For more than a hundred years, the Women’s Institute has been campaigning on a wide range of issues. World Autism Acceptance Week runs from April 2nd to April 8th 2024. and this is a good time to look at one of the WI’s current campaigns: “Thinking Differently: Autistic and ADHD Women and Girls”. The aim is to improve the diagnosis and support for women and girls affected by these conditions. There is more information on the main WI website and a campaign pack to download.
Autism Spectrum Condition and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder have been recognised as mainly affecting men and boys resulting in women and girls being overlooked or misdiagnosed.
According to the National Autistic Society, men and boys are three times more likely than women and girls to be diagnosed as autistic. ADHD can present differently in girls. Boys are more often described as ‘hyperactive’ while girls are more often described as ‘inattentive’ or as a combination of inattentive and hyperactive.
Women and girls are often better at masking or camouflaging their difficulties. In general, they engage in more “internalising” behaviour than boys, meaning they tend to take their problems out on themselves rather than others. According to the National Autistic Society’s Centre for Autism, professionals often don’t recognise and understand the different ways autism can manifest in women and girls.
The “Thinking Differently: Autistic and ADHD Women and Girls” campaign is one of many important issues the NFWI seeks to highlight. There is further information on these campaigns on the National Federation website.