Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi All
I have always known there was something different/not normal about me, when I was a child I thought I was just naughty but as I grew older I tried looking for answers. Doctors took me at face value and dismissed my problems.
Finally at 33 I decided to have a private assessment and was diagnosed in April with High Functioning Autism aka Aspergers.
I started the PIP process in Jan this year citing reasons of depression, anxiety and autism, going into detail for each category I experienced issues.
At the atos assessment it appears I came across too "normal" and was scored zero points in all areas and they criticised my lack of diagnosis. This was especially frustrating when I told them at the assessment my diagnosis was scheduled within the week and once I had the diagnosis I called them to wait until I had the report to make their decision. They ignored this request and sent out their decision before I got the report.
I then went through the mandatory reconsideration outlining why I thought they had misunderstood me and the very unsuited physiotherapist (I don't claim to have any physical difficulties) judged me just like a book by the cover. This included my full diagnostic report, notes from my councillor that saw me within 4 days of the atos assessment along with medical records and further explanation from me.
So I was shocked when the reconsideration came back with zero points again saying how the report doesn't matter as it was after my atos assessment and during that time I came across with no issues along with saying I can drive a manual car which means doing multiple things at once and so I should have no issues. This has left me feeling really low and made me question the fairness and honesty of this system and I don't know if I have the energy to take this to tribunal even though I have nothing to lose.
Any help or advice would be very much appreciated.
They are slow and harsh. My appeal took 9 months and despite my deterioration I had my points reduced