Second opinion for autism assessment - has anyone had a different outcome?

Hello. I recently had an NHS assessment for autism, which I didn't think went very well. I was diagnosed with "autistic traits" but I am not very confident in the outcome, because there were so many problems with the assessment. For starters, I felt very rushed; I was told it would take up to 2 hours, but the clinician ended the assessment after 90 minutes. The clinician's phone went off a couple of times. I didn't feel that the clinician took things like high IQ, gender, and compensatory strategies into account. He was also very dismissive of points that I made, although it's hard to capture this in writing. For example, he said that bikes couldn't be my 'special interest' because I only have 3 bikes. He also said that there was 'nothing unusual' about having four pairs of identical shoes and wearing these constantly (for sensory and routine reasons) all year round, even in winter when they aren't appropriate.

I was very upset after the assessment, and have booked in for a private diagnosis in order to get a second opinion. It is incredibly expensive, but having waited so many years for my NHS assessment only to feel really unseen and unheard, I feel like I just want to get an answer that I can trust.

My question is: has anyone had a different outcome at their second assessment? And any tips for ensuring my second assessment is more positive than the first?

Parents
  • Very variable diagnostic accurracy. I have 5 bikes!

    How important is it to you to have an asperger or autistic diagnosis. You know you have features to run your life bearing that in mind.

    Private testing will always come up with more positive diagnoses

Reply
  • Very variable diagnostic accurracy. I have 5 bikes!

    How important is it to you to have an asperger or autistic diagnosis. You know you have features to run your life bearing that in mind.

    Private testing will always come up with more positive diagnoses

Children
  • Hello NAS51277. 5 is a good number of bikes. I'm jealous!

    It is important for me to know if I am autistic, one way or the other. I think a diagnosis would help me in terms of self-acceptance. I'd also feel more able to self-advocate when I need to, and to participate in forums such as this. 

    I guess I just want to know either way - and because my first assessment was terrible, I didn't feel confident with the answer. Hopefully next time I will.