Transcript

ILONA:

In what ways do you think having autism affected you when you were growing up?

ALEX:

The main one, I think-- and this is the same for I would say anybody that's a bit different, is that the bullies like to pick on people who they think are different because it gives them satisfaction. So I think I was bit more prone to bullying, and I was bullied at school. But I got through it.

ILONA:

How do you think you managed to get through that? What strategies did you use?

ALEX:

Took me a while to learn them, but quite often, the best thing to do I'd say is ignore them. Because they want a reaction, and if you don't give it to them, I've learned-- and this is what people have told me, they'll find someone else. So just ignore them.

ILONA:

And apart from the bullying, can you tell us about any other particular problems that your autism caused you when you were a child?

ALEX:

This isn't so much of an issue now, because I've met some really great people as I got older, but I would say when I was at school, I didn't have especially that many friends. I only had about three or four. But now, I know a lot of people, so I'm getting better. And obviously going to work and studying, I've met all sorts of people with similar interests to me, so that helps.