Published on 12, July, 2020
I spent a decade in the mental health system being misdiagnosed with a mental health condition that I never had. I spent 7 of those years straight inpatient. I got correctly diagnosed as autistic at the age of 27. I have spent a decade telling everyone around me the truth and constantly being told I’m lying and/or how I am experiencing the world is not possible (they hadn’t realised that I was autistic so they just thought I was crazy). It has been an incredibly traumatic decade and I cannot even repeat the things that have been said to me. I now understandably have a real phobia of anyone who works in any healthcare - mental or physical as a result of the trauma I have experienced. This is fine for now as my mental health is in a really good place since being correctly diagnosed with autism and I actively do not want anything to do with any mental health team (and they know it). But I worry how moving forward in my future, this is going to be a barrier in accessing help for my physical health. I have a huge list of neurological problems post covid. And I fear if I develop any health problem in the future 1) I am going to be avoiding going to the doctor as much as I can and 2) even if they see me, I am petrified of how they will treat me. Usually I end up feeling mentally worse than when I went in.
Can anyone else relate? I feel so alone in my experiences.
I can only very partially relate as a person 1st dxed with mental illness in 1973, and severe mental illness in 1975. The Asperger's dx didn't come till 2019. Many others who are similar to me were not treated well by mental health services. My moving to be near my daughter in 2017, and her demolishing more than a few untruths about me with mental health services here in Wiltshire(before I moved from Essex) means that nowadays I'm treated well. My last, and longest psych admission was from May 1981 to Mar 1983.