Getting a diagnosis- afraid about this process

Hi Sophie,

I too am a constant worrier and as I got older, my anxiety and stress got worse (It's supposed to get better as you get older). With my eldest son diagnosed a few years ago with Asperger's, my GP said that maybe there was another underlying reason for my anxiety etc. Routine is important to me ie I have worked for the same company for 32 years, eat a very narrow range of food, hate travelling and like to holiday in the same place (much to the annoyance of my wife), I even listen to a narrow range of music (Deep House). I have obsessional tendencies especially with wrist watches.

In the work place, as I am an Engineer, my logical and visual thinking brain makes me pretty good at my job. On the flip side, although I get on with people OK, I am not especially diplomatic sometimes and this has got me into trouble a few times and this was another reason to seek help from the GP

I decided to write 8 pages of notes, documenting my quirks and anecdotes, He referred me to a Private Psychiatrist who spoke to me for nearly two hours and concluded that I had Asperger's. He recommended a full assessment and I saw two Psychologists from Hampshire & Surrey Psychologists.

Before I saw the Psychologist for the first time, I was sent a whole lot of forms including the AQ and EQ forms - I scored 42 on the AQ form and 7 on EQ form (I think)

The first 1hr45 session was to decide if I needed a full assessment - ie they had to decide whether they thought that I did actually have Asperger's. They asked me, what I understood about Autism, and generally what my day to day life was like, So I talked about my anxiety, my over-thinking, how I had to rehearse social situations and what to say. I also mentioned my fussy diet and my sensitivity to sounds and smells.

The Psychologist agreed that I would benefit from a full assessment and then saw another Psychologist for the ADOS test. This is the observational test, where you look at a story, some pictures, solve a puzzle, make up a story and answer some directed questions.

The next meeting was with my wife - she didn't believe that I had Asperger's but accepted that I had problems in social situations eg I always get her to deal with ordering and paying in shops, pubs etc.

The Psychologist couldn't delve into my childhood as they needed a parent to ask, so this bit was skipped over.

A month or so later I got my second diagnosis of ASC (Autism Spectrum Condition) with a footnote to say that I would have been diagnosed with Asperger's under the older classification.

Since then, I have had some modifications to work but nothing has really changed, although I really rely on my noise cancelling headphones to get through the day now :)

I would suggest that before your session, that you write about your day-to-day like and if possible email it in advance (although it sounds like you don't have much time) - you are bound to forget a lot of important stuff in the meeting. 

Finally, I would suggest going on your own and in any case the "Specialist" will want a 1:1 anyway.

I hope it goes OK :)

Hi Sophie,

I too am a constant worrier and as I got older, my anxiety and stress got worse (It's supposed to get better as you get older). With my eldest son diagnosed a few years ago with Asperger's, my GP said that maybe there was another underlying reason for my anxiety etc. Routine is important to me ie I have worked for the same company for 32 years, eat a very narrow range of food, hate travelling and like to holiday in the same place (much to the annoyance of my wife), I even listen to a narrow range of music (Deep House). I have obsessional tendencies especially with wrist watches.

In the work place, as I am an Engineer, my logical and visual thinking brain makes me pretty good at my job. On the flip side, although I get on with people OK, I am not especially diplomatic sometimes and this has got me into trouble a few times and this was another reason to seek help from the GP

I decided to write 8 pages of notes, documenting my quirks and anecdotes, He referred me to a Private Psychiatrist who spoke to me for nearly two hours and concluded that I had Asperger's. He recommended a full assessment and I saw two Psychologists from Hampshire & Surrey Psychologists.

Before I saw the Psychologist for the first time, I was sent a whole lot of forms including the AQ and EQ forms - I scored 42 on the AQ form and 7 on EQ form (I think)

The first 1hr45 session was to decide if I needed a full assessment - ie they had to decide whether they thought that I did actually have Asperger's. They asked me, what I understood about Autism, and generally what my day to day life was like, So I talked about my anxiety, my over-thinking, how I had to rehearse social situations and what to say. I also mentioned my fussy diet and my sensitivity to sounds and smells.

The Psychologist agreed that I would benefit from a full assessment and then saw another Psychologist for the ADOS test. This is the observational test, where you look at a story, some pictures, solve a puzzle, make up a story and answer some directed questions.

The next meeting was with my wife - she didn't believe that I had Asperger's but accepted that I had problems in social situations eg I always get her to deal with ordering and paying in shops, pubs etc.

The Psychologist couldn't delve into my childhood as they needed a parent to ask, so this bit was skipped over.

A month or so later I got my second diagnosis of ASC (Autism Spectrum Condition) with a footnote to say that I would have been diagnosed with Asperger's under the older classification.

Since then, I have had some modifications to work but nothing has really changed, although I really rely on my noise cancelling headphones to get through the day now :)

I would suggest that before your session, that you write about your day-to-day like and if possible email it in advance (although it sounds like you don't have much time) - you are bound to forget a lot of important stuff in the meeting. 

Finally, I would suggest going on your own and in any case the "Specialist" will want a 1:1 anyway.

I hope it goes OK :)