In recent months, a coordinated retreat from the progress of neurodiversity has begun. What started as a trickle of “common sense” skepticism has turned into a flood of harmful narratives from scientists, politicians, and corporate giants. At the center of this is Dame Uta Frith’s recent TES interview, where she claimed autism is “not a spectrum” and dismissed sensory aids as having “no evidence.”
As a late-diagnosed autistic woman, a parent to two autistic children, and a professional supporting students in a sixth-form college, I see the reality of this “Great Regression” every day. It isn’t just a scientific debate; it is an attempt to dismantle our rights, our history, and our physiological reality.
The Scientific Erasure: Refuting the “No Evidence” Myth
Dame Frith’s suggestion that we should dismantle the spectrum in favor of distinct “types” ignores the genetic and physiological reality of families like mine. In my home, we carry the same neurodivergent traits, yet they manifest differently across generations. A child with high external support needs and a mother who has “masked” for forty years are not different “types”; they are different expressions of the same biological blueprint.
Furthermore, Frith’s claim that there is “no evidence” that ear defenders or noise-attenuating headphones help is factually incorrect. Peer-reviewed physiological research tells a different story. Studies utilizing electrodermal activity (EDA) have demonstrated that noise-attenuating headphones lead to a significant decrease in skin conductance levels and the frequency of non-specific stress responses (Pfeiffer et al., 2019). This is a measurable reduction in the “fight or flight” response. These tools provide a vital “protective effect” against environmental noise, even when an individual’s external behavior appears calm.
Systematic reviews (Piller et al., 2025) confirm that while broad “participation goals” vary, behavioral and physiological responses improve significantly when noxious environmental noises are attenuated. In my college work, these supports are often the only thing preventing a student from spiraling into sensory burnout. To dismiss them as “unproven” is to ignore the very biology of the autistic brain.
The Political War: “Overdiagnosis” and the NHS “Burden”
This scientific skepticism is being weaponized by politicians. Health Secretary Wes Streeting recently claimed there is an “overdiagnosis” of mental health conditions and neurodivergence, suggesting that this “explosion” in labels is slowing down the NHS and “writing off” people who could be working (March 2025).
This narrative frames our search for answers not as a quest for health, but as a “burden” on the state. It is echoed by Reform UK’s Richard Tice, who recently called the sight of children wearing ear defenders in classrooms “insane.” By pathologising our coping mechanisms and framing our existence as a capacity issue, the government is setting the stage to gatekeep the very support we need to survive.
The Return of Harmful Labels and the “Injury” Narrative
Some, including those mourning the removal of “Asperger’s Syndrome” from clinical manuals, argue for a return to rigid categories. Let us be clear: many in the autistic community have no wish to be associated with a name inextricably linked to a Nazi-era eugenicist. The unified spectrum model was a move toward dignity; retreating to labels used to “sort” children by their perceived utility is a moral step backward.
Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, the narrative has turned even more clinical. The “Tylenol/Acetaminophen” lawsuits and the surrounding political rhetoric frame autism as a “toxic injury” or a preventable epidemic. This “injury” narrative erases the identity of neurodivergent people, treating us as “damaged” versions of a “normal” person rather than a natural variation of humanity.
The Exhaustion of the Mask
The “backward narrative” relies on the idea that if you don’t “look” autistic, you aren’t struggling. This ignores the crushing weight of masking. The exhaustion of the mask is not anecdotal; it is the result of high physiological arousal and constant “sensory gating” required to perform neurotypicality.
If you ask any late-diagnosed woman who has finally felt empowered to drop the mask and use sensory supports, she will tell you: her exhaustion has plummeted. We are not “less autistic” because we can hold a job or a conversation; we are simply paying a higher internal price to do so.
Conclusion: We Won’t Go Back
From Merlin Entertainments rolling back accessibility passes for “invisible” disabilities to the corporate “Return to Office” mandates that strip away sensory control, the world is trying to force us back into a box that never fit.
We are not a burden, an “overdiagnosis,” or a “toxic injury.” We are a community with a shared, valid, and evidence-based physiological reality. We must move toward neuro-affirming, strengths-based support, rather than retreating into the rigid, harmful categories of the past.
Sources Cited:
* Pfeiffer, B., Stein Duker, L., Murphy, A., & Shui, C. (2019). Effectiveness of Noise-Attenuating Headphones on Physiological Responses for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders. Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience, 13:65.
* Piller, A., McHugh Conlin, J., Glennon, T. J., et al. (2025). Systematic review of sensory-based interventions for children and youth (2015-2024). Frontiers in Pediatrics, 13:1720179.
* Streeting, W. (2025, March 16). Interview on Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, BBC.