three times. /4
Add in the complicating factor of #burnout and you see another cause - that particularly #autistic & #39;type& #39; of depression that I& #39;m increasingly sure burnout may represent, based on pretending to be neurotypical for just too long. /5
Brrrr... this is a sad thread to write but write it I must.
So being #autistic in a neurotypical world has a tendency to cause depression, but is there a reason why this translates so often to suicide - is there something about #autism that links specifically? /6
So being #autistic in a neurotypical world has a tendency to cause depression, but is there a reason why this translates so often to suicide - is there something about #autism that links specifically? /6
I& #39;ve read a few times that the unshakeable logic of an #autistic mind is a contributing factor. The clear, unsentimental realisation that the world would, at least, be unchanged if not better off for one& #39;s removal. I think there& #39;s something to this. /7
#autistic people have empathy in spades but I think sentimentality is in short supply. Is this fair? Hence a lack of interest in keepsakes, & #39;special moments& #39; etc? If is this just me? It certainly appears to be a common trait. /8
I think empathy can override sentimentality in terms of suicidal thought. A belief that others would be better off without you, despite an obvious relatively short term grief, can be quite powerfully persuasive, unfortunately. #autism I think fuels this kind of thinking. /9
This is a really dark thread so I& #39;ll completely understand if you don& #39;t want to carry on, but I& #39;ll soldier on anyway as someone has to talk about it. Just be aware that there will be triggers all over the place. /10
So you can ignore the sentimentality of death - maybe even not notice it. This leaves you with the empathy, that obviously you don& #39;t want to make your loved ones suffer. But you know you are making them suffer as you are. This becomes a frighteningly easy equation to balance/11
And mental health professionals need to know they may well be dealing with such pitiless logic in an #autistic person who is convinced that they have assessed the situation accurately. /12
It is likely that an #autistic person will have *really* thought it through, too. This can make intervention harder, as I fear it is such a confident conclusion that dissuasion is difficult. This may even involve detailed research, which would fit an #autistic mindset /13
The nature of #autism as a permanent feature of one& #39;s life is another factor we need to consider. Most #autistic people are highly aware that they will always be autistic, and if thaf is causing significant problems here and now, then hope of improvement is hard to find /14
This could make us very strongly averse to such lines as & #39;take every day as it comes& #39; or & #39;there& #39;s light at the end of the tunnel& #39;. Not only are they bland phrases, they& #39;re also not helpful when you know you& #39;re never going to fit in as an #autistic person. /15
I think if you& #39;re #autistic and you find yourself in a particularly difficult situation, say a bad relationship or a horrible job, then the chances of feeling powerless are high. You& #39;ll be having regular meltdowns, which hardly make you feel in control and capable /16
And you& #39;ll be finding it impossible to communicate with the people causing such pain. #autistic people can find social communication hard at the best of times, but if situations are dire it can be a fatal problem. /17
So link this with the relentlessly logical approach to suicide and there& #39;s a bit of a recipe for disaster. #autistic people will probably struggle with alternatives too. Many suicidal people make huge changes to their life. We struggle with that so much. /18
A suicidal neurotypical person might decide its best to quit their job, leave their spouse, even run away and start a new life. #autistic people have so many inbuilt barriers to such big moves, including terror of change. /19
Being precariously employed or living day to day financially might make moves like this impossible, trapping #autistic people in a circle.
That& #39;s just about all I& #39;m capable of sharing for the time being I think. Please check out my Patreon for more of my writing. https://www.patreon.com/pwharmbyautism ">https://www.patreon.com/pwharmbya...
