Autism AND Mental Health|Purple Ella

[@shesays3673]

I waste several hours a day with decision paralysis and I've noticed how much more I get done when I write a list, then number what order to do everything in on the list, then work through the list. I got my Asperger's diagnosis 11 years ago 🙂

[@lornajoy8765]

I love your videos together. You make a great double act!!!

[@sampreston1791]

I totally agree about social and family support. At 40 I have no family and despite being nice, kind etc.. I've not been able to keep close friends who offer the support I really need. Your videos have made me realise how the traits relate to me as they never meant that to me when I read them. Today I realised I have intrusive thoughts/ideas about not being able to go out (especially if there's any chores left undone) and despite desperately wanting to I just can't leave the house sometimes for this reason. I have always had the feeling my life has batted me about like a paper boat in a stream and I feel like I now know why. Thank you so much, you're both great

[@Sky-Child]

I think a lot of us on the spectrum have CPTSD from trying to exist. I also present sometimes as having some kind of mood disorder - moods like a lightswitch and self harm and feeling like no control. DBT helped, and anyone with similar mental health issues I would recommend looking up Dr Fox.

[@redrockasrama7215]

Great job as always. I had my autism reconfirmed last month and referred for formal testing. The woman who did my consult was on the spectrum herself. She said some interesting things about autism and mental health. I have severe OCD along with autism. This was difficult for me to recognize as there are some similar over laps with ruteins and rituals but the non autistic OCD is something completely different because it has to do with belief systems. Especially pure o OCD. Religion, sexuality, etc. Thank you both for sharing your experiences. I can relate to the eating disorder. Mine came from stress and not being able to eat, having ibs, and excess physical exercise as an attempt to regulate emotions and senses. I was down to 88 lbs last year. Now I'm healthy weight but resent the reactions society gives to my now desirable feminine form. Id rather be invisible. The woman who did my autism consult told me that standard treatments for mental illness can be detrimental when applied to individuals on the spectrum. She said it often makes our symptoms and experiences worse. This is what happened with me. I went from nervous breakdown to psychotic break one year later because they refused to believe I was autistic in the first place and only gave me meds rather than actual therapy or skill development. God help us all.

[@sksk-bd7yv]

Yes! Why are doctor's so arrogant and ignorant? They cause so much horrible damage!

[@lechini4827]

my family doctor said I didn't need a diagnosis because for what? it took me long enough to gather the courage and ask her about the referral and then about a year to beg her for it and then I just changed a doctor. Now I'm waiting for a diagnosis. One more month. then we will see if it is what I think it is or something else. but after working with autistic children for over 20 years I finally came to a conclusion that I am one

[@shikukimani4443]

I have ASD ,GAD, social anxiety, AN or restrictive eating . I have peace knowing that my struggle in life is being an Aspie trying to live in a neurotypical world

[@rahowherox1177]

Great vid and vids. I like how you give plenty if why and not just what. I've just begun to accept who I am after 25 years of denial and masking... I had no choice tbf, it got to much and I exploded. Your vids are helping me cope and giving me ideas and strategies that help a lot. Thank you very much and keep up the good work. I really appreciate you and your team.

[@dee1661]

love the long videos - not long enough - please more on creating good routines!

[@hannahcollardgray4448]

I think I’ll always be anxious, depression comes and goes, I don’t know if I’ll ever fully recover from bulimia because exercise excessively (purging) is my way of regulating my emotions. Not having been diagnosed yet is really hard, thank you for allowing me to understand how much I mask, and starting to give myself permission to be myself. I don’t know yet if I stim, but I know that exercise has been my antidepressant. Therapy has really helped me, and I’m training to be a counsellor at the moment. Think small, dream big. I love practicing Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, just reminding myself that all emotions are in motion is good. People are creatures of habit, routines are normal for us to adopt, being spontaneous is overrated.

[@DeborahAnnsuperversatile]

The anxiety I have has been worse than usual lately. Depression is so hard to separate from shutdowns, burnout, or even like a freakout/meltdown hangover.

[@Tuttifruit]

I would LOVE to watch you guys for an hour!! Thank you for another fab video. Lots of love to you both!! xx

[@galathoughtart]

Lol 😂 sitting here in pajamas post meltdown and trying to shake the embarrassment and you tell me I am enough :) thanks

[@StayCuriousArtist]

she looks exactly like you! so cute

[@rfishrfish4242]

You both are a Great Team, Great show please stay together, Atypical Nero Wonderful....

[@sarahalmeida1631]

Oh my goodness, I related to this video so much!! I never considered myself an anxious person and was actually quite offended when a medical professional first labeled me as “clearly, a very anxious person.” I loved how Ros put it, as either knowing a thing would give you a feeling and you didn’t want to do it or knowing it would give you a feeling and working through it. That’s how I felt so often as a teen. The only times I have ever lost significant weight are when I was either depressed or nursing a 6-11 month old 🙈 Ella, I wish I could have told every friend and member of my family that complimented me on my weight loss when I was literally in the throes of depression struggling to get through each day. Just stop people! Loved your commentary on these topics ladies and love listening to your conversations.

[@kateyellow3]

I'm a female with autism and I was diagnosed with Bipolar, psychosis, OCD and panic disorder beforehand . I spent time in psychiatric hospitals and was not diagnosed until 24. I would say I suffer from anxiety and depression due to the autism but it's only due to me not understanding I have autism that made me get to the point I used to get to.

[@TaylorGessler]

How do you feel about driving? I am extremely anxious when I have to drive ESPECIALLY if it is to somewhere unfamiliar. It prevents me from going lots of places.

[@PurpleElla]

I find driving makes me anxious too.

[@Aiken47]

I’m a particularly good driver now, When first learning I spent a lot of time on wide gravel roads surrounded by open space incase I left the road and found out (incrementally) where my cars limits were. At slowish speeds wrench the steering wheel, or handbrake. Then once I got the control of that I’d add more speed, dodge a tennis ball I’d put out on the road and keep control. I believe strongly this builds the right kind of confidence. @ 18, Driving became my special interest so turned it inside out at that time. Traffic became a whole other series of self taught lessons, I still get anxious but my fight or flight response is fight and my reflexes sharpen and have accurate responses to situations. I became a scuba dive master and ride a motorcycle That’s me though. Not sure if my blather helped.

[@QlueDuPlessis]

I had a bad experience when I first learned to drive. I didn't drive or own a car after that for about twenty-five years. Then needs finally outweighed my aversion to driving. I hate driving in traffic.

[@Sky-Child]

I can't drive somewhere unfamiliar without someone else in the car or google maps. I am a very anxious driver generally and don't like to drive at night especially. My partner loves to drive so he normally taxis me about haha

[@grassgeese3916]

I dislike driving, mainly because I feel very trapped in the moment. I've found that biking is a very good alternative for me. Unfortunately the roads are a little difficult, being hilly and full of potholes on most major streets.. but it's way less anxiety-inducing.

[@jenlovesthisstuff]

Thankyou Ella, your detailed description and rationale for your eating disorder resonated with me so much. That's exactly how I felt but I went through mine at 14. I'm having my assessment next week.

[@alisonblack1824]

I appreciate the honesty and sharing from your own personal experience .ROS and Purple Ella you are both gifted teachers. Your video is so meaningful. I love your suggestions of helpful strategies as well and how wonderfully British that a cup of tea is one suggestion in your tool box .cheers . I look forward to your next video.

[@Autisticheather]

I loved to see your daughter!

[@rfishrfish4242]

I can watch you both for hours, lots of us don't have any friends, I feel like I'm there with you both when watching your show, LOVE IT, Thank you Atypical Nero Wonderful...

[@matthewsnowdon8530]

Same here i feel like i have friends on KZbin Currently my only friend is my mother i drag her along on all my hikes lol He go swimming together Essentially we do everything together

[@janeann3331]

Ella I could so relate to what you were saying about peoples expectations about weight feminism and having autism. I never heard it explained in that manner... another thing you said about making friends it really is a nightmare. I'm in my late 20 but I am married it feels like I don't fit in any where. Ros I like the idea of maybe having a place to think sort of a safe place. I think I'm going to try it.

[@rainbowdrops6869]

It was very interesting to watch this video. I know that it might be that autistic people also suffer from PTSD. I don’t want to say that each of them survived sexual or emotional abuse. But when we think about the fact that we can be overstimulated by different things because we are over sensitive - maybe we were caught in such a situation and couldn’t früh away. If this sensation feels somehow life threatening this can become a trauma. Many ofuswere bullied and being a victim of bullying might lead to anxiety, depression and spa kind of trauma. I can relate to the point of eating disorder. I didn’t want to become “fat”. With this I associated not being able to cope with anything, my other, alcoholism, horrible smelling. And I wanted to cope with life, I didn’t want to smell like hell. And it was a kind of control thing. I learned in some hospitals that also had more or less experience with trauma diverse strategies of mindfulness. Yoga might be a possibility. I find Qigong very helpful, I find to myself quite easily while practicing. The only problem is that I don’t do it anymore. There are some other ways of mindfulness that might help, but I would make your video explode if I described them. - Maybe I’ll share a video referring to mindfulness. For the Q&A I’d like to know more about ASD & self harm and self injuries, how often this happens and what’s done. I’ll try to work on my Self-Esteem. It’s a very important issue for me.

[@matthewsnowdon8530]

Sometimes i feel like my entire world is ending quite often I don’t even know why i just have these extremely strong feelings and be crazy overwhelmed And then some days i feel on top of the world Theres no in between tho

[@DeborahAnnsuperversatile]

I am trying to get better at self-esteem. And yes true, I feel guilty for having my own issues even.

[@emilywebster6623]

I absolutely loved this video this month! (sorry I'm a bit behind in my video watching ;) ). Ella, it was really great hearing you talk about your experience with an ED. I have an ED, have had it for faaaar too many years, and keep relapsing. Only in the last 2 years since I heard about ASD have I started to be able to move forward. I'm currently going through my ASD assessment (Yay!!). I could relate so much to what you said and you said it so matter of factly. Its not talked about like that enough. So many of my ED behaviours were affected by my autism. They came from a totally different thought process and served a completely different function. This needs to be taken into account to treat EDs effectively and its good to shed some light on understanding how one can affect the other. Its a learning curve for us all. I hope awareness continues to grow. Thanks again to you and Ros for another great video. All the best. :) xx

[@Rgrace5619]

This channel is so beautiful and humble and wholesome! I love all of the intersections that you cover which overlap with Autism and especially your identities as women. It has really shifted my perspective about myself and the people in my life on the spectrum - which I'm grateful for as a neuroscientist student. I truly hope you get more exposure so that this education can spread far and wide!

[@DeborahAnnsuperversatile]

I do my laundry more so I do not try to control others as much. I organize things to ignore other sensory things around me. I try to clean good at work and at home so that people will see that I am important to have around. I feel like I have to prove my worth. People don't see everything good I do. I feel like I try my best but my best is not good enough ever.

[@avrilllllaaaviiigne6053]

So helpful thank you

[@anngreen5601]

so helpful as always

[@janerobinson6894]

Fabulous ladies. Well done to you both x x x

[@thebluedot4728]

u dont have to limit ur creativity, even if its not socially acceptable to do something a certain way be the one to branch out and free yourself and everyone around you to be who you need to be. you will be happier and have less anxiety

[@midlifeclash7131]

You gals are great roll models for my teen asd daughter.

[@DeborahAnnsuperversatile]

Thank you so much for sharing.

[@TaylorGessler]

Recently my family and i came to the conclusion that I am on the the spectrum. I feel uncomfortable telling people I have ASD because I am not professionally diagnosed. I feel like people think i'm making it up because i seem "normal" to most. Advice?

[@redrockasrama7215]

TAYLOR GESSLER hi Taylor. Yes OCD and anxiety can be big parts of autism. I was diagnosed with both years before having any clue i was on the spectrum. You don't need a formal diagnosis of ASD to be autistic. I have been fighting for a proper diagnosis for al.pat two years now. I can't place the validity of my being autistic on weather or not i have it on paper. It is not up to them if you are allowed to be autistic. You may never get permission. I gave away all my personal power placing my trust in professionals. Dont discredit yourself. Trust yourself. Coming out as autistic was very important to my ability to understand, accept, and advocate for myself. I find that people just dont have access to information on what autism actually is. Autism as a whole is largely invisible to average folks. When I disclose that im autistic people in general do not believe me but when I expain some of the individual aspects of autism that I personally experience. For me that might be my dyspraxia or central auditory processing disorder. No one possibly could or would make those things up. I had my adult autism consult last month. So although I had verbal confirmation that I am on the spectrum, its not on paper just yet. I learned i was autistic almost 2 years ago. I have been diagnosed and then undiagnosed with asd. I can't allow some idiots to say who or what i am. My best advice is to watch amethyst utube series called ask an autistic. She breaks down many of the aspects that make up autism. This way you can be familiar with the different parts that you may be affected by and come up with realistic ways to help yourself. As far as how the autism spectrum works, I highly believe that this concept of there being a spectrum with high and low functioning at opposite ends is not very factual. For me I came up with a different concept that is sort of silly but helps me with understanding and communication. You are autistic and I am autistic so we both have what I call autism pizza. The crust is basically the same but the toppings are different. We both have OCD so we would both have that topping but maybe we have different t amounts of it. I have dyspraxia sprinkled on top but maybe you dont have that one. Perhaps your sensory processing disorder has mainly sensory sensitivities but mime has more sensory insensitivities. So our toppings are going to look different although we both have autism pizza. Obviously someone with more or less of the same and different toppings are going to experience the world in different ways. There are also side dishes that can further complicate things. If you have learning disabilities or physical or mental illness In addition to autism then you are obviously going to have more challenges. So to claim that someone is on the high or low end of the spectrum is not realistic. We are all individuals with varying strengths and weaknesses. Ultimately you may never get the approval acceptance or proper diagnosis and you can not allow that to effect your belief in yourself or your ability to function. Best of luck

[@TaylorGessler]

Thank you so much for this reply. SO helpful

[@SweetiePieTweety]

TAYLOR GESSLER If you and your family are onboard that is the majority and actually quite helpful to embracing your situation for a good outcome. Kinda like, you are the cake, your family the icing. Anyone else in the rest of the world understanding and embracing would be like the sprinkles on the cupcake. Nice, but not always necessary. 🧁. When someone outside the circle gets it, I’m like, oh joy, more sprinkles🎉

[@TropeOlogy]

I am loving this video.. in my pjs.. no chocolate... I am enough!!

[@findingmynormal9110]

I relate to this so much, wow. Thank you. 😊 I’m starting my journey to diagnosis (currently under the CMHT) and will be aiming to upload on here weekly (ish) 😄

[@TwelveDeck]

The daughter's hilarious. 🤣

[@missinkaddikt749]

You are both so lovely! These videos always make me feel so positive. Thanks to you both. Does Roz (sorry if I spelled that wrong) have a YT, IG or twitter I can support too?

[@PurpleElla]

Thank you! Ros has instagram rosbob and twitter @bobalind

[@arquebuses]

Great video, thank you :) My questions for the Q and A : what are your special interests? What advise would you give for a successfull autism coming out? Did you see the TV show "atypical" and if so, what do you think about it? What are the noises you hate above all? What is the neurotypical behavior you think is the most funny/you understand the least? Do you have synaestesia?

[@LadyLuck8_4]

How do you distinguish between a shutdown and a panic attack? I’m accepting at this stage for the first time in my life a self diagnosis of autism, I’ve had crippling anxiety all my life.

[@sksk-bd7yv]

How many of these diagnoses as adolecents/adults are caused by crap school & uneducated doctors? Today I carry horrible ptsd because of school & healthcare abuse. Who would I be today if I'd been accepted for who I am from the start?

[@CoolhandLukeSkywalkr]

How common is nightmare disorder as a comorbid trait? What about inertia? Inertia is my most crippling comorbid disorder. I have the ones you mentioned.

[@Yosya8059]

Oh my god, I can totally relate to not wanting to become more womanly. When I started to go through puberty I felt so uncomfortable for no apparent reason. And I started slouching so my chest wouldn’t come forward to much (although I didn’t have big shapes). It’s funny how in the end I’m really childlike in my mid 20s, only 1,52m high (5’0’’), have a childlike face and voice. It is as if I brought it upon myself. Actually, it should be genetic, because my parents are small and my father is kinda childlike. But still, I didn’t grow taller than my parents, I’m the smallest in the family. I’m not sure this has anything to do with autism, there is a huge variety of people there. And I’m not yet diagnosed, but have some strong suspicions.

[@emmie599]

Being short actually does not make adult women more childlike, in fact being taller does. It’s because taller women more commonly mimic young teenagers body structures

[@lizgubler2460]

Ros how do you tell when your anxiety is related to a specific sensory thing or just GAD. I know that sometimes I get anxiety but it is not really worrying about anything, I just kind of get... tense I guess. But I dont know if it is just GAD or it is sensory related. Do you just kind of test out different coping things to figure out what exactly is causing it?

[@faithlawes4240]

I developed an eating disorder for the same reasons 😞💗

[@nicholasclaus9695]

hello awesome people

[@SweetiePieTweety]

I recently noticed a coworker had lost weight quickly. I tried not to put a positive or negative spin knowing that usually when I loose weight it’s because I’m unwell. I think I said, you’ve lost some weight, are you doing well? I hope all is ok. Is this a good thing or possibly a not so good thing ??? lol. Awkward, but, ya.

[@stephanieburrows5347]

Do you have any resources that would be helpful for mindfulness? I've heard from several sources that this can be helpful, but am not sure where to get started.

[@PurpleElla]

Hi Stephanie, I started out using Headspace headspace.com it's really simple and the first 10 days are free.

[@LadyRosalind64]

Another good place I'd recommend to start is The Mindful Podcast it's free and you can pick what you want to begin with/what topic you want to explore itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-mindful-podcast/id1068281273?mt=2

[@hanspeyerl973]

Thanks very much for your information regarding Autism as well as the whole issues that you have discussed... I really appreciate it... You are must welcome to join the group that I have done... Golden flame of love group... God bless you and thanks again.. Hans... 🙏🙏🙏🙏👍👍👍👍

[@TaylorGessler]

Some sensory feelings you love?

[@TheCerealluvr]

Does Rob have social media? I like her (them?)

[@thebluedot4728]

i think ros is maybe isfp or intj and ella is enfp maybe

[@no_peace]

Haha that's so cute

[@DeborahAnnsuperversatile]

I need to ride my horse more.

[@justletmesigninokthx]

cuties

[@shikukimani4443]

Oh also ADHD