On Dr Luke Beardon

I have recently read one of the most concise, informative, highly relevant and relatable books on Autism and Asperger’s ever! It was written by my favourite ‘rock star’ in autism research Luke Beardon. This is a book everyone could gain from, whether autistic or non-autistic.

He explains why the language we use around neurodiversity is so important, explains common misconceptions, myth-busts, and gives a brief but comprehensive overview of potential challenges that anyone with different processing pathways might have. From reading this book, it strikes me particularly that autistic people are often labelled as fix minded, however the opposite is closer to the reality. Neurotypicals (NT) can be very fixed minded, have particular rules and norms, that don’t often make sense. Autistic brains have so much breadth and scope and variety. Surely this is a trait that society should celebrate, encourage and attempt to be a lot more flexible for.

I especially enjoyed two parts of Luke’s book. Firstly, his explanation of the double empathy problem, “a lack of theory of mind across all neurological states” (pp16). Secondly, the series of ‘stories’ he uses to demonstrate the difference in communication and intent between NT and neurodivergent (ND) interactions, which can cause untold amounts of anxiety. I highly recommend this book to everyone. “Autism and Asperger Syndrome in Adults” by Dr Luke Beardon.