About

Unmasking Autistic Burnout was founded by a group of parents who were brought together through an autistic burnout parent support group, founded by autistic advocate Viv Dawes and parent Charlie Bloom.

Like many families, we found ourselves navigating autistic burnout with little understanding or support from the systems around us. Through supporting one another, we realised our experiences were remarkably similar. Our conversations often returned to the same themes: unrecognised burnout; struggling to access appropriate support; and health and education systems that were often not equipped to respond effectively.

Alongside our shared frustrations, we also saw opportunities for change and how many of the harms families like ours experience could be prevented through greater awareness, earlier recognition and more appropriate support.

From those conversations, Unmasking Autistic Burnout was born.

“Don’t fall into despair, fall into community“

A popular saying in grass roots campaigning

Our first project has been to produce a white paper on autistic burnout in children and young people. It brings together emerging research, lived experience and practical recommendations to highlight the scale of the problem and set out the changes needed across education, health and social care.

Our goal is to help ensure that other families do not experience the same barriers, misunderstandings and missed opportunities that so many of us have faced.

The group is made up of parents from across the UK and beyond, with backgrounds spanning healthcare, psychology, education, research and other professions. Alongside our lived experience as parents, we bring expertise as a medical doctor, pharmacist, psychologist, researcher, teaching assistant and more.

Together we are committed to raising awareness of autistic burnout, improving recognition across services, supporting evidence-informed change, and ensuring that children and young people experiencing burnout receive the understanding and support they deserve.