Hi everyone,
This is my first time posting here, so apologies if I get things wrong!
I'm looking for some help, advice and a little guidance on how I can best support my older sister. She is (finally) about to be assessed for autism - we are certain she is autistic - after a lifetime of it being ignored. She's 34. We grew up in a neglectful household and suffered abuse so her autism was something that was brushed under the carpet. This has, understandably, been very damaging for her.
She is high functioning so is able to live on her own and holds down a reasonable job (just about) but does require help in terms of hygiene standards and the more complex things in life such as making sure she's not paying too much in bills etc.
It has taken her a very long time to come to terms with the fact that she needs to be assessed as a result of being constantly told that she was just "a bit stupid", "lacked common sense" and "is bone idle". Now, with a lot of gentle encouragement, she has asked for help.
The support she has with this is very much limited to just me and my husband, which is a daunting thought but I don't want to get it wrong for her...After so long without support it is the very least she deserves to have someone be there to help her. So, my question is, how do I make sure I do that?
She has her assessment this week and she has asked the assessing team if I'm allowed to join her, which they have agreed to. But other than helping her to articulate what she means when she asked me to, and giving my point of view if it is required, I'm not sure what is helpful for me to be asking at this stage that might be useful for the future.
Also, has anyone else had experience of diagnosis this late on? How did you/the person you supported cope with it? I'm concerned that while she might consider herself prepared, when it becomes a reality it may upset her.
Any help is massively appreciated.
