Adult Autism Assessment

No problem, Adam. 

I had mine in February, 

I found the process was pretty good, but it did feel pretty upsetting to have opened up as much about things I've never spoken about to anyone.

Afterwards I felt relieved to have answers, but also a bit more autistic too.

Since then I've found I've got more clarity, more respect for myself and cut myself more slack. Also that some things aren't as hard now I know why they were, if that makes sense at all.

Hope you feel ok about your diagnosis and it helps you make sense of yourself and move forward without as much stress and anxiety as you've had before.

Thank you for your help.. Apologies for not replying sooner i am not getting notifications of responses to this post and i forget quite easily i posted about this topic..

Thank you.. i had the assessment and got diagnosed..

Apologies i dont seem to get notifications that i have had responses

Apologies for not responding sooner, i dont seem to get notifications even tho i ticked to receive them..

Thank you for your kind words and you have hit on everything well.

I had my assessment today and got diagnosed with level 2 Autism.. still not sure what that means but was told i am autistic and need support..

I am trying not to overwhelm myself with it atm as i am still in the disbelief part.. in some space in my head i knew but its a shock to have it confirmed.

Psychiatry UK was really good.. took some time and frustration to get the appointment and assessors i wanted but they were great. I was a bit flummoxed by the questions but i feel they had already diagnosed me before the face to face and just wanted to confirm it.. 

anywhoo thanks for theMessage

I was very happy with Psychiatry UK's service and would encourage you to proceed with it.

Before my appointment, they sent self-report and informant report pre-assessment questionnaires. I received mine in PDF form, but converted my self report into MS Word, so that I could fit in more than the boxes would otherwise have allowed. You could just ask them for an alternative format, but I enjoyed converting it myself :)

The questionnaire is extensive and has a final section for writing about anything else that you feel it might be helpful for them to know. You're also invited to submit such things as school reports and any previous psychiatric/psychological reports. You can submit other documents too, if you think they'll help.

I took time to make sure I was fully happy with what I'd prepared before submitting it.

It's unclear whether you're using them via the NHS right to choose or directly / privately. Either way, their standard cost includes a certain amount of time. If extra is needed, then they can and will do that, at additional cost.

I had some similar concerns to you: in medical appointments, my mind often goes blank. However, the forms had already given them a lot of what they needed, and I was able to answer follow up questions easily enough.

I was also initially concerned about potential impacts of masking. But my therapist reassured me that the assessors would be highly experienced and able to see straight through it.

I wish you all the best with your assessment.

I went private but through a local service. It took several hours, it is pretty intense as obviously you are talking about your struggles. They will ask you about your time at school/childhood, this was a difficult thing for me as I was bullied and isolated, but of course those difficulties helped support the diagnosis. I would say try to make sure you have time afterwards to calm down as it can make you overwhelmed. If you struggle to talk about it then writing it down will probably help and you can use that to prompt you. I had my partner with me which was helpful as I think I would have been too overwhelmed trying to get home afterwards.

I got a very through report afterwards.

I also did a video ADHD assessment through Clinical Partners which was OK but I would have preferred face to face as I find video calls odd.

Assessors do this over and over and get pretty good at identifying Autistic people. I honestly don't think you need multiple assessments if the person is well-trained enough. 

Link now allowed again. YouTube channel is Autistic Not Alien.

One question that I would ask of the Mods is this:- given the fact that there are no formal post diagnostic adult autism assessments (which should be a legal entitlement and requirement) are the existing adult autism support services good at determining level of autism and appropriate adult autism supports required - it would appear that voluntary autism support organisations seem to be better at doing this, especially if they exclusively deal with autistic clients and they are able to (loosely) do thier own versions of post diagnostic assessments via interactions with autistic clients in identifying the most appropriate forms of support 

Hi Adam. I'm also 42 and I had my autism assessment last year. It was only one session, and I quite enjoyed it, though I didn't enjoy reading my report - it made me feel bad for talking about myself. However, you may have a much more compassionate and knowledgeable assessor. Here's a link to a short video about my assessment and reflections on a positive assessment experience: www.youtube.com/watch

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Its more a curiosity with me as i need to know why i am the way i am..

I agree that none of society seems to care and its not looking like it will change, But if i can get some semblance of an answer it might help me a little.

I also agree with that working is socialising and much harder for people like us to do. Frustrating that people dont see this

Its good to know the assessors took you seriously and that they saw through your masking.. I hope i have the same experience

I promise you that you will not con the assessors. I had exactly the same fear - at age 59 I had become so good at masking. They didn't miss a thing.

Personally i wouldn't bother. There is no benefit to a diagnosis at all. We have a disability, yet we are not entitled to any disability payments. There is no help from doctors. No genetic testing to see which mutations are causing the condition, and if any medications/ nutritional supplements could help us. *** There is no acknowledgment of the sensory issues that we face. Or the fake and depressing way the N.T.s insist on socialising. There is no acknowledgement that 'work' is in fact socialising  and a social game to N.T.s and yet we are made to feel bad for not working! 

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Thank you for this, i will look up the traits, i tried to avoid looking up many traits as not to con myself and others about this matter.. but now it has been decided i need an assessment i will start to look into it.

Writing to the assessors is a good idea but i am not sure if they will accept it. I asked about my friends writing a supporting document as two have seen meltdowns, but they never replied to me..i will ask again and see what their answer is.

Again thank you for you information i will take it all on board

Hey thank you for your Advice, i have began writing things down that i am noticing but am a little worried i might not be able to mention them in the time available, i will try.

Writing about my history is a great Idea thank you i will try as i have have had a lot of problems in the past which now i look back is probably autism in disguise..

thank you for the response and apologies for the late reply i never got an email that some one had answered me..

Amerantin said:

I’d suggest writing down all the points you want to make about yourself - significant points about your life history, things you find difficult, anything else you think is relevant to having autism. Then you just use the list as a reminder during the assessment.

Solid advice.

I would start by looking at the list of which of the neurodivergent traits you exhibit:

https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/signs.html

Start writing down the ones you can clearly identify with and make notes on how this presents itself, whether to you internally (eg anxiety) or externally (eg lack of facial expression).

Once you have gone through this list, pick to top dozen traits which are most of an issue for you and expand on these - think when they manifested if you recall, how they present and how the affect you.

Be honest about these, even if you feel shame about them - covering up stuff here is going to work against you.

Once you have finished you have just done all the work that the assessment will cover, so type it up and send it to the people doing the assessment so you can talk about it in your meeting. They will appreciate this as you are making their life easy in terms of teasing the details out of you - it is all there in black and white so they just need to talk to you to make sure if feels genuine.

Others will have to explain how Psychiatry UK work (I didn’t use them) but you really shouldn’t worry about it. Assessment isn’t stressful in itself and the assessors are used to putting people at their ease.

You mention that you’re not good at explaining things about yourself (join the club) so I’d suggest writing down all the points you want to make about yourself - significant points about your life history, things you find difficult, anything else you think is relevant to having autism. Then you just use the list as a reminder during the assessment.

It would seem reasonable to me for you to ask what will happen during your assessment - what methods they will use etc - in advance. They should be used to autistic people needing this. The clinic that diagnosed me explained the process in detail beforehand.