Hi everyone
I'm 37 years old living in London. Earlier this year I was diagnosed with ASD which came as a big surprise to me. I never thought I had Autism. I always knew I was different and believed it was something like ADHD. Compared to my friends I always had some bad "struggles" which have led to some bad results: I dropped out of school, I dropped out of university, and in recent years I've been leaving job positions after 1 year. I've known I've been "struggling" with my mental health, and there have been behavioural patterns I've identified in recent years, however I have always been made to believe I have to just "get on with it" and couldn't allow my mental health to get in the way
It was only this year when my line manager, who disclosed to me that he got diagnosed with ASD during his childhood, asked if I was Autistic. Fast forward a few weeks, I have my first appointment with a therapist, and within the first 30 minutes they pause and ask if I was (diagnosed) Autistic. At this point I knew something was up, and the therapist assisted with a fast track ASD assessment.
I'm lucky for having an Autistic manager, and a mental health professional who was able to identify it, otherwise I would continue my life unknowing and not getting the necessary support. I am also lucky at the time of the assessment I had private healthcare through the company I worked for, and I only had to pay a small excess fee (compared to the whopping £3000+ charge)
After getting the diagnosis there were plans on getting some support, however I left my job and consequentially lost the private healthcare which covered all the costs.
Now I'm trying to get the support again, but through a combination of NHS referral and self educating with books.
The diagnosis has been hard to swallow and I'm slowly coming to terms with it. There's a feeling of frustration and sadness that If I had been diagnosed earlier in my life, then I would generally be doing better in life both personally and professionally.
Looking back I can identify many behaviours as Autistic (or caused by being Autistic) which have caused some real struggles in my life. I've struggled to hold down jobs, and my former partners have struggled with me in relationships.
I'm trying to keep positive, and I still don't know what I'm doing or how to go about it. Hopefully the NHS will be able to provide support, and I'm looking to participate in local support groups in London and meet and connect with other neurodivergents.
That's me.
So how about you?
Can you relate to my journey?
Regardless of whether you can or not: What has your journey been like? Have you got the support you needed? If not, what you been doing to get that support?
And for those in employment: has your employer (and line manager) been supporting you and, if so, how?
