Autism, Empathy and Alexithymia

There are 2 types of empathy, and people with autism lack cognitive empathy. They do not lack emotional (affective) empathy, however, and are caring and considerate of others.
I am Dr Beth Colby, a psychiatrist in London. Other videos on my Talk Mental Health channel include:
Common Mental Health Conditions:
10 Symptoms of Depression
10 Tips for Self Help for Depression (in 2 parts)
Treatments for Depression/What will Happen if I tell my Doctor I am Depressed?
What is Anxiety?
What is Generalised Anxiety Disorder?
Positive and Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Paranoia: Paranoid Schizophrenia, Persistent Delusional Disorder and Paranoid Personality Disorder
Bipolar Affective Disorder Explained
What is Autism?
Autistic Spectrum Disorder ICD-11 v ICD-10 v DSM-5
What is Panic Disorder?
What are Panic Attacks?
What is Mania?
Paranoid Personality Disorder
Histrionic Personality Disorder
Anxious Avoidant Personality Disorder
Dependent Personality Disorder
Schizoid Personality Disorder
Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder
Anankastic Personality Disorder
Psychiatric Terminology
Psychotic Disorders, Affective Disorders and Neurotic Disorders
What Happens When Somebody is Sectioned?
Sections 2 and 3 of the Mental Health Act
Who is My Nearest Relative?
Current Mental Health Issues and News
Suicides in Afghan Veterans
Coronavirus Panic
Coping with Coronavirus Anxiety
Coronavirus will Harm People's Mental Health
Loneliness
PTSD in COVID-19 NHS Staff
Eco-Anxiety
'Mini Versions', under 2 minutes long, of my videos include:
10 Symptoms of Depression
10 Tips for Self Help for Depression
Positive and Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Anxiety
Mania
Anxious Avoidant Personality Disorder
Paranoid Personality Disorder
Schizoid Personality Disorder
Histrionic Personality Disorder
Dependent Personality DIsorder
Translated videos include:
Into Kurdish:
What is Anxiety?
10 Symptoms of Depression

Into Farsi:
What is Anxiety?
10 Symptoms of Depression

If you would like me to do videos on any other topics, or have any questions, please write a message in the comments section.

[complexprincess]

Thank you for this wonderful & concise video addressing stereotypical misconceptions that I keep encountering even from people it seems "should" know better (like a therapist who has *multiple* autistic people in her family, including both her mother & daughter, so she apparently wrote a book about how lonely it is for a NT to love an autistic person & made sweeping generalisation like when the NT wants to experience & express their connection intimately but because even "high functioning" people with autism struggle with empathy such physical acts are just commodities

left a comment asking them to *please* consider how harmful these things can come across as & to look into alexithymia & a few other bits & bobs, lol. now trying to add a few more videos to my autism playlist made the last time stumbled upon someone speaking authoritatively about autism yet were sharing some similar outdated tropes iirc. glad my quest this time brought me to your video!

thanks again & happy new year!

[timefortee]

A great summary, thank you!

A question: I have found that most (nearly all, actually) reactions to stating that ASD entails problems with "Theory of Mind" by people who identify as autistic on online platforms (including YT) are highly defensive, some almost antagonistic. But just a sentence later, they admit they have trouble with it, rephrasing the statement. I mean, why? It's not a defect per se, they shouldn't be defensive about it. It's akin to Cluster B PDs having trouble with emotional empathy. Just a fact of life.

[g.dalfleblanc]

There is a far higher percentage of people with autism who also have alexithymia, but for someone to have a lack of empathy having autism is not required.
The problem is alexithymia.