Paying Privately for Adult Aspergers Assessment?

Accalia said:

My GP was very reluctant to send me for assessment, advising that Asperger's in Adults did not exist. I was somewhat surprised therefore to find out that in my referal letter to CMHT he did actually mention it!

Having said that, CMHT have advised they don't think I'm 'severe' enough to warrant any Mental Health help and have bounced me back to the GP. He, fantastically, is fighting my corner however and is intending to go back to them and get them to take me on!

It may be nothing, but my alarm bells are ringing, reading this, Accalia.

If your GP thinks that Asperger's in adults doesn't exist he/she may actually be fighting to get you assessed by the Mental Health team as, in some way, delusional (i.e. you are believing you have something that 'doesn't exist').

Now, I may be completely wrong - it may be that your GP has researched Asperger's since saying that he/she thinks it doesn't exist in adults, now knows better, and has changed his/her mind, but the thing that concerns me is that Asperger's, and Autism more generally, is not a mental health condition, and so the CMHT may be the wrong people to assess you!

It is a developmental disorder.

It may, however, be the case that you have to go through Mental Health to get to see a psychologist (and note, only a psychologist trained in diagnosing autistic spectrum disorders can give you a definitive diagnosis, not an untrained psychiatrist), but be sure that he/she is fighting to get you assessed for Asperger's and not something else.

Maybe do some research yourself - find out who in your area does do assessments of adults with Asperger's, and take that information to your GP - if he/she doesn't then refer you to them, make an appointment with different GP and get a second opinion.

Accalia said:

My GP was very reluctant to send me for assessment, advising that Asperger's in Adults did not exist. I was somewhat surprised therefore to find out that in my referal letter to CMHT he did actually mention it!

Having said that, CMHT have advised they don't think I'm 'severe' enough to warrant any Mental Health help and have bounced me back to the GP. He, fantastically, is fighting my corner however and is intending to go back to them and get them to take me on!

It may be nothing, but my alarm bells are ringing, reading this, Accalia.

If your GP thinks that Asperger's in adults doesn't exist he/she may actually be fighting to get you assessed by the Mental Health team as, in some way, delusional (i.e. you are believing you have something that 'doesn't exist').

Now, I may be completely wrong - it may be that your GP has researched Asperger's since saying that he/she thinks it doesn't exist in adults, now knows better, and has changed his/her mind, but the thing that concerns me is that Asperger's, and Autism more generally, is not a mental health condition, and so the CMHT may be the wrong people to assess you!

It is a developmental disorder.

It may, however, be the case that you have to go through Mental Health to get to see a psychologist (and note, only a psychologist trained in diagnosing autistic spectrum disorders can give you a definitive diagnosis, not an untrained psychiatrist), but be sure that he/she is fighting to get you assessed for Asperger's and not something else.

Maybe do some research yourself - find out who in your area does do assessments of adults with Asperger's, and take that information to your GP - if he/she doesn't then refer you to them, make an appointment with different GP and get a second opinion.