There have been multiple books about autism and others about chronic illnesses, but until now there wasn’t one that talked about both and what it is like to live with them. All Tangled Up in Autism and Chronic Illness by Charli Clement takes into consideration that there are many people who have both autism and chronic illnesses. Talking from their own experience, and incorporating the experiences of people they have interviewed, Clement has built a valuable resource.

The topics, listed as chapters, are:

    Navigating diagnosis and healthcare

    Everyday life

    Sensory needs

    Pacing and routines

    Education and employment

    Personal relationships

    Experiencing ableism

    Gender, medical misogyny and menstrual health

    Disability pride and disability joy

I found this book to be instrumental in helping me learn more about myself. Any doubts I had about my autistic identity were banished by the time I had finished it. I’m currently on a long waiting list for a formal assessment and have had to piece together information as I go along. It was great to finally have someone explain things like interoception, proprioception and the vestibular system in terms that relate to my chronic illnesses as well.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is autistic and chronically ill, but also to anyone who has not been diagnosed or self-diagnosed as autistic. There are a lot of overlaps with chronic illnesses, and many people have been overlooked and/or misdiagnosed due to medical bias. This is something that Clement discusses, and All Tangled Up in Autism and Chronic Illness may help you learn something new about yourself.