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Doubts and anxieties prior to assessment

Balletdude

Did any one else start doubting them selves in the weeks running up to you assessment?  
Knowing if you sat and thought about it rationally you have traits and signs, but gut reaction is I’m just being silly etc.

My GP agrees that I am probably autistic as do the people I’ve met in a local group. I think it’s just probably nerves knowing in a couple of months I’ll have an answer, as well as not knowing what to expect.

I’ve also been filling out a questionnaire and am feeling anxious that I can’t fill it all in because I don’t have relatives who can help.

am I just anxious over nothing?

also it’s Christmas, even though I spend it alone (which I like) I feel overwhelmed /overstimulated by it all 

  • Yes, absolutely this was my experience. 

    I was so stressed out that the day before my assessments I was being sick.

    I asked my mum to fill out the first set of forms, but made sure the centre were aware how clueless she was about my struggles.  For example she had no idea that I was bullied. I think once you're a certain age, it becomes less of an issue.  If you can describe childhood experiences on your own, that will give an indication too.

    These anxieties are perfectly reasonable.  It's frightening having your life examined and weighed in the balance.  But remember that as an autistic person, you deal with a lot of stress every day and you're stronger than you think.

    In the end, the people who assessed me were all understanding and supportive and that got me through it.  Trust your instincts.  

    Do you know what kind of assessment they're going to do?  I think the two main ones are ADOS or DISCO. I had ADOS and I looked up the structure which helped.  The other issue I had was that usually in stressful situations approach I cope by scripting in advance, but in this case planning what to say wpuld be counter productive.

  • Notwithstanding the difference between expert evaluation and our own laypersons' opinions, I honestly think that we eventually come to *know* whether we're autistic or not. I can only speak for myself but it truly dawned on me while I was speaking to some experts in an advice session prior to my upcoming assessment: afterwards, I finally grasped that my upset in that session, my struggle to outline my experiences essentially confirmed the truth to me. It was ironic that questions about possible autism inadvertently made me drop my usual mask and actually be myself. My difficulties with questionnaires before all this occurred should've clued me in; I've been a passionate reader virtually all my life...so why was I mystified by the meaning and possible hidden meaning of such complex and nuanced (lol) questions like 'Where were you brought up?' I even managed to misinterpret or take a question on Social Rules literally, and thought it was about 'Keep off the grass' signs and the like. Smiley This is actually the *shortened* version of my recent adventures with words both verbal and written.

    All in all, while I don't doubt that qualified people know far better than I do, I can't help but feel that we at heart know the truth about ourselves, once we've heard or read the range of symptoms; we recognise ourselves at last.

  • I know I'm autistic but I worry about not having good enough communication skills to get through the assessment and no one to fill in forms because I can't maintain relationships. What if I'm too autistic to navigate the autism service?! So yes I'm kind of anxious. But I'm not expecting to get the assessment until 2024 so trying not to think about it too much.