Autism and mental health conference 2022 programme
09:00 - 09:15 |
Welcome by the chairsTom Purser, Head of Guidance, Volunteering and Campaigns, National Autistic Society |
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Session one |
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09:15 - 10:00 |
Inside a Community Mental Health Team In this session, Sarah McCulloch, Deputy Manager of a Community Mental Health Team and an autistic person, will describe some of these challenges and indicate some paths towards better and more effective care for autistic people. |
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10:00-10:10 |
Transition | |
10:10 - 10:55 |
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10:55 - 11:15 |
Break | |
Session two |
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11:15 - 12:00 |
Masking – impact on mental health and identity Dr Hannah Belcher, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Kings College London This session will explore the mechanisms behind autistic masking, the impact it can have on mental health, and ways to reduce it and better support individual wellbeing. The session will draw on research and lived experience. In particular, the aim of the session is to better understand:
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12:00 - 13:00 |
Lunch break |
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Session three |
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13:00 - 13:45 |
What do autistic people need from mental health services |
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13:45-13:55 |
Transition | |
13:55 - 14:40 |
Making psychological therapies (IAPT) work for autistic people |
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14:40 - 15:00 |
Break |
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Session four |
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15:00 - 15:45 |
Autism, trauma and PTSD Dr Freya Rumball, Specialist Clinical Psychologist, Adult ASD Assessment Service, Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust and Visiting Researcher, King’s College London This talk will provide an overview of the risk and resilience factors of trauma exposure and PTSD development, summarising why ASD individuals may be particularly at risk of developing PTSD following trauma exposure. Recent work exploring broader types of life events which may be interpreted and experienced as traumatic will be discussed. Finally, post-trauma support and interventions for the treatment of PTSD will be outlined. |
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15:45-15:55 |
Transition | |
15:55 - 16:40 |
Autism and loneliness Content warning: session discusses loneliness, mental distress, and death by suicide In this session, we will speak about the increased rates of loneliness in autistic adults, how feeling lonely affects their mental health, and the role of sensory sensitivities in loneliness. We discuss the contribution of society and highlight the evident need for accessible and welcoming environments. We will do so from three perspectives: empirical data points, qualitative interview results, and experiential insights. Learning outcomes:
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16:40 - 16:55 |
Closing remarks |
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16:55 |
Conference ends |
Additional bonus sessionsOn-demand sessions available as part of the event which you can choose to view at any time. |
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2 |
The workshop will have two main parts. In the first part, Lisa will provide information about autistic functioning, looking at the differences which an autistic person brings, compared to a neurotypical person, how it to live as an autistic person, understanding the world of an autistic person and getting a sense of how it is for them. Moving on to look at how counsellors might work with an autistic client, what counsellors need to be aware of, for example, how to form psychological contact and the relationship, how to attend to the environment, thinking about sensory issues for example, what we might ‘do’ to help facilitate. What we might need to be mindful of not ‘doing’ or assuming, for example addressing personal and body language which can be quite different. How all of this can be offered in a PC way. The aim of this workshop is for counsellors to raise their awareness and confidence levels in being equipped to help autistic clients. Lisa’s overall mission is to improve the experience of counselling for the autistic client group. |
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Autistic fatigue and burnout This session reports on the findings of a qualitative study to better understand the experience of autistic burnout. At the end of this session, attendees will be able to:
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This session will concentrate on the practical approaches to meeting the mental health needs of adults who have learning disabilities and are also autistic. We will also cover some of the limited research in this field. |
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5 |
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