For Monique Forde, it was a childcare worker who first noticed something was amiss with her eldest son.
Several years, lengthy waiting lists and a string of medical experts later, the then-eight-year-old and both of Ms Forde's younger children were diagnosed with autism.
Ms Forde, from Madeley in Perth's north, said the family's seemingly endless quest for answers was the norm for parents who suspected their child had the condition, which impacts social interactions and communication.
"A lot of the problems people are facing at the moment is the delay getting diagnosed, and the waitlist for therapy support," she said.
"So by the time you get to the point where you've got some services in place, they're already pre-teen.
"You're starting a lot later than what you should have and not through any fault of your own."
Ms Forde hopes the launch of Australia's first National Autism Strategy and its action plan on Tuesday will change this arduous timeline for countless other families.
The plan, which starts in January and runs until 2031, is the first of its kind.
Its key outcomes are to improve the wellbeing of autistic people, their social inclusion, economic inclusion, diagnosis, services and supports, and physical and mental health.
"It's just really badly needed," Ms Forde said.
"Young people need support now, before they move out of home and go out into the community.
"Without those supports, they're not going to know how to get into good patterns or be able to hold themselves in a job.
"They need allowances as they are different but sometimes you need to be able to just cope in the outside world."
Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said the strategy would be life-changing for autistic Australians.
"Addressing the barriers autistic people face in areas like education, employment and diagnosis is long overdue," she said.
In total, $42.3 million will be used to fund practical steps to achieve the aims of the strategy.
At the helm of these are $19.9 million across four years for a peer support program to provide advice for autistic people and $2.8 million across four years for a study to identify the prevalence of autism in Australia.
