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Advice on assessments

alterpop

Hi,

I'm 42 and recently realised I am autistic as well as ADHD (known since childhood about 11) and am waiting on an assessment through right to choose and someone called Clinical Partners I think? I'm good and life is much better in the sense I know about why i've experienced life like I did etc. But I am a bit nervous about the assessment which hopefully should be next year at some point. Does anyone have any good advice for me with what to expect, what I should do to prepare and what the process is like? Oh and its an adult autism assessment in case that wasn't clear :-)

Many thanks

A

  • Hey! I recently got diagnosed as an adult too and one of the things that my assessor said was really helpful was that I wrote down (almost like a diary) in the months leading up to my assessment reasons why I was seeking diagnosis and also things that I came up against in daily life that related to my autism. She said this was really helpful and made the diagnosis a smooth process, because in the end I had about 14 pages worth of info on why I think I have autism! It might be worth doing a diary or keeping notes on your phone when things come up, because for me it made the waiting for an appointment much easier (I hate waiting for things) and also it provided a lot of nuanced info! 

  • Hi, I had an adult assessment last June at the age of 57, part of my assessment was using ADOS-2 testing. Mine was in person so yours maybe slightly different if done over the internet. Try not to worry, they aren’t there to catch you out, I imagine you have or will do a written questionnaire before the interview. I didn’t have an informant from childhood so quite a lot of the interview was taken up with building up a picture of my childhood.

    I understand your issues with reading, mine are similar, I normally have to read something multiple times before it makes sense. I use a lot of audiobooks but still have issues with retention.

  • in reply to Anna Mod

    Hi,

    Thanks for getting back to me but I was rather hoping a human could just say how they experienced it. I hate links and things like that and I struggle with my ADHD reading things. I was just hoping someone could put a couple of paragraphs just on how they experienced things. To be honest I have LOADS of questions as I am just realising A LOT about myself and working through stuff. Is there any groups you can suggest or suggest ANYTHING as I feel like I don't know what to do now kind of thing?

  • Dear alterpop,

    Thank you for your message. We have a wealth of advice here on the NAS website. First may I signpost you to the diagnosis section which will hopefully explain the process to you. Please find the link here:

    https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/diagnosis

    Please feel free to explore the Advice and Guidance pages should you wish to find out more. 

    I hope everything goes well for you.

    With best wishes,

    Anna Mod