Book Review: The Autistic Survival Guide to Therapy by Steph Jones

A client recently mentioned this book, and I was immediately intrigued. The Autistic Survival Guide to Therapy is written by Steph Jones, who is a late diagnosed, autistic mental health professional. It is based on her experience as a therapist, her own personal experiences in individual therapy, and research she has done on the topic. It is written for autistic people who may be searching out therapy services, but I feel like it would be helpful for mental health providers to read as well. Ms. Jones does not hold back in her criticism of many professionals working in mental health. Using the character of “Veronica” she gives fictionalized examples of real therapy experiences to highlight many of the aversive things that autistic people have faced in treatment. I was both horrified and not surprised by what was shared, as many clients have shared similar past therapy experiences with me. I would definitely recommend this book to both autistic adults, and to mental health professionals. I appreciated the list of red flags to look for, as it gives autistic adults permission to discontinue services with a provider who is not a good fit for them. I have seen so many autistic adults stay in relationships of all kinds that aren’t healthy for them because their struggles with understanding social interactions and behaviors make them doubt themselves. I also appreciated information about how misdiagnosis can lead to incorrect and unhelpful treatment interventions. Overall, I highly recommend this book and hope that Ms. Jones writes more in the future!

Front cover, yellow book, with words from top to bottom, “The Autistic Survival Guide to Therapy , Steph Jones, Forward by Tony Attwood and Sarah Hendrickx. Between the title and author information is a blue coffee