Newly diagnosed: things to help

Give yourself time

People react to a diagnosis of autism in different ways.

For some, it's a relief to find out why they or their child think, feel and act the way they do. For others, it can be a shock.

Try to give yourself time to come to terms with the diagnosis.

Remember:

• help and support is available
• even if things are hard now, they can get better
• you or your child are still the same person as before
• autism is not an illness or disease with treatments or a "cure"
• autistic people have things they're good at as well as things they need help with

Find help and support services

You might feel alone when you or your child are first diagnosed.

But there are places you can get support.

You can get help from:

• local support groups
• national charities
• other autistic people or parents on social media and forums
• your school, college or workplace
• your local council
• your GP or the autism assessment team that diagnosed you

Find out about support you can get if you're autistic

Listen to other people's stories

Some people find it helpful to find out about other people's stories of autism.

The charity healthtalk.org has:

• stories of autistic people
• stories of parents of autistic children
• stories of grandparents of autistic children
• stories of siblings of autistic children

You could also search online for autism blogs, videos or books.

Important

Remember, autism is different for everyone. What happened to other people might not be the same for you or your child.

Look out for other health problems

Autism is not an illness. But many autistic people also have other conditions.

These are not always checked for during an autism assessment.

See a GP if you have any concerns about your or your child's health. They can help you get any extra care you need.

Find out about other conditions that affect autistic people

Find out more about autism

It might help you and your family to find out more about autism.

There can be quite a lot to take in. You do not have to read everything.

You can get trusted information from:

• the NHS – for information about what autism is and advice for parents and carers
• National Autistic Society – for autistic children and adults, parents and carers
• Ambitious about Autism – for autistic children and young people, parents and carers

Page last reviewed: Thu Apr 2019 Next review due: Mon Apr 2022