• Replies 18 replies
  • Subscribers 88 subscribers
  • Views 851 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Options
Related
Hints and tips
  • To quote someone's message, first select/highlight the relevant text, and then use the Quote button that appears
  • To "mention" someone, type @ followed by the start of the forum name, and choose from the list; that person will get a notification of being mentioned

Early life info - no informants

AnnieBo

I am trying to compile some information from my childhood for my autism assessment in 2 months but i don't have anyone to give early life info.

I've seen that some people have been able to use their own recollections so i'm wondering what sort of things/memories are useful to highlight. Someone else wrote this so I'm going to use it as a starting point "Sit down and write about your childhood.  Anything and everything you can think of.  Write it all down.  How school was for you, did you have any issues at school, did you have any issues in childhood.  Anything and everything from the first memory you have until present day.  All the difficulties you have.  things you are good at, things you are bad at.  This can be used as evidence." (apologies that i did not note down the author).

I also have lots of rather unremarkable reports from age 11 - 15. Should i just send the lot of point out bits (although i don't know what is relevant!)

Parents Reply Children
  • in reply to Bunny

    From the NAS page:

    Autism is defined by ‘core characteristics’. These are described in medical literature as: 

    • social communication and social interaction differences 
    • restricted and repetitive behaviours and interests (RRBIs) – including potential sensory differences.

    The post was about absence of an informant related to childhood.

    In order to get a diagnosis I believe you should demonstrate the above, ideally now and in the past, to show it is a developmental issue not as a consequence of something else. This was the primary focus of the questions and info that I and my informant were asked, related to childhood experiences. I believe you also need these to have had some impact on your life.

    The NICE clinical guidelines can be found online, which I read, which may be helpful They encouraged me to think about the items that would be key, but I did not try to skew or misrepresent anything.

    However, in my case they had decided I was likely to have ASD before the formal assessment even started and before looking at any of my submitted info. Clearly it is largely influenced by how you come across, hence my psychologist saying there was no need to prepare tons of info, the additional items are to complete the picture. So I  would not get too hung up.

    I did note other items that would be of interest, but without communication and interaction differences across time it would be harder to meet the criteria. So having these will be helpful.

    There is a caveat to this, related more to girls than boys, based on compensation, which is where the CAT-Q comes in. But this is where an assessor that is experienced in the presentation in women and girls is helpful.

    Note also that you don't need 10 examples of a point, once you've ticked that box they moved on. This is where some people online have been surprised not all their info was used.

    In any case, it will do any harm to think of everything, but it takes a lot of time and effort and may not be needed.  For example I remembered the elm trees being cut down in 1975, seeing stag beetles in 1976, that there was a sweet shop with loose sweets in jars and 1p or 2p could get a bag, that I saw some kid get run over and just lie in the road, I knocked my front tooth out, but none of it is relevant. It's your interests.and behaviours, if you can remember them, and interactions.