It's going to take longer than I thought

Yes, that’s ok

I was going to type something here but will PM you instead - so I'll ping you a friend request if that's OK.

I feel like trying to forget about it is easier said than done because you’re right it does become an obsession. I’ve said this before but they really need to standardise the assessment and diagnostic  process across centres. I had two consecutive assessments and verbal diagnosis on the same morning, job done! That was stressful enough, but the amount of waiting around that you’re having to endure is an awful thing to inflict on members of a group who by their nature over think everything and tend to have higher than average levels of anxiety, it’s just not fair!

Thanks Kitsun, I have to try to forget about it now I think. Not easy when it's become your obsession! I can't help thinking that a bit more "expectation management" from the NHS would be helpful - but I know this can't be top priority.

What might be possible, though, is for NAS to collate peoples' experiences and provide some more narrative of what to reasonably expect, and at least then people would be better prepared for the timeline and potential twists and turns.

Thanks neekby. Yes ordinarily I would want to establish every possible timeline and calculate the 95% confidence limits and expected value of the time left to the end of the process :-). However, I always feel I'm being an annoyance when I call the clinic so I try to ask the bare minimum of questions. I think if it comes to needing further tests, I'm looking at months (& months) so I don't think that clarifying that will help at the moment (or at least, be worth the pain of calling again).

I’m really sorry to hear that you’ve got to wait even longer. Do you know what, I’ve decided that this whole adult diagnosis thing is just fraught with stress and anxiety BUT from reading a lot of other people’s reflections I am positive that this is just a phase and the head space that you end up in after the stress of assessment/diagnosis/adjustment is a whole lot better than the head space we all started off in prior to seeking assessment. Just take it one day at a time, that’s all any of us can do

Hang in there... It's hard, I was initially "It's not about the diagnosis..." but now I'm "I NEED TO KNOW!!!"

Also, don't underestimate the impact of a diagnosis (whichever way it goes)...

Would it help to find out the timeline if you did ned to be scheduled for ADOS? That way you could plan for the 'worst case' and set your expectations.