World Autism Awareness Day

99% of the people have said that they have heard of autism. But do they really know what being autistic really means?

Even though understanding of autism has grown,millions of people still think silly, damaging and totally wrong things about autistic people.

April 2 is internationally observed as world autism awareness day.This year's theme was 'Inclusion in the workplace: challenges and opportunities ine post pandemic world '.Let's break the myths associated with autism after all the day is celebrated by the UN with the aim to spread awareness among people .

About 6 million people seem to think autism is a curable condition or a mental illness .About 6.6 million people think you can grow out of autism but they can't be more wrong .

Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how people understand everything around them and interact with others.Strange,Rude Antisocial ,Naughty; these are all the ways autistic people have been described and these insults have increased over the years.

So what can we do?

Here are a few tips to follow if you know someone autistic.

1. Understand that a minor inconvenience to you can be distressing to an autistic person. Be patient and empathetic.

2.Quiet areas can be an escape for autistic people. Make sure there is somewhere to retreat to.

3.Take time to explain things clearly and give time to respond.Understand that everyone communicates in their own peace .It could be helpful to count in your head till ten instead of arguing when they take time to respond.

4. When organising a social event, give as much notice as possible on what to expect.

5. Do not rely on body language or facial expressions as some autistic people struggle with it.Make them feel comfortable.

Most of the people know someone autistic in their lives; a family member a friend, an acquaintice or someone else. What this means is that there are more people than ever before who need to understand how they can help.

To read beautiful and inspiring stories about autistic people visit :Stories From The Spectrum at autism.org.uk