We have been asked to share details of two current petitions relating to the PDA profile of autism which you may be interested in signing/sharing: A petition to the UK Government & Parliament to Raise awareness and make Pathological Demand Avoidance a recognisable diagnosis - deadline 20th December 2019 A petition set up by Victoria Wilding calling for PDA to be recognised in the UK as a specific, diagnosable condition and added to the diagnostic manual. Victoria says "For my family we have been fighting for the correct diagnosis for ten years now and still we are left with no support. With PDA individuals can have better social understanding meaning (girls especially) they don't necessarily meet the criteria for a full autistic diagnosis. My daughter appears to socialise but it's surface sociability. I have been physically, emotionally and mentally abused by my fight for recognition. It should not be a post code lottery on whether or not you get help!" A petition to the Scottish Parliament & Government to create A toolkit for working with the Pathological Demand Avoidance profile of ASD - deadline 21st August 2019 A petition set up by Patricia Hewitt and Barbara Irvine calling on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to: 1. Draw up in co-operation with others, a toolkit for professionals to assist in diagnosing and designing therapeutic support for children, young people and adults who have Pathological Demand Avoidance, a profile within the autism spectrum 2. Offer training in the use of such a toolkit and additionally to signpost, promote and facilitate other training by those who have successfully developed therapeutic programmes 3. Provide access to appropriate education, therapies and interventions to reduce or minimise the effects of the condition for the individuals and their families and carers

Our theme this year is “Improving Outcomes” The focus will be two-fold … What is needed? A look back to the Being Misunderstood report launched on PDA Day 2018 to see what’s been achieved and what still needs to be done A focus on research following the meeting held in January Better understanding – launching a new video about ‘Demand Avoidance of the PDA kind’ and sharing resources/training opportunities Examples of good practice Showcasing existing examples of good practice from a range of sectors and seeking out others Encouraging everyone to award 'PDA stars' to individuals and organisations who have really helped (here's a sneaky peek of a new graphic created by Sally Cat which will be available to download and share from 8th May). Inviting everyone to make a 'PDA pledge' - saying what you're going to commit to do to help raise awareness, increase acceptance and/or take action about the PDA profile of autism (once again, here's a sneaky peek of a new graphic created by Sally Cat which will be available to download and share from 8th May). We’d like to encourage everyone to mark this day with us! Maybe, in addition to awarding 'PDA stars' and making a 'PDA pledge', you could ... plan a fundraising event – anything from a jumble sale to running a marathon (dressed as a panda perhaps?!). Pls, see our Donate page for details of how to support the PDA Society. You can also set up a fundraising event via Facebook . host a coffee morning or afternoon tea to help raise awareness and increase acceptance of PDA – we can send you leaflets to hand out or you can download/print from here and you can order items from our small range of merchandise here take the opportunity to take action about PDA … whether that’s sharing info with family, friends, teachers, social care professionals, clinicians … or setting up a local support group … or contacting your local MP/Autism Lead or local press ( please contact us if you'd like any help with this) help raise awareness by applying the PDA Day frame to your Facebook profile picture here do share your PDA Day activities with us too please via email or using #PDAday on social media.

Campaigning – PDA Society

Q: New Keys to Care for PDA resource

The PDA Society has developed a new resource: Keys to Care for PDA. This one page document has been written with specialist care settings in mind, but is applicable to all. It provides a brief summary of top tips and key points about the Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) profile of autism in an easy to digest format. Please download the Keys to Care for PDA resource and share widely .