Published on 12, July, 2020
Hello! I'm Holly.
I'm a 17 year old girl and have been trying to get an assessment for about 2 years, some things went wrong with CAMHS and so it has taken a long time.
It seems like I could be getting one soon but I am starting to worry.
Every professional and autistic person I have spoken to have all agreed I display most of the characteristics. I scored over 40 out of 50 in the questionnaire thing they made me fill out. I'm not sure what else could be going on, ASD is the only explanation for how my brain works that I have found, and I desperately need to find some conclusion as to what is going on as it has started to cause me a lot of difficulties at school.
However, I didn't start displaying those characteristics until around age 5 according to my parents, and my medical information doesn't reflect the fact I was showing those characteristics until I was 6/7. I thought most autistic kids show signs at around age 3, or is that wrong? It may be possible I displayed signs but they weren't noticed as that is what happened with my hearing, I started getting hearing problems about age 5 but no one picked up on it until I was 12...
Does the age thing matter?
And does anyone have any information on what the assessment itself will be like for someone my age? The only autistic people I know are my cousins, but they are much younger and got diagnosed earlier on.
Thanks in advance
My traits didn't become very obvious until I was about 6 or 7.
They were there before, but only obvious in hindsight. Not wanting to play out with the other children at nursery, and preferring to be inside where it was calmer and quieter. Being focused on certain toys because of their textures. Not interacting with the other children, preferring to play alone. It certainly wasn't as clear at that age, but it was there.
It only becomes more obvious when, at around 5+, other children begin to develop more advanced social skills and interactions, better coping mechanisms and emotional regulation. That's when autistic kids start to stand out, because they don't develop in that same way.
At a younger age, it's less obvious. All toddlers are socially inept, prone to getting upset by random things, and quite repetitive in their interactions.