According to Gadsby, people with autism have an increased sensitivity to traumatisation because they find it difficult to communicate and regulate their emotions. They are also more likely to be victimised. A recent study revealed that women who are diagnosed with autism are three times more likely to have experienced sexual abuse.

Currently, around 700,000 people in the UK are on the autism spectrum. Together with their families, autism is part of daily life for around 2.8 million people. However, it’a more common for men and boys to be diagnosed with autism, but some experts believe this is due to women and girls being adept at masking their difficulties.

Gadsby says that while her autism made life as a comedian difficult in some ways, it has also been helpful in others. Studies have shown that brain regions associated with recognising patterns tend to light up more in people with autism than the average person – and she says that the success of Nanette is partly due to this ability to see patterns.

“Having the framework of autism boils down to not looking out to the world to see how I should exist, but knowing I don’t actually have to be social, knowing that it exhausts me and that I will get confused and look like an idiot,” Gadsby said.

She continued: “Because I also know that I understand things a lot deeper than a lot of people.”

You can read more about Nanette here.

Images: Getty / Instagram

Nanette’s Hannah Gadsby reveals how autism diagnosis transformed her