I'm talking about the awareness of autism spectrum disorders. This not only applies to their prevalence, but their understanding. Recent studies have shown that walking a mile in someone's shoes may only compound held beliefs, so is making the world think about autism a good thing?
I am most certainly not saying hide it away, but neither am I saying we should wear quite plain, non-textured adornments so that people everywhere have another 'cause' to be aware of. The only people I know who have heard of Asperger Syndrome are those who it has affected, or those who work with Aspies/Auties. Hey, have you hear about this thing called paraplegia? Of course you have. Have you heard of Schizophrenia? Of course you have. Teurette's had a certain image, and though it may still do, it's a more accurate image because of exposure to those with it.
You can't immediately see AS, and if you've never heard of it you'd just put their behaviour down to quirkiness, or unfortunately sometimes madness. There are a plethora of misdiagnoses, but we know that. The public seem not too, and some are stuck in the days of the Spastic Society. I think that without a strong drive, and possibly a face of AS, people will continue to misunderstand.
By no means am I putting myself forward, but can't some of the health budget go towards lending the support necessary for a sizeable number of people? It isn't a priority, and it should be a little more noticed.
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