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How do I (adult female) ask my GP for assessment??

Peace Lily
over 3 years ago

I’m really worried and am putting off approaching my GP for an assessment. 

Does anyone have any tips on how to have this conversation as an adult female? 

Parents
  • over 3 years ago

    Hi & welcome.

    It's worth having a search on this forum, there are a few recent threads in recent years discussing this in detail. The "Related" links on the right hand side of this page are sometimes useful.

    See also: https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/what-is-autism/autistic-women-and-girls

    I'm not female, but in general I suggest gathering some "evidence" to present to your GP...

    • Results of online autism tests (such as AQ-50)
    • List examples of issues you experience wrt typical autistic traits (eg: What is Autism?)
    • Childhood examples of autistic behaviours (the assessors in my pre-assement interview were particularly interested in this)

    My GP was very supportive, but I have been seeing her for years prior to asking for a diagnosis so she was aware of some of the anxiety and related issues I had before realising I was autistic.

    If your GP isn't supportive, there are other avenues such as self-referral to the mental health team.

    Be prepared though - the waiting list for NHS assessment in some areas runs to years. Private diagnosis is possible if you have the ~£1k to fund it and don't want to wait.

    Finally, please consider setting a profile name - all the NASxxx accounts get confusing!

Reply
  • over 3 years ago

    Hi & welcome.

    It's worth having a search on this forum, there are a few recent threads in recent years discussing this in detail. The "Related" links on the right hand side of this page are sometimes useful.

    See also: https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/what-is-autism/autistic-women-and-girls

    I'm not female, but in general I suggest gathering some "evidence" to present to your GP...

    • Results of online autism tests (such as AQ-50)
    • List examples of issues you experience wrt typical autistic traits (eg: What is Autism?)
    • Childhood examples of autistic behaviours (the assessors in my pre-assement interview were particularly interested in this)

    My GP was very supportive, but I have been seeing her for years prior to asking for a diagnosis so she was aware of some of the anxiety and related issues I had before realising I was autistic.

    If your GP isn't supportive, there are other avenues such as self-referral to the mental health team.

    Be prepared though - the waiting list for NHS assessment in some areas runs to years. Private diagnosis is possible if you have the ~£1k to fund it and don't want to wait.

    Finally, please consider setting a profile name - all the NASxxx accounts get confusing!

Children