More than one in ten of the UK’s population have the developmental disorder of autism, yet according to one Plymouth student there is still a lot of stigma and a lack of understanding about the disorder.
Emma Taylor is an 18 year old student at YMCA Plymouth’s Discovery College, studying Health & Social Care. Aside from studying on her course she also spends a considerable amount of her time lending her hand at YMCA’s Disability Trampolining club, soft play sessions and helping out at her local church. Emma also has autism, but says that’s no barrier, despite what people may think.
Emma says:
“There’s still a lot of stigma around autism, many people still don’t know what it is, they just have a perception of it being negative”
Emma has set out to challenge the stereotypes around autism, not only by setting an example, but also through her college study.
“I’m currently doing a research project as part of my Health & Social Care course and I’ve found there is really a lack of understanding about what autism is. Besides this, many people feel it is portrayed as something negative in the media. But equally, I’ve found people do want to understand Autism better, so that’s what I’m trying to do.”
According to the NHS definition, autism is a spectrum of conditions that ‘affect a person’s social interaction, communication and a person’s interests and behaviour’. These symptoms can include a lack of understanding of other people’s emotions, having difficulty with language, as well as wanting to keep to a routine.
“I say my mind just works differently to other people, I do get stressed with lots of people. I also get anxiety with new people and can struggle with my communication” says Emma.
Despite the challenges, Emma discovered a passion for volunteering last year when she had a placement at a local nursery and found using her own experience with Autism helped her to relate with other children.
“I saw a young girl who had autism and was quite isolated, other staff had tried to engage with her without much affect. I could relate with how she felt from my own experience so I went to play with her in a way that would help encourage her.
“It really worked and I noticed a big difference in her, she came out of her shell a lot. It made me feel really good to see the difference and that I could use my own experience to help others. Ever since then I decided that’s what I wanted to do for a career.”
Helping others also goes hand in hand with helping yourself says Emma, finding that volunteering has also helped her with some of her own difficulties.
“Through my volunteering at the YMCAs Inclusive trampolining club, I’ve been able to help out more. It was outside of comfort zone and talking to parents made me anxious at first, but it’s really helped me become more confident. I even saw someone I knew from the club in town the other day, and went up to talk to them, something I never would have done previously.”
With so many opportunities in Plymouth Emma thinks more people should get involved with volunteering, no matter what your ability, and that people shouldn’t see autism or disability as a barrier to helping out.
“I would say to anyone just do it, especially people with autism, it will really help improve your confidence and skills. Just look for something and give it ago.”
To find out more about volunteering at YMCA Plymouth, their YMCA Inclusive sport programme, or Discovery College, visit YMCAPlymouth.org.uk or call 01752 201918.
