Findings from NIH-funded study could inform treatment strategies.

Bushfire season is a stressful time for all of us, including children on the autism spectrum. Children on the autism spectrum can sense that adults around them are anxious, fearful and overwhelmed. Additionally, their anxiety increases as their routines, schedules and living situations are disrupted during the fires.

We would like to offer some suggestions for you to help your child adjust to the changes and the stresses related to the fires.

Michael Marshall

Anxiety in adolescents with autism is a strong predictor of suicidal ideation, bipolar disorder, depression and other psychiatric conditions in early adulthood, according to a large new study in Sweden¹.

Police hunt gang responsible for chasing down and bashing an autistic teenager who was riding his scooter in Perth’s northern suburbs.

from https://www.9news.com.au/videos/autisti…

Sandra Fulloon

Many people with autism have never held a paid job, but at an innovative program is helping some young entrepreneurs break the cycle.

Of the 250,000 Australians diagnosed with autism, fewer than half have ever held paid work, despite having the skills and qualifications.

That was the finding of a new study commissioned by autism body AMAZE.

Of those who do gain work, more than 20 per cent say they have lost a job due to their symptoms.

Amelia Dunn

People with autism say they are often misunderstood by police as being suspicious or rude. One Australian organisation is hoping to change that. Being pulled over for a routine random breath test shouldn’t be a reason for anxiety.

But for Emma Gallagher, who has autism, interactions with police can become difficult, quickly.

“The way police communicate is not exactly developed for people like me,” the 31-year-old researcher from Sydney told SBS News.

Ellen Coulter

Stephanie Maass was told her son Oliver needed occupational therapy and speech therapy when he was just 19 months old.

A 21-year-old autistic man from Perth has expanded into his first official business premises after finding his calling in life: professional paper shredding.

Brandon Tomic is nonverbal – he can speak for the purposes of requesting something, but not hold full conversations, and so his mother Simone Tomic asked if she could speak for him in this report.

After Brandon finished school at 18, Simone and her husband Rob wanted him to be able to work like any other adult.