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Autism assessment and transgender

NAS66316

Hi I'm new here 

Ive just come home from my last appointment for the autism assessment in Sheffield. I feel very down and upset, they told me they understand that I have problems and said I hage traits of autism but are not willing to diagnosise me because I'm transitioning... Well for a start me transitioning has nothing to do with autism and shouldn't be an excuse and secondly I started transitioning and have been on hormone when I was 15. I'm 19 in 4 weeks exactly I think shouldn't mean anything neither.

Is there a way to appeal or something. I feel so let down by the NHS with this issue. Peers and teachers have always wondered if I'm autistic and treat me differently because of this. I was really hoping to get more help but I guess I'll have to struggle for however long I'll put up with all this again. 

Parents

  • Welcome to the forum,

    I'm sorry to hear that; it certainly doesn't seem very fair to me, especially given the indication of obvious traits and transitioning being given as the only reason. Do they bar menopausal women from a diagnosis? Teenagers going through puberty? I have very limited knowledge of transitioning, but hormonal changes don't seem to be a problem in those cases. Plenty of people get diagnosed while they're on psychoactive medications for depression, anxiety, etc., so medication, if that's how they classify your hormones, isn't a barrier per se. Nor do I know of any firm indication that transgender people are over or under represented among autistic people (I've heard of some indication that the proportion may be slightly higher, but with a group who are so often discriminated against, reporting and sampling biases seem as likely an explanation as any).

    Unfortunately, there is no guarantee of a second opinion in the NHS; you're free to ask for one, but it may be refused. I've never read of anyone who's tried it for an autism diagnosis, though; and with autism units so thin on the ground, it's possible there may be no-one available to get a second opinion from. So discrimination policy may be where you would need to look. If you get no joy with the autism people directly, I'd suggest getting in touch with your local Citizen's Advice Bureau - they often have staff who specialise in disability issues, and whenever I've used them, their competence has always amazed me given how hard worked they are these days.

    Best of luck finding a resolution, and best wishes.

Reply

  • Welcome to the forum,

    I'm sorry to hear that; it certainly doesn't seem very fair to me, especially given the indication of obvious traits and transitioning being given as the only reason. Do they bar menopausal women from a diagnosis? Teenagers going through puberty? I have very limited knowledge of transitioning, but hormonal changes don't seem to be a problem in those cases. Plenty of people get diagnosed while they're on psychoactive medications for depression, anxiety, etc., so medication, if that's how they classify your hormones, isn't a barrier per se. Nor do I know of any firm indication that transgender people are over or under represented among autistic people (I've heard of some indication that the proportion may be slightly higher, but with a group who are so often discriminated against, reporting and sampling biases seem as likely an explanation as any).

    Unfortunately, there is no guarantee of a second opinion in the NHS; you're free to ask for one, but it may be refused. I've never read of anyone who's tried it for an autism diagnosis, though; and with autism units so thin on the ground, it's possible there may be no-one available to get a second opinion from. So discrimination policy may be where you would need to look. If you get no joy with the autism people directly, I'd suggest getting in touch with your local Citizen's Advice Bureau - they often have staff who specialise in disability issues, and whenever I've used them, their competence has always amazed me given how hard worked they are these days.

    Best of luck finding a resolution, and best wishes.

Children
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