• Replies 4 replies
  • Subscribers 83 subscribers
  • Views 1180 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Options
Related
Hints and tips
  • To quote someone's message, first select/highlight the relevant text, and then use the Quote button that appears
  • To "mention" someone, type @ followed by the start of the forum name, and choose from the list; that person will get a notification of being mentioned

CBT stopped due to impending autism diagnosis

PINARELLO F8

Hi everyone

I went to see my GP a few months ago because I was suffering with severe anxiety and was referred to IAPT for CBT 

CBT started well for the first couple of sessions and I was responding to the therapy until we realised I probably had Aspergers. This completely derailed the therapy and by sixth session I was actually more stressed and anxious than at the start. I asked for a few more sessions but was told it was out of the question

The CBT therapist referred me for an autistic diagnosis which would be in about 3 months time and said that I would receive an intensive course of CBT lasting 12 weeks in about 6 months time.

I went away and tried to cope with my anxiety/stress/suicidal thoughts on my own. After a week I really wasn't coping so phoned IAPT for help. They refused and also told me I wasn't being put forward for the intensive CBT course. They said I had been told  in error

I am assuming that IAPT are waiting for the outcome of the autism diagnosis before committing themselves to further treatment ??

Surely the outcome is irrelevant ??

I found CBT helpful but six sessions is inadequate. I was really looking forward to more sessions to help my anxiety (NICE recommend 12-20 sessions)

Does anyone know if the CBT will be re instated once they receive the diagnosis whatever the outcome?

Thanks

James

  • Based on my own experiences, I'm not at all sure that IAPT will be able to offer you much anyway.  The service is largely CBT driven (OK if this appeals to you and you have a good therapeutic relationship) but also time limited and AFAIK they have no particular knowledge of autism.  

    After my GP agreed to refer me for an autism assessment, I was given a key worker with the (admittedly horribly named) Affective Disorders Team plus also 16 sessions of CAT (cognitive analytica therapy) with a psychologist in that team.  I'd say these were fairly helpful while I was waiting so they might be worth asking about, particularly if you're not feeling safe or not coping in the meantime.  

  • Not directly relevant but I was referred for counselling once but after two initial assessment sessions the counsellor said that she thought I might be autistic and declined to offer me any further counselling. (According to the counsellor people with autism have different emotions from non-autistic people and although counselling can work with autistic people it takes longer. I am not sure I entirely agree with her but that's what she said.) At the time I didn't think I was autistic and I pursued a diagnosis as much to prove her wrong as anything else. I was eventually diagnosed with ASC, specifically Asperger's.

    To answer your questions if you are autistic then you may benefit more from cbt from a person who is familiar with autism or cbt which is adapted for autism although it is hard enough getting cbt in the first place let alone adapted cbt. I doubt the cbt will be reinstated whatever the outcome.

  • in reply to Trogluddite

    I fear it might be your 3rd point

    but hopefully its the 4th

    Could be the 2nd - IAPT guidelines state that patients should receive 6 sessions of CBT initially (termed level 2)  and then stepped up to 12 intensive sessions (level 3) if necessary OR stepped out to another service (in my case autism diagnosis service) but the diagnosis service isn't therapy!

    Thanks for your comments

  • I can't tell you for sure because it depends what the reason is, but I have heard from people on-line of strange cases of being refused counselling either when an assessment was pending, or even after diagnosis. There are a few things I can think of or have heard of, but I can't say how accurate any of them are in your case:

    • The intensive counselling referral may have required approval from the local CCG. My GPs first two attempts at getting me an autism referral were refused because the CCG determined that my case didn't warrant the funding, even though the suggestion had been made by an IAPT worker (there was only a private provider available at the time, not the NHS one that eventually diagnosed me.)
    • There could be some kind of inter-departmental rule that's being followed. I've heard people say that sometimes you can't be officially under the care of more than one service in some cases. I'd be surprised if its this because they're only referrals at this point, but it could be.
    • That for some reason the IAPT doesn't take autistic people as patients, deeming them to be local social services' responsibility, and so is waiting it out.
    • That the IAPT is waiting to see whether you might need an autism-specialised counsellor. This could be a good thing, but given the state of services seems a little unlikely. I did see an autism-specialised counsellor through my IAPT, but this was by luck rather than design; I was initially assigned to a regular counsellor who swapped cases with a colleague who had happened to work with autistic people before.

    I'd have a word with your GP initially as they might be able to see any notes added to your computer records by the IAPT.