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The purpose of this paper is to explore the experience of intimate relationships of women who have been diagnosed with Autism in adulthood.

Semi-structured interviews were used to interview eight participants. The data were transcribed and analysed using the interpretative phenomenological analysis method.

Four overall themes were identified. These included “Response to the diagnosis and receiving more information about Autism”, “Factors influencing dating behaviour”, “Sex and sexual experiences” and “Experience of intimate relationships as a person with Autism”.

The results of this study have implications for both research and clinical practice as it highlights the areas in which women newly diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) could benefit from support.

The study hopes to add to the limited existing research on adult women with ASD.

To date no similar research has investigated the same phenomenon through a similar method.

Child psychiatrist Leo Kanner (pronounced “Konner;” Feinstein, 2010, p. 19) published a ground-breaking paper in 1943 that introduced the world to the present-day concept of autism (Fombonne, 2003; Goldstein & Ozonoff, 2009; Roth, 2010). Prior to Kanner, however, several physicians described the condition of autism without identifying it as such. A textbook published in 1809, titled Observations on Madness and Melancholy, contained a description of a boy whose symptoms fit the modern definition of autism (Feinstein, 2010; Vaillant, 1962). The book's author, Dr. John Haslam, wrote about a 5-year-old male who was admitted to the Bethlem Asylum in 1799 with a medical history that included a case of measles when he was 1 year old. The boy's mother claimed that at age 2 years, her son became harder to control. She also indicated that he did not begin to walk until he was 2½ years of age and did not talk until he was 4 years old. Once hospitalized, the boy cried only briefly upon separation from his mother and was “constantly in action” (Vaillant, 1962, p. 376), suggesting that he was hyperactive. Hyperactivity is a characteristic commonly found in children with ASDs (APA, 2000; Wicks-Nelson & Israel, 2009). Although this child watched other boys at play in the hospital, he never joined them and played intently with toy soldiers by himself. The boy could not learn to read and always referred to himself in the third person (Vaillant, 1962). Grammatical errors in speech can be observed among individuals with ASDs (Roth, 2010; Wicks-Nelson & Israel, 2009).

Children and young people with comorbid intellectual disabilities (ID) and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are more likely to exhibit comorbid mental health disorders (MHD) and other significant behaviours (SB) in addition to the core symptoms of ASD. The purpose of this paper is to identify the prevalence of comorbid MHD and behaviours in children and young people with ID and ASD in Egypt.

The Reiss scale for children’s dual diagnosis was administered by parents and teachers of 222 Egyptian children and young people with mild/moderate ID and ASD to screen for MHD and SB. The mean age of children and young people was 12.3 years (SD = 3.64), with 75.6 per cent male.

The results revealed that 62.2 per cent of children and young people with ID and ASD had high rates of comorbid MHD and behaviour disorders were shown in 64.4 per cent of the participated children and young people. The results identified anger, anxiety and psychosis being the most frequently diagnosed disorders while crying spells and pica were the most SB. No differences were found between the male and female with ID and ASD in the current study.

Mental health assessment of children and young people with ID and ASD will help to highlight the needs of these vulnerable children and develop the appropriate services.

The findings highlight the prevalence of MHD in children and young people with ID and ASD in Egypt. This has implications on the assessment of comorbid disorders and services needed for children with ID and ASD in Egypt.