ASD Referral accepted

Hello Justbe, what made you think you needed to be referred for an autism assessment?

It does take a long time normally but I would suggest asking your GP for the "right to choose" to see if they support this option - it means you get to go private (normally much faster) and the NHS pays.

While waiting, why not check if you are actualy likely to be autistic? There are free online tests for this:

https://www.thevividmind.org/blog/test/autism-test-online/

There are plenty of other conditions that share similarities with autism so it is worth checking you are barking up the right tree.

Once you have a high confidence in autism being your condition then I would recommend the following book to educate yourself in a no-frills way:

Understanding Autism For Dummies - Stephen Shore, Linda G. Rastelli, Temple Grandin (2006)
ISBN 0764525476

Another book that would seem relevant to your situation are:

Very Late Diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome - Wylie, Philip_ Beardon, Luke_ Heath, Sara  (2014)
ISBN 9781849054331

Once you have some info to work from, let us know what issues are most troublesome for you and we can probably come up with some helpful pointers for you.

Hi  Iain

My granddaughter is struggling, and I discussed it with my support worker (who is autistic) and she said that she could see traits in me. Once I started to look into it, I was shocked. I've struggled all my life. 

A senior practitioner did an a10 test. The result suggested that I was put forward for an assessment. I was given some paperwork, and I could really relate to it. It was like it was my life's story. I know in my bones that I'm Autistic. 

Having a formal diagnosis would mean  a lot to me. Recognition, validation etc etc. And I believe that it would help my daughter and granddaughter get the help and support they need, and I never had. 

My traits are too long to list. But thank you for your support. I'm on a waiting list for local one to one support. Which hopefully I'll get soon. 

I've been away.

When I got home this afternoon I discovered that I had received a letter from the assessment team. 

I now have to complete a questionnaire, and then depending on the answers I give I may or may not be referred. 

I'm finding this so stressful. 

I've been away.

When I got home this afternoon I discovered that I had received a letter from the assessment team. 

I now have to complete a questionnaire, and then depending on the answers I give I may or may not be referred. 

I'm finding this so stressful.