Mental Health and Aspergers - What you Need To Know

In the news recently Mental Health services for young people have come under scrutiny after reports showed that many young people are struggling with getting access to the mental health services they need. 

This is due down to budget cuts that have affected the money that is being provided to NHS Mental Health services for children and young adults living with complex mental health needs. 

A Survey by Young Minds (charity) found:

"That more than half of councils in England had cut or frozen budgets for a child and adolescent mental health between 2010-11 and 2014-15."

And the figures do not look very pleasing, as reported by BBC News Online: 

"Figures released last month showed NHS spending on children's mental health services in England had fallen by more than 6% in real terms since 2010. The cut, equivalent to nearly £50m, was revealed by NHS England in a parliamentary answer."

With complex issues rising about the care given to children and adults with autism, it is a alarming thought that in 2015 there is not enough sufficient funds or even treatment available on a health service that is paid into by the public to provide free treatment to those who need it. 

With autistic rights being undervalued and not acknowledged by the British government or the NHS it is a worrying thought that more and more children and teens feel they have no one to talk to or turn to and therefore feel they have to take their own life. 

Suicide is a serious issue and among the statistics of children or teenagers taking their own lives there will be a percentage of these children who are undiagnosed as Autistic. 

The stigmatisation of Autism is still a major barrier when it comes to mental health treatment and support with more children and young adults not being recognised as Aspergers or on the Autistic Spectrum. 

Here is my experience: 

"When I was 14, I was assessed by my first psychiatrist who after listening to my traumatic birth and complex mental health issues including strong signs of Depression and Anxiety he came to the conclusion that I was in fact ADHD and tried to proscribe me Medication for that condition. When challenged on this diagnosis, he then decided to diagnose me with Bipolar Disorder and recommended that I then been placed on Anti-Psychotic medication at 14 (nearly 15) years of age."

At no point did anyone in the mental health profession at this time who were overseeing my care mention or even nod to the idea that I might be in fact Autistic.

I was left with questions about how serious my state of mind was and not being able to cope with mainstream school and continuing to go into a deeper depression I refused to go to school and would not leave my bedroom. I had also tried to attempt to take my own life twice at this point and was regularly self harming. 

And at no point did anyone in the education or medical profession think I was seriously ill as I could hide my autism and act normally in public. With this contradiction many professionals I came in contact with in these early years began to think I presume that I was attention seeking and being awkward. 

Over the years I have looked back at this period of time and seen and heard more and more stories about Aspergers girls in particular being ignored and not treated with care and attention they require. 

The horrifying fact is that it is now common place for young people with mental health problems autistic or not  to be ignored or placed in hospitals far away from their family who are the vital support network they need or ignored and not receiving any care or treatment they desperately need.

Looking at all the facts and seeing what needs to be done to ensure the health and wellbeing of these children does not come by teaching Happiness in schools. It comes from being able to access correct support and information from professionals   who are trained to see and understand the different traits and identify the core symptoms of a mental health problem and this includes autism! 

There also needs to be more simple information provided to teachers, parents and the children themselves to identify the key mental health problems and the symptoms they present as well as more information on identifying autism.

It seems simple for someone like me to write this down but as someone who has been through the child and adolescent mental health services and not receiving the correct care at the time, it pains me to see other children in the same awful situation where the only solution to their problems is not talking to a professional but planning and committing suicide. 

A key factor is the education and awareness of Autism and how the positives of autism can be integrated into the everyday world and not to isolate or ridicule and belittle people with autism. 

Mental Health is beginning but autism awareness needs to be address at a Government and national level.