Junaid Hussain's Advocacy for Autism Awareness and Acceptance

Welcome to Why Not Me the World?
Podcast hosted by Tony Mantor, broadcasting from Music City, USA, Nashville, Tennessee.
Join us as our guests tell us their stories.
Some will make you laugh, some will make you cry.
Real life people who will inspire and show that you
are not alone in this world. Hopefully you gain more awareness, acceptance,
and a better understanding for autism around the world. Hi,
I'm Tony Mantor. Welcome to Why Not Me the World?
Today Janadehssin joins us. We will be discussing his son,
which was diagnosed artistic, and Adhd will also discuss how
he found that he mirrored his son's behavior and was
diagnosed artistic along with Adhd as well. Thanks for coming
on the show today. Thank you so much all the
pleasures online. I understand that you practice medicine and became
a doctor in the UK.
So I'm a doctor in a state to be known
as the family medicine, the finishing a family medicinal physician.
I'm a primary a doctrine in the UK. So I
competed my training in twenty fifteen and I've been a
doctor set forth here in the UK. Also in the
Middle East, as well in terms of autism and add
and neurodivergence that came about at Canada forty five years
after my son's diagnosis autism or ADHD.
When was your son diagnosed artistic?
Are you diagnosed right at the beginning of twenty twenty?
It was about eight years old at the time. We
knew for many year he struggled with his mental health
and he did call even as a doctor myself to
pinpoint and find out why and what was happening.
We had learned discussion the different people.
Eventually a friend of mine, he's a psychiatrist, I spoke
with him and I said, it became worried, very.
Anxious, very depressed, and I don't know why. He's only
eight years old.
I don't know where that's a coming brom And through
to the usual questionnaires and spreading tools, he made a
former diagnosis what is expecting disorder and ADHD.
Once he was diagnosed artistic, you finally had the opportunity
to understand what was going on and the reasons behind
some of the issues that you thought he had. How
did that change him and how did that change your life?
Massively acute overstate how big the change was in our life.
So from his perspective, he eventually stayed what I A
a medicine called atomoxite, which is a type of antidepressant,
but he also worked for ADHD and it controlled his impulsivity.
He moved a significant amount of is that perfect with
all them, you know, autistic children and build nero divergent
to struggle with the emotional regulation. So struggled with that,
but it's in life change from someone who would be
impossible to teach in school and sit down and then
if someone is academically now you know, not priding yet,
but getting towards that state where he you know, he's
actually able to function and live.
So I'm from a family perspective.
You know, we're not seeing a child is sat on
the corner room crying and having out burst and hitting
the head against the wall literally and then you know,
becoming violent. So that was derratic for my own In
my own case, it was my my wife who saw
that my own behavior is mirrored to some of my sons.
So I was diagnosed with depression or depressive disorder back
in twenty ten, twenty and eleven, because that's what it
was assumed that it was the reality is that you
know it ain't the being autism as a diagnosed autistic
expect them disorder and ADHD as a diagnose.
Now that you have a better understanding of what's going on,
how has he adapted to the outside influences like friends, family,
and ultimately schooling.
So in his case we have to homeschool him.
He will struggled in an ordinary academic setting because of
the vulnerabilities that come with his no divergence. So he
has a prone to either bodying or to being a
follower in terms of following other children who perhaps may
push him into a particular path but not necessarily desirable.
So we're having to home for him or having some
private tutoring. Yeah, but his ability to be able to
interact with others is amazing. It must be better. His
ability to focus, his ability to compete past. At the
same time, there are some pervasive best distant symptoms that
haven't got better yet for which you require therapy. For
example's executive functioning. Getting him to complete his homework on
time and getting him to get.
Out of bed.
You have to literally dictate every step to him several
times for him to do it.
Is he eight years old. Now he's now okay.
So now you've known for the last four years that
he is indeed autistic, what do you see happening for
him within the next four years?
So the teenagers are, you know, are notoriously difficult when
you're not ne divergent, never mind with no divergence.
The added factor absolutely both very gary to think about
it and to see that's in the uncertainty gets involved
because I've never I was an undiagnosed new divergent child.
I had no idea how was But now I've got
a child who has that.
It's difficult and for us as a family and for him,
my priority is as a parent because I want him
to function with balance society. So I want him to
be able to hold down a job. I want to
be able to function within a work environment. I would
people interact with others. So the priority the next four
years for us and for him will be to develop
those skill it as him matures to allow him that
would give him that ability to self regulate both his
emotions but also his ability to work with others. So
our priority is that it would be very very interesting.
I managed to come back on four years to update you.
On that absolutely.
Now that you've seen him grow over the last four years,
what do you see from your friends, your family, and
the circle of people that you see on a consistent basis.
How did you see the changes from when he was
growing up not knowing with the issues that you were having,
to him being diagnosed to where he is now.
The newer diviss is not always well understood by this
if it's a relitively new emerging factor in the world.
To some family thankfully do understand and they've they've recognized rout.
Seeing that in a whole ddle things are not one hundred.
Percent right, and they've they've been able to understand that,
you know, this is a hay development that's.
Occurred in him, and they they're able to adapt for him.
For example, they don't come around to our house except
that if it was a warning twenty four hours in event,
so that he'll have to pry from his routines that
disrupted him and so on. So these are that thing
that made for some they look at him as this
is a destructive child.
Why is he behaving in this way? Why is he rude?
Why if he's not paying attend to white's not saying hello?
That kift his self being because he sees that, but
he doesn't necessarily understand why, because it is still very
much a journey with friends. It's interesting because he struggles
to maintain those friends type of relationships. He hasn't boys
his aide, he knows how many of those he truly
poor friends.
It's difficult to.
Say, again down to that naturally isolated mentality that develops
with autism and the neurodivergence.
So he struggled with developing friends to some astent or another.
Sure, Now do you have other children as well?
I do.
How's the interaction between your other children and him?
So again, and if as I don't I struggle to
interact with him and to understand him fully, then I
can imagine have difficulty his move his siblings that they
have struggled at times, that he requires not a little
bit more time to be supported, and then his siblings
that caused the disproportionality in terms of the time we
give to his child, that can really resent he requires,
you know, his fixations and the fact all for example,
he's very interested in politics and geography and war and
so whatever he needs the time on YouTube, he needs
a time to do the spertific things, but then the
Shiblians will the natural sitting rivalry. Whatever me my camera,
but my seting such. Thankfully they're not so physible with
each other, but the verbal side is there between them.
And it's difficult to get as a parent as well,
because you try to give equal waking to each child,
but there is a natural distarity because telling children unfortunately
require that little extra support, but the others don't. Necessarily.
Yes, that can be extremely difficult. I've spoken with several parents.
There's a common thread amongst most of them, and that
is that when their child gets focused on something that's
all they eat, breathe and sleep with. Is your son
like that? Does he get extremely focused on things that
he likes to do?
Absolutely so, he developed specific hyperbothosis and then he exceptionally
good of them, and he gets to extremely unextended very
quickly because he spend that much time on it. Either
danger at ends or with this and we go to
do with him is that it can go on regulation
that can become morbid at times. So let's take a
history as an example.
No, he wants to learn about World War one and
World War.
Two, and you know, build the battles and the trenks
and all these of military beer and everything to look great, wonderful,
all the maps and so on. But then way then
if you creep into morbid obsessions around what dying or how.
Did this oppear you?
And and you want to know the details and certain
things which are not necessarily age appropriate. So it's both
a massive strength when the focused, but it also unchecked
at the young age. Cards sometimes d to obsessions down
a bit morbid or a bit dangerous.
For the child of class. It can't be left unchecked.
Absolutely, there's a certain amount of things we have to
watch out for as parents. I've talked with several parents
that tell me that their child can have major meltdowns
and then some will say they have small amounts of meltdown.
How does he fall within that range? Does he have
them at all?
So he definitely has meltdowns, And we've had to work
with the speech and ananimous therapists and occupation therapists and
tychotherapists to understand those mountdown and those tributes and again
you know what what can lead to that eruption and
how to mitigate that brow There's various different strategies that
we use, but yeah, we do love to see with him.
So if he's not getting away with a particular thing,
he will begin to repeat himself. We get featured a
lot more, He'll become more aggresively raised his voids. He
even recognized himself. I'm going to have a mautdown and
he offenses. I need to do something I need to
basically can't quantify what it is that he needs to do. Yeah,
so at that point we need to put our mitigation
in place, so we have a weighted line page. For example,
we sit him down, we give him that focus, and
then the peo probably are away from from the previous
products as well.
I mean, once they're in a mountdown, that's it. You
can't do it. You have to ride that wave and
support them.
Through that and give him the five minutes, ten minutes,
fifteen minutes and in a seto.
I think getting.
Older and not intentionally, but as is getting older and
the mark sent no difficulty marriage, especially for the mother
because of him becoming physically stronger. He's able to push,
a push, stronger, punch and so on. So they can
hurt and we can be hurt a bit more, so
they can be difficult to marriage. But they left about
twenty to thirty minutes at parents by by severe no
no broken plates, no bruises, but the whole household CUSI stop.
You know, with the children have to go to another
part of the house. He has to have his own
pame to be supported because you need to release before
he goes back into it. As a more neutral emotional.
Sense, meltdowns and artism in general can have a real
strain on the family dynamic, and unfortunately around the world
it causes a lot of breakups and divorces. How did
you make your way through this? At first you had
no idea that he was autistic and he had all
those issues that he was concerned about. Then when you
found out, you had an idea of what you had
to do, which is still difficult. How did you as
a family survive that and navigate through it to stay strong?
The asking question? And remember that he was diverced before
I was.
So I was there as a autistic ADHD adult in
the same household and he's having meltdown.
The we're not to a wife having this is even disruptive?
What's the court for it? And so on? So the
diverss with a watershed mode.
We understand even then we will understand whatever his behaviors
for us as a family and you know, keeping us
together as a family.
The biggest and most helpful support first.
Came from the speech and language and occupational therapists, because
speachi and language in particular, it's much about talking a
little bit. It's about understanding him, understanding his behaviors, and
understanding how how.
He expresses himself.
So when we understood the physical and verbal cues that
were coming from him, that would and I re understood
this is a normal part of it. We were able
to understand that this is he's not being disruptive, he's
not being you know, he's not being a bad child.
This is just him and he cannot manage this.
And then you're my as a parent, you know, Nethew
switches to a natural parental mercy towards.
The child through being an agencated parent.
If my good wives, this child being so destructive to
actually my child, this is, this is who he is,
and he can't help this, and we need to help
him in this. He has so many wonderful, beautiful acturbutes otherwise,
and that this is just one part of him that
we need to help in order for him to see
the beautiful sides of him that are still there as well.
Yes, absolutely so.
A lot of people do not understand autism, so they
do not know the difference between a meltdown or a
kid having a tantrum. Yeah, did you have a difficult
time explaining that to him? That he wasn't doing these
things to be disruptive and unruly. He was going through
this because of his artistic characteristics.
Absolutely, once he had the maturity, which is about the
last year or two, to understand that, Yeah, he invented
himself because he's able to sign posts that he's about
to have a mount darrel, he's getting into a more
emotionally I state to state what I would say though,
is that I'm repeating that this meanted earlier. But I
think with ourselves in particular, that speech and language therapis
were very very good and in providing him with the
information in an accessible manner for him, and also provided
us as parents with that And and i'd say any
other parents who are listening to this as well as
this to be aware that if we do have that
sort of support available, professional.
Support, there they are.
They are there for a reason because they'd had that
still to be able to interact with the child they
think to them in their language. And yeah, once he
understood what happened to him in termally we understort as well.
It was a whole different dyalog and it has been
seen then we know, as I said, we know where
it went to put the mitigation in place as well.
Now the last four years you've gone through the evolution
of finding that he's artistic and dealing with his autism
within the family. Has that made you become more of
an artistic advocate within your practice?
Absolutely so I am so I talked about in the
work that I view a primary pay doctor and I'm
even within the medical they say difficult, but real gap
and understanding of autism, your divergence add and this still
conditioned out there who don't believe ADC is a real condition.
I think it's due to drinking too much and so on,
or she should be serious.
So yeah, through not necessarily through any any active looking
into advocacy, but I have in that sense become an advocat.
And I suppose from my background on British border rate
in the UK and background it's from Southeast Asia, compared
statut Asia and within this soil community as well.
This is a lack of understanding.
So being I've spoken about it and speaking about and
explaining what it is, I think it reaches a lot
more people and that understanding would improve with time. But
any kindition will struggle ultimately. Adits are the sort of new,
divergent conditions that unless you've lived it or seen it
in person, it carr something to be very very difficult
to understand. And let's they have a vested interest in
it if it can be difficult to understand that. I
appreciate where many conditions come from. But but yeah, might
I be a very small amount of work, but it's
important work in terms of gas But small, I mean,
it hasn't recent things I would like it to, but
it's but it's important.
Working under less in terms of explaining what it is
and making sure that people.
Are aware of what automatic healthy manage within a diverse
range of communities.
When I first started my podcast, I did not know
anything about autism. I didn't even have a simple basic understanding.
Now I believe that's the most important word that we
can use as a society is artistic understanding. What can
we do as a society, in your opinion, to bring
more understanding to the autistic community from those that aren't
autistic or don't know anything about autism, so that they
can have more empathy on someone when they might have
a meltdown in public, or they might have some of
their issues that they have, so that they can better
the community.
I think there needs to be a much more concertive
effort within the broader media.
Now, I mean, you see, what what can we do
as individuals?
I'd say, also, we can advocate, and we can you know,
we have interactions with people who can educate, but I think.
That's very limited.
So the problem is more widespreaded effects workcases, the effect
people die in hostly for example in the UK, or
the child who died in Hope. People was autistic dialet
in Hope because the one able to express the pain
that we're having. The clinicians will unsure what was going
on in beating the diet of sexistas interially misdipute that
all face started out to the problem is pervasive within
many aspects of society. When we look at the media,
autism is often you know, when you when you think
of autistic characters in movies and TV shows are often funny,
you know, they're often the weird one to have a
you know, a sort of weird uh or funny trait.
I mean, I'm not sure where you're familiar with a
character in the UK or mister B. It's a it's
a comedy about a man who you know, who doesn't
speak much. But but there's all this funny action and
it's a non sentible, so you could actions clearly based
on children may have autism and you're divergence. So when that,
when that when atic is buffed out across even media,
mainstream media as being funny, people to look at and
and and love that, and you know, isn't it funny
that they said that it's a blunt way and and
they speak in a direct way and and so on.
Then there's a lot of work to do. We we
we kind of individual to do our small amount.
But I think that the biggest and best way to
get that understan, I mean it is through it's as
much media so that people see it from the and
can hear it from from sources that need to hear
it and see it from.
Yes, we as people sometimes find humor the only way
to address something when it's uneasy to talk about. They're
really not lightening it up. They're really creating more of
an issue than they really realize. Unfortunately. The best thing
I think if we could find a way where people
could just sit down, communicate, like we are, put across
the things that need to be addressed so people understand
and that might just help them understand what the autistic
community actually has to deal with on a daily basis.
Absolutely absolutely, I think the work you didn't hear with
this absolutely vital any and every advocate they work. It's
essential because it all adds up, it all makes it
a little bit of difference. Even if there's two or
three people, one person it's benefiting this podcasts argue with,
then they didn't go on to influence other people.
It's a ripple effect.
And if it's essential, but it's essential that the autistic
voice is heard and understood. Like like you said, there's
one thing being heard that another thing being understood. Why
why why are autistic people working at lund in the
way they speak? Why why do they miss emotional and
social apeuse? How does that matterifest and how could that
affect the work that help.
With that effect? You know, their medical treatment.
Help could that effect the way they shot and the
way they you know, the work clothes they wear, why
they were closed in a particular way because of the
said street issues.
That they had.
Hey, hey, why why would a child struggle to listen
to you know, loud noises or music because of the sensories.
So it's all these I doult all these sort of.
Educational points I don't and eventually will make an impact,
but it's a slow jolly unfortunately.
Yes it is.
And you just brought up another topic, and that's one
of textures. Does your son have any issue with texture
of clothes or texture of food at all?
Absolutely?
So, for example, he has to wear he has to
tuck his trousers into his sacks. He can't wear his
socks touching his his anples. And he has to wear
particular fabrics. I can't rember type of more cotton based
and fabrics. He has to use his specific streon and
specific picture. He can't use other smooth other or other
sort of materials or the textures. So, yeah, he does
have that sensory aspect. He doesn't like to be touched.
He needs to air dry when he has a shower.
He can't use a towel to dry himself. He has
to sit there and and I don't have to dry
because he doesn't like to feel it even down to
head on the shower.
He needs to have a shower with very fat water.
He can't have it with cooler or cold water because
it makes him feel very uncomfortable.
So all these sense feet issues.
Are you know, they may sound very very milor to
people why, but it makes a huge difference to him.
He cuts his mood is an emotionally regulation through the day.
So in your practice, do you come across many artistic people.
One because you understand autism because you have an autistic
son and you were diagnosed. And two because people are
understanding that you have that in your family now.
So it did little bit.
It doesn't quite work with the States because in terms
of people come to see me. So this is an
acquie system. I get random people who will come to
me unnecessarily based in my microholio or my own experience.
But I hy do a lot of urgent care and
at work, so I would happy to bactually put the phone.
I can almost immediately tellies are I can almost immediately
tell the both who are have autism because of the
way and directness with their feet and the difficult to
anxiety that comes through the phone when they're trying to
explain their symptoms and if they any challenges, but they're
unable to and then take more time or they jump
from topically topic because they have there, you know, the
the new divergence in the ADHD.
That's I struggles that are caused them to struggle to focus.
So so yeah, I do to it.
Let's see it, and I make sure for my ag
I make sure I take more time with them because
it is necessarily able.
To do just justice to the needs that they that
they have.
I have more recently had period of children books and
come to me and again and to my wife has
all for advice. We had the experience as a child
and uh, we're having a child with autism and.
Also my soul. So we do get that.
But within my day to day work, yeah, but we
do get a lot of autistic people who do ring
up or who do come and see us. And the
challenges for me, now having had delived its flium, it's
a lot clearer and I'm able to meet they need
a lot better and a lot more easier than I
would have done historically. To be honest, I would I
would probably have been the tump of perditions if you
asked for care of fifteen years ago about adhd No,
that's it, that's the period, that's the condition of too
much to be.
Cereal, to mature, et cetera. But of whey my has
my has my mind changed?
What would you tell people that are just finding out
that their child might be autistic or is autistic, or
they're just finding out that they're autistic and they found
out later in life, what are some of the things
that you might tell them to help them understand and
start creating a pattern for their life that will better
it for the future.
And so there's there's a lot of advisity of this
in no particular order necessarily, but I would I would
start with make sure that you if you can afford
it and be able to get it, we have medical
cover for it, to get the professional assistant in early
for you to be able to understand your child, and
that could be related the diagnosis to be related to
the child. God could they understand because they will enter
school or they will enter the world and see that
they are different in some form or another o children,
So hiding the diagnosis from them, it does not want
any good.
To make sure that they understand why they are but
the way they are, and that you love them very.
Much, and no matter how they are and society will
begin to understand them, they should carry around the way
they are.
So that's the first thing.
The second thing I say that there is a big
overlap between ADHC and autists expecting disorder. So I think
around about thirty or forty percent of those autism have
add as a dual diagnosis, So not all behaviors that
come from autism are necessarily extained by of ADHD are
necessarily extained to autism. So if a children has further symptoms,
for example, they're really struggling to focus, their fidgeting a
moving around a lot, and they're unable to say still,
they look vapant a lot of the time, is there
in space rather than closer to the TV approprating on.
Our radio book.
Beware that there may be a dual diagnosis alongside the
autists expecting disorder, so they may further support or even
medication in that respect. The third thing I'd say is
that once once you know that the dinosis is there
and you will, no doubt start to look for resources.
I start to read more around the subject, and there
are particular resources. Protects is amazing, but there are resources
that I'd also say that are really really useful to
the professionals who really for me at least explain my
son's condition in a really easy to understand way. So
there is professor Tony Atwood who now lives in Australia,
but he's a British psychologist of Belie who there's a
fantastic work around ADHD and ADHD autism sorry and autism research, autistic.
Background, and he's even you know, even around the.
Effects that having you as a parent, because I noticed
a child is challenging in education. Seconds you know we're educated,
get to go home and have try without that child there.
You have a child with you, you know, essentially on
the weekends otherwise they have their.
Way to do all that.
You can't just dump them somewhere else and that will
haven't affected you and on your mental health. So you
can only help them if you look after yourself as well.
So make sure make sure that you have the support
either for yourself, you have people around if you understand
you or you building mechanisms that allow you to regulate
yourself as well.
Yeah, that's great information. I really have enjoyed this. I
want to thank you for coming on the show. I
think it's been a wealth of information.
Sony for having me at Beckersonas for the amazing work
you do here as well with this is really really
it's in incredible. Honestly, you have a greater balter respecting
me because it's an amazing and important effort and that
that you're doing that would be impactful for so many people.
And yeah, and it's it's an avenue for them to
understand definition better and for people that myself do you
have that diagnosis to be able to relay that information
to others as well and digestible matter gust for me.
Listen dude and make things today. Thank you so much,
Ding for your time, and thank you so much listen
good everything.
You did, thank you and the pleasure is all mine.
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