That’s fantastic. I’m 15 and was diagnosed with autism three years ago after coming back from Australia. It’s awesome to see someone who is autistic succeed by being themselves, especially on something like RU-vid. Love the FM content too 😀
I think autism actually helps you with RU-vid, with autism you tend to get hyper-fixated on random things, and if you use that to learn video editing and content creation you can blow up.
As a "Senior Autistic" (71 y/o), like so many who had a late diagnosis had to take some time to decide "now what?" I have been through mis-diagnosis and many reevaluations. As mental health research evolved, my diagnosis evolved. But in the end, it still boiled down to "Now what?" I will fight my tendency for long narrative and simply say; "Adjust, Compensate, and Accept." and NEVER USE AUTSIM AS AN EXCUSE. These are the rules of my life. Following them has allowed me to live a very happy life of self-acceptance. I am comfortable of who I am and who I have always been. So many people see an Autism diagnosis as a way of saying "See, I told you so." Here is a hint.....people do not care. People do not want to hear excuses. Ounce I was comfortable of who I am, others became comfortable of who I am and being around me. I fully understand my challenges and how to face them. Those close to me accept my challenges and know when and how to help me. Yes Kevin, I can very much relate. I have a comorbid diagnosis of "Sensory Processing Disorder." My brain does not process sound like most people. All sound is processed as VERY LOUD chaos. So not unlike Andy, I wear sound protection constantly every time I leave the house. Sound is my enemy. I hope you sort things out quickly and realize that a diagnosis does not fix or change who you are. It does give you a new focus to "Adjust, Compensate, and Accept."
I'm super happy for you Kev!! I'm 24 and I've known to be Autistic for as long as I can remember and I've spent the last 3 years figuring out and going down that rabbit hole to fully find myself and truely know who I am. I went through lockdown and it was "the" hardest change I've ever faced and I'm sure I hit a stage of depression at some point. I then changed my career, I stopped flying, I went into healthcare even wanting to go to Uni and now fast track to today, I'm going back flying and I couldn't be more excited!! I hope that made sense LOL! I wish all the best for you, the girls and of course, Andy!
You, Andy and Anna have managed to teach me a heck of a lot by the sheer fluke of us arriving on the same uni course in 2009. It blows my mind that it was all grounded in us being neurodivergent, and that is now a subject I’ve learned an absolute ton about since. Finding I’m autistic and have adhd has helped so much. I’m glad asd 360 ended up being useful! For adhd (if anyone’s reading this considering it - the NHS can refer you to them. It doesn’t look like the NHS refer to asd 360 yet though)
My son has recently been diagnosed, and since then a lot of people have told me that they thought I was autistic, it's lead me to making a list and I have been contemplating for a while now going for the diagnosis and you have just inspired me to go for it! ❤
I was also diagnosed last year at the age of 40 as being on the spectrum. It took 2.5 years from the first appointment to finally get the diagnosis. I totally relate to your story, I spent the majority of my life feeling I was just weird and a bit of a freak. Good luck with everything
thank you so much for sharing your journey kevin. i was diagnosed with autism when i was 15 years old whilst i was in a children's mental health hospital. at the time the doctors and nurses would just use medical terminology that i could not process and understand. its been 13 years for me and i am still trying to learn and teach people in my life about it. being able to look back at my life before my diagnosis i was able to see why i struggled with the things that i do yet i still had so many questions left unanswered. i appreciate any person who takes the time to want to be able to learn about autism because i have not always had the best experiences in life with people. i still have a long way to go in terms of accepting it and find the ways that best help me to cope with my daily life but i have never stopped trying to figure it out xxxxx
Congratulations on your diagnosis. Both me and my son are autistic. It took 4 years but was officially diagnosed in 2019 3 weeks before my 37th birthday
Hi! I'm autistic too! Just thought I'd mention that it might not be the best idea to share what primary school you went to on the internet, if you still live there. This is because people might be able to figure out roughly where you live, which could make you open to scams. Sorry if I came across as patronising or if you already knew this, but I thought it would be better to say something and it possibly help than run the risk of you being unsafe. Hope you have a nice day!
This is a wonderful video. I’m someone who has some of the misconceptions you mention due to under exposure and lack of knowledge. Thanks for challenging my blind spots. I love your content and I’ve always appreciated your willingness to be authentic and vulnerable on your channel. Thanks Kev!
My eldest son has his final assessment next week for high functioning autism. I'm hoping we can get the right support or at least pointers in the right place to help him when it's difficult.
"high functioning".... You do you, but functioning labels aren't necessarily the best representation for autistic people. Many people now just consider people to be either autistic or not. Within those that are autistic, you either have additional needs or not. It is a spectrum after all.
@Al Pachinko I go on what was discuss during meeting, assessments, ETC regarding my child. I'm extremely new to autism so apologies for what I guess you perceive as naivety. I'm just trying to do the best for my child and help him as best as I can as a parent.
@@FMRUSS it is called ASD level 1 in todays DSM-5 criteria. previously known as high functioning autism or Aspergers. the levels (1,2 & 3) are based on the level of support needed, so level one is considered "high functioning" these are all semantics though, some people get offended if you use outdated terminology, others dont care. best of luck to you and your son, sounds like you are doing a great job of supporting them
Hey Kev, I had no idea, brilliant news though, really admire your positivity and strength, there’s so much stigma around autism and not many people are willing to talk about it. I’ve been a big fan of your main channel for about 2 years now, really love your work mate. Thanks for sharing the news with us
I am so incredibly happy that you got the diagnosis and that you are able to do this as a job Kev. You are genuinly such a funny guy and there's a reason you're a top creator for FM because you're entertaining!
Congratulations Kev, at least you know now and for me that was the most important part of a diagnosis, I’ve just gone private too and 3 weeks ago I got my official diagnosis of ASD and ADHD too.
Hi Kev, I'm one of the subs from the main channel that you mentioned but I just wanted to say I've been thinking that I may be autistic for a few months now and your videos on the subject have made me much more at ease with that possibility. Being able to see parallels between your experiences and my own have helped me accept this may not be something I'm imagining to blame my weaknesses on but also that a label doesn't change who I am. I'm about to graduate uni without having ever really connected with any other students here or the typical lifestyle, but I can say the last few months have been the easiest and I think that's partly due to you helping me come to terms with who I am, autistic or not. Now I've just got to decide whether I want to pursue a diagnosis or not. I'm really happy you've found a lot of value in yours. Much love
My autism diagnosis didn’t come until I was 21. My family had a suspicion but we didn’t know all through school because its mild. 6(soon to be 7) years later and I’m getting more help than I had back then.
Nice one Kev. Your a great ambassador for people on the spectrum. I'm a psychologist who wants to move into the area of providing adult assessments for autism and it is really interesting to hear your experience.
You're describing a lot of my childhood Kev, it's nice to have at least an idea about why that could be. Thank you for the video and the inspiration/motivation!
I've learned a load about autism over the years watching you and Andy. Particularly your story has given me an insight into how it might work as an adult. Well done on finally getting the diagnosis, (even though you knew the score anyway).
As someone who's diagnosed from birth with high functioning autism I can tell 95% of the time if someone's on the autistic spectrum or not and I've been here since 2018/2019 (that includes the football side of things as well) and I've always suspected you were on the autistic spectrum and it's nice to know that you got the diagnosis and you're at peace with knowing you're definitely on the autistic spectrum
I have just had my ADHD diagnosis at 51 and still looking if ASD is on that list. I feel 100% with ya fella with the same rubbish organising, time keeping and general social queues. It's good to know what it all means and make sense of it all over the years Good Luck in the future fella
I'm happy you are finally able to have this diagnosis after so long. I went undiagnosed for quite a long time despite being rather stereotypically/'obviously' autistic because I'm a trans guy so I was raised as a girl, and lots of people who are either women/girls or trans people who were born female end up going undiagnosed or misdiagnosed because people assumed we couldn't have it, or passed it off as 'shyness' etc. They may also present differently than the stereotype. This of course happens to people who mask too, or who have less support needs (but who likely still need some support), though I was never much good at masking so this doesn't apply to me, and yet I still wasn't diagnosed until the end of sixth form. My autism got more noticeable in secondary school, when these quirky differences are no longer acceptable, and you're expected to become more independent and social
Woohoo! 🎉🎉 Welcome to the diagnosed club Kev! 👏👏👏 I was diagnosed with ASD at 38 and ADHD at 40. It does help me with work and explaining why I can do certain things sometimes then be unable to do it another time etc. So pleased you got the diagnosis.😊
I was diagnosed three-and-a-half years ago at 45. Unfortunately, I was diagnosed in another country, and it seems I'd need to be diagnosed again to have that diagnosis recognized where I now live. I don't know if I want to go through that hassle again although I'd like to have the paper. The validation and potential resources can make a big difference. Happy for you, Kev.
Hats off to you mate. I came through from your FM channel and saw this. Good on you speaking about it and spreading the awareness. It's something I've thought about over the years and I think this has given me the incentive to start getting tested myself. Really nice work 🙌
So glad you got a proper diagnosis makes me happy and I have a close friend myself who is autistic so your videos have made me get a better understanding of it 😊
I was diagnosed at 23 years old and it was the biggest relief of my life. I paid 1200 out of pocket for my diagnosis because I would still have been waiting. 26 years old now and can finally be myself
On the waiting list for my final diagnostic assessment for autism 2-3 year wait though. Got diagnosed with dyslexia 2 years ago. Always knew things were different glad I'm getting the diagnosis puts everything in place and gives me answers.
This video is perfectly timed for me, I’ve been considering going into the adult diagnosis process properly for the first time and was even looking into options just last night. Thanks Kev! ❤
I had my diagnosis at age 50, in a psych ward after a mental health crisis. Hadn’t learnt anything about it before hand but so many around me had their suspicions. No one wanted to tell me, though, because of my love of research and understanding the world around. I was asked if it was a light bulb moment, my response was it was more like someone opening the curtains!
Appreciate you sharing your story and diagnosis with us all Kev! Keep doing what you’re doing, looking forward to the new content and as always keep well and safe!
Kev, I've been watching you're FM videos for years and have always loved your content. I just wanted to thank you for making this video. I'm in a similar boat to yourself in that I've recently been diagnosed with ASD as a 38 year old. Like you I'd suspected that I may be 'on the spectrum' for years and years but I've done a fantastic job of masking my entire life, in the end I got to the stage where I was so tired of putting on that front (it's absolutely exhausting!) that I literally could not carry on as I was. I've shied away from watching your vlog videos with Andy as it was all a little too close to the bone for me, but I think I'll be going back and doing a deep dive into thise videos now. You've articulated in this video so many of the things I've struggled to convey to those close to me, I get the 'you can't be autstic as you go to football matches every week', 'how can you be autistic, you're into am dram and surely all autsitic people hate being the centre of attention'. I really wish I had the ability to articulate what you have in this video, and to find a job that utlisites my skills in the way that you have. Sending love to you and your family Kev
I can relate to this. I was also diagnosed with ASD lvl2 at 41 and highly verbal as well. I suspected it since I was 15 and it was missed and hidden under severe ADHD. However I recommend thinking and describing about it more of an explanation (eg. of your collecting) than an excuse. Autism is not an excuse, its an explanation.
Great video Kev. And a very interesting journey that you have been on with your Autism. My 10 year old daughter was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome on the Autistic scale. She has her weaknesses but she overcomes them with her strengths. After all who doesn't have strengths and weaknesses, I do. She was diagnosed at 3 years old and was unusual because we were told that it's usually boys at a young age who get diagnosed not girls. Anyway, she has developed into, according to her form teacher, as a mathematics genius who can work out answers to multiplication, division, subtracting and adding in under a second per answer. I am quite clever at mathematics myself but nowhere near this sort of level. Thanks for sharing this wonderful story.
Hi Kevin I've been watching since the start off your videos on all platforms, nice to hear you have finally got some answers for many people are still going through this, I'm looking forward too your upcoming contents always like watching your vlogs and videos thanks you for explaining things makes things a lot more clearer thanks you keep smiling good luck for the future with you anna and all the family
Great video and I’m envious of how well you are able to express yourself and be open about yourself. I wish I was able to be as open about myself and it’s encouraging to see.
It's not the best for kids either right now tbh. Going for one for my 10yo, and we originally contacted the GP in Feb 22, had a first appointment with CAMHS in July 22, and then just waiting since then for things to progress.
I also went private with mine (diagnosed at 30), once I got to the stage of needing to find out one way or the other, it had to be private for me as I couldn’t deal with the nhs waiting lists. There definitely needs to be more done about autism and and improving the public’s knowledge, awareness etc
I'm fairly certain my 4yr old is on the spectrum and now looking back at my own childhood and even now I'm thinking I may be as well. Never really thought about it!
i got my diagnosis for asd and adhd literally 2 days ago and im also struggling to process my diagnosis especially the adhd! i expect the autism but i was indenial about the adhd! my big fear is my future as a neurodiverse adult! im currently 16 and my high school completely missed it because of my good behaviour so now ive got to deal with my diagnosis at a very important part of my life :)
I repeated years one and two in primary school cause I didn't speak. I started speaking aged nine. I was considered a naughty child, and my parents were told she's being stubborn. Eventually, once I spoke, I told my mum the words move and got a dyslexic diagnosis then autism a few years later. I went to the best the best girls private school in Sydney Australia. You think paying 40 grand a year the teachers should of spotted it. It cost a fortune 4 grand in Australia for an adult to get a diagnosis. Which should I think be subsidies cause it affects your health. I'm so glad you know what's going on with yourself now.
We use Private in Our Family, as we feel the NHS is utterly useless in anything other than an Emergency and it is basically not worth using at all for anything else. I was Diagnosed at 15, but never got the Help I really needed, as Child and Family gave me a *Useless* Psychiatrist who was convinced that I was "Insane" and was there just to Push Pills, the School was unable to Cope with My Sensory Needs, and I just got Left to "Fend for Myself" once I aged out of Child and Family. Basically unfit for Normal School, but "Not Disabled enough" for Special School. Which Is why I was always so pleased that Andy was able to get the Special School Place that He Needed. I am glad You got Your Diagnosis however, as I am sure it answered an awful Lot of Questions, as it certainly answered an awful lot of the Questions I had about Myself (No, I was not Nuts, just Autistic) and I do hope and Pray that going Private will get You the Help You need. Do take Care Sir. Bye Now.
I was talking to my stepsister a couple of years ago and she was telling me that she'd been diagnosed with ADHD, and I jokingly said that I probably got ADHD when I had a mental breakdown in 2011. She laughed and said it doesn't happen like that, and then she said the thing that changed my life. She said that I probably had PTSD. So, I did the usual thing and went off and researched on whether I might have PTSD. And what I found stunned me. PTSD isn't just a physical trauma issue. It can also be a psychological disorder. I found complex PTSD. It's basically child abuse through psychological and mental abuse. And they had a list of possible causes of cPTSD. I had an example of every single point. So, I went to see my GP to get a referal to see a clinical psychiatrist for a diagnosis. And because I have been seeing a psychologist for my anxiety and depression, I chatted to her about possibly had complex PTSD... so she asked some questions and told me that yes, she thought I had PTSD. When I was 3 years old, I was in the back of the car, after a visit to my dad (my parents were seperated at the time), and I was bawling my eyes out for reasons unknown. And my mum threatened to put me out of the car and drive off if I didn't stop crying. And being 3 years old, I probably started crying harder. And my mum put me out of the car and drove off and left me on the side of the road. My pshrink told me that that was enough to cause the cPTSD. Then I had my appointment with the shrink to get a clinical diagnosis. He dismissed the 3 year old incident and was looking for someone else. So I ran through a few more incidents... and he was like "not good enough to cause PTSD". And then I remembered that one time when I was 8 or 9. I'd just come home from school and being a "normal" type of kid, I wanted to play games with my mum, so I said Lets play "superman and aliens, and I'll be superman and you can be the monster", and I punched her. She dragged me out to the backyard and slapped my hand on the chopping block, picked up the axe and said if you ever hit me again, I'm going to chop off your hand... and she brought the axe down next to my fingers. The shrink turned around and said we could have saved a lot of time if you had led with that bit of info. And I had my clinical diagnosis of complex PTSD. Now, I know some of you will be wondering why I've been going on about PTSD and ADHD... and fair cop... Kevin is talking about Autism and ASD. In the past, I have friends and family who have asked me whether I have Asperger's. And my sister even sent me a link to 120 questions to determine if you have aspergers. I don't have Asperger's... but I have a lot of the same sorts of symptoms as Asperger's. Just like I have a lot of the same symptoms as ADHD. I just turned 59. If you believe my pshrink, I've had complex PTSD since I was 3 years old. If you believe my shrink, I've had complex PTSD for around 50 years. I think that my pshrink has it right. I've been in survival mode for 56 years. I don't know of any time when I didn't suffer from anxiety or some form of depression. Best of luck Kevin. It's good getting a diagnosis and knowing that you actually have a disorder and there isn't anything really wrong with you. PS: I love watching your videos :D
I choose to stay under the radar apart from the one off comment here and there. I think its pretty brave of you to throw this out there. Hope you all the best brother.
Nice one Kev. Your so right about your job being perfect for Autism. I love FM and wrestling at 40 but have no excuse (as u worded it) haha. Thanks for sharing and love the channel ❤
I believe I am autistic and I think I probably have ADHD too but I have no clue how to ask/tell my parents… I’d like to be tested but I have NO CLUE how to ask my parents as we aren’t close in that sort of way😅 so it’s nice to see that a diagnosis can come at any age😊
Hi Kevin I’ve just been diagnosed with adhd at 40 years old my 14 year old daughter as autism and they think she as adhd all of the traits she as I’ve done my entire life they was assessing me when I was 13 and at another school then when I moved it never progressed then when she was diagnosed with autism I said to them about been assessed as a kid they finally put me through the adhd test and it was confirmed still waiting for the autism assessment
It’s strange how all the times I was told to sit still got sent out of class and then getting told off whilst I worked for a call centre cause it was walking around instead of taking calls I work as a porter at local hospital for the last 7 years and struggled with change during covid as everything went up in the air and I couldn’t handle what changes were happening all around the areas were we work in hospital
I’ve just recently been diagnosed too I was diagnosed in august last year and we tried telling cahms for years and they refused to do it till I turned 18 and spoke to someone about it and they referred me straight to the people who do the tests and then a few weeks after my 19th birthday that’s when I was diagnosed
have been trying to get a diagnosis for ADHD for years, during my teen years it was ovberlooked and not acceptted as it is now, NHS decided although all the pre diagnosis questionares were all way within the red zones that apparently they don't have enough to take it further, time to pay to go private.
Congratulations on finally getting a diagnosis, keV. My experience was that I didn't realise how much I needed the diagnosis until I had it (I was 34, I think, when diagnosed). Did Amy do her GCSEs before getting her ADHD diagnosis? Xxx
My.daughter got diagnosed a few months ago for autism she's adhd aswel and we are currently in process of getting my youngest son diagnosed for autism but hes non verbal keep up the videos
Hi kev when I saw this I had to say something. I am basically the same age as you give or take some months and am just going through my own asd disorder after a long set of sessions with my psychiatrist to help with my fibromyalgia causing me to not be able to work due to fear of social situations overloading my system causing me to be sick.
I follow your FM channel and this is the first video on autism I have ever seen. So I decided to take an oline quiz , should I be worried about the fact the quiz says I have a strong possibility of being autistic?
Hello fresh is my saviour, I absolutely love them. No thinking or planning involved, it's all done for me. All I have to do is put the ingredients in the fridge and then follow the card I'm interested in the private pathway for an ADHD diagnosis. You still have to go to a regular gp and convince them first right? I'm not very good at that. How do you get down to the meaty bit like you say? And how viable is it for someone who's out the house 11 hours a day 5 days a week? (work are not flexible at all). Obviously there are medications for ADHD, would this be the super expensive bit you mention? Coz I didn't think £1500 was too bad for the whole shebang Sorry, I know that's a lot of questions. I've just been patiently waiting for the outcome of your diagnosis journey and now it's over I thought I'd ask the questions
I dont want to be that guy who looks like an asshole, but these days every type of person has their own type of disorder sticker. This while the person is perfectly fine. People have their own traits things they love to do and things they dont like. I dont hate people who have a personality tag but it feels like most of them are not justified. Jus because you dont want to be around people the entire day doesnt mean you have a disorder it means youre human with a personality. Kev in my eyes looks like very lovely person who most likely is a secret hugger. Smart and sweet. Big up kev
Good video was diagnosed in my early life! Curious I notice you drive a car can you do a video on wanting to drive with autism or Asperger’s? And can you still make friends and find a romantic relationship with out a car?
Am getting assessed on 21st april i find it hard to soclise and crowed places over whelming and making friend prettey of aloner have bad anxiety and depressrion and constlet figet with my hands and am 34 in 2 days
Do you have any tips and trick on how to accept rules that don't make sense? Im not old enough to work yet but it has been a real problem in school, to the point im not even allowed in math class anymore (that's also because the teacher is an authorian guy). But i find it very difficult to accept rules and things that make zero sense to me and i think its gonna be a problem at my future jobs too.
I suspect I'm on the spectrum, I've got twins who are 9 and have only suspected since I had them but makes sense now. was obvious in your case imo and I suspected you were years ago. ATB Kev
