Andrea Thomas

Marathon running mother of 4

[Andrea Thomas @GuildfordRunner]

@ABridgen You can withdraw them from all of RE including Christianity. As an atheist I objected to mine being indoctrinated in Christianity as it was not taught objectively. You can also withdraw them from religious preaching in assembly

[Daniel Hewitt @DanielHewittITV]

🔺Investigation

“Parents are treated as the enemy…I just love my daughter.”

Testimony of hundreds of families who’ve contacted us about their relatives with learning disabilities in care are heartbreaking.

Calls for law change are growing
https://t.co/ZVDWq6dzd5

[Andrea Thomas @GuildfordRunner]

@DrCJ_Houldcroft How about also encouraging them to get the meningitis B jab too? (which is only available privately) or campaigning to make it available to students on the NHS?

[Prof James Davies 💭 @JDaviesPhD]

"Neurodiversity advocates ignore the harsh realities of severe autism... They’ve done a good job of hijacking the message & monopolising the discourse... controlling the narrative so tightly that people like my sons will have no choice in the world."
https://t.co/5Lq3l5sfNp

[Andrea Thomas @GuildfordRunner]

@JDaviesPhD Absoultely!

[Andrea Thomas @GuildfordRunner]

@naomicfisher Does masking also resonate with non-autistic people? Perhaps it's something most of us do to some extent, If this is the case perhaps it should not be considered a disability or autism just something that we do!

[Andrea Thomas @GuildfordRunner]

@JDaviesPhD And sadly it has taken away recognition and support for those who have severe/Kanner/classic type autism, who are often non-verbal, require a lifetime of care and cannot advocate for themselves because others think it's some kind of identity.

[Naomi Fisher @naomicfisher]

Uta Frith, renowned autism researcher, gives an interview to the TES about autism – and the internet goes wild. We’re told that what she said will put back progress 40 years, that she knows nothing about autism, that she lacks critical thinking and that her words will harm autistic people to the point of suicide.

You’d guess she must have said something really awful. Perhaps something deeply offensive about autistic people which reveals her lack of compassion and understanding. Even then, it’s hard to know how one retired academic would have the power to make others commit suicide and to turn back progress to the extent that is predicted.

What she said was that she thinks the autism spectrum has expanded too far and that it isn’t helping anyone. Not those who originally received autism diagnoses, and not those who are now getting diagnoses who previously would not have done. She said that she thinks scientific progress is being held back because ‘autism’ now means something so heterogenous that we can’t identify anything that all autistic people share. Nothing biological or neurological, nothing cognitive, nothing behavioural. In her words, there are no markers.

The autism spectrum is, in fact, the widest spectrum imaginable. It goes from some of the most disabled people in our society to some of the highest achievers. And there’s no evidence that they have anything in common except their diagnosis.

Saying this sort of thing gets you into a lot of trouble online. There are accepted narratives that we are all expected to comply with, and one is the idea that the giant autism spectrum is protective, that it helps people to be included under one diagnosis. Any language which helps people differentiate is banned. Which is odd, because we don’t think that in any other area of medicine. No one says (for example), that we shouldn’t differentiate between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes because it’s protective not to be able to talk about the differences. It’s obvious that differentiating between types of diabetes will lead to better understanding and interventions.

If you don’t comply with these narratives about autism – as Uta Frith hasn’t – then you will be publicly shamed. Your expertise will be challenged, even if you have 60 years of experience. You’ll be told that you are harming people and that you are ignorant. Personal slurs are likely to be used against you.

And it’s all about social control. Shame is about social control. It’s about creating things that can be said, and things that can’t be said. Others see the shaming and keep quiet.

It’s about controlling the narrative so that real discussions can’t be had. I’ve talked to so many clinicians who raise these concerns with me and who then say that they’d never speak up, for fear of shaming and even losing their job. There are important things that are not being talked about, for fear of the repercussions.

To my mind, the interesting question is really why. Why is it treated like blasphemy to say that the vast autism spectrum may no longer be fit for purpose? Why are we not allowed to discuss the reality of clinical practice?

Why are personal attacks the go-to when scientists disrupt the prevailing narrative? And why are we all so compliant, censoring ourselves to avoid the discomfort of shame?

Listen to our podcast with Uta Frith here. https://t.co/e4UoDdKTIe

[Right To Life UK @RightToLifeUK]

😱 This is appalling!

In the Netherlands, a significant number of individuals who have been euthanised have had autism or intellectual disabilities, and there had been little attempt to understand whether these individuals had the capacity to consent to this.

[Andrea Thomas @GuildfordRunner]

@MartinSLewis Absolutely it was worth it, but I think the experience and costs were very different then. I studied Biochemistry at Surrey university (1988-1992), met my husband and was a very keen member of the climbing club. After graduating, I secured a well paid job in the pharma industry

[Liberal Democrats @LibDems]

It’s Always Sunny in Surrey ☀️

[Sonia Sodha @soniasodha]

The misogyny of gender ideology illustrated in a handful of lines. Men are men but women are “people with a womb and ovaries” 🤮

[Collin Rugg @CollinRugg]

NEW: The Australian "In-Sync Twins" give an update on their mother after she came face to face with a carjacker.

Fantastic.

The twins also told a story about the time they were separated for over two weeks.

They also answered questions regarding their "romantic" lives.

Video: The Project.

[Private Eye Magazine @PrivateEyeNews]

Adolescence. Will these dangerous teenage boys all end up in cells?

The new Private Eye is out now

[Special Needs Jungle @SpcialNdsJungle]

Parents of disabled child arrested by Hertfordshire police for complaining about daughter’s primary school. 😵😵
https://t.co/MN77jq3jop

[Peter Stefanovic @PeterStefanovi2]

I’m joining @TrussellUK in calling on the government to rethink its plan to slash payments and rip support from disabled people who most need our collective protection

If you oppose the government’s cruel & shameful proposals please RT this widely

[John McDonnell @johnmcdonnellMP]

This story exemplifies why disabled people are so fearful of the Government’s plans to cut benefits. Recently I urged the government to establish an independent body to investigate DWP related deaths as recommended by renowned researcher Mo Stewart. https://t.co/8N89SOjnCG

[Sir Michael Take CBE @MichaelTakeMP]

To insult two highly respected and free thinking politicians like this is disgraceful.
It just shows how far standards in society have fallen.
Anyone reposting this insulting photograph should feel utterly ashamed.
😡

[Peter Stefanovic @PeterStefanovi2]

DWP benefit cuts to push over 250,000 people into poverty - including 50,000 kids

The damning conclusion is contained in the Department for Work and Pension's own analysis published after Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered the Spring Statement

https://t.co/Gut1f2zJWD

[Zack Polanski @ZackPolanski]

Curious that when I had this conversation with Torsten Bell a couple of years ago...

He never mentioned his plans to be a Labour MP and push for devastating welfare cuts particularly for disabled people.