Hi! I would like to hear your thoughts.

You seem to be analysing things a great deal - not surprising from what you say, but if I may venture to suggest, is not helping you sort things out.

People on the spectrum tend to worry a lot, not that that is exclusive or definitive. But if you are not getting the opportunity for social interchange, you don't have the options many people have to discuss life experiences and get a perspective over time.

Spiralling anxiety, negative thoughts, exploring every possible outcome is something that fuels itself. If you can try to break out of it - I'm not at all suggesting it is easy - just try to stop thinking negatively. You'll probably just manage to break the flow of thought for a few minutes before it starts again, but just doing it often enough will help in time. Something simple like snapping your finger (ie flick of forefinger against thumb) or flicking your ear lobe hard enough to feel it, just cuts the train of thought.

Try to write things down as much as possible. Carry a small notebook and write down what's bothering you so it is not in your head all the time, and you know it is written down somewhere.

It does take a long time to get a diagnosis, and it varies from one local authority to another. So be prepared for it to take a long time.

You can explore the possibility yourself. There is something termed the AQ test, which you should be able to access searching the NAS website. It can give you some idea of whether and to what degree you fit an autism/asperger profile. You can also get a book - perhaps from the library or buy one - that explains autism/aspergers, and explore whether any of it fits in with your experiences. It varies a lot between individuals, so no one person is alike in their experiences of it, and you might find most descriptions well adrift of your own experiences but you still match some of the pattern.

There are biographies. John  Elder Robison's "Look me in the Eye - my life with Aspergers" is a good one from an American perspective, fairly positive and up beat. For a UK life try Marc Fleisher "Making Sense of the Unfeasible" Jessica Kingsley Publishers 2003.

Bear in mind there are other conditions that might account for your difficulties. The diagnosis uses something called the Triad of Impairments (see NAS Website - About Autism - What is Autism  & What is Aspergers), which looks for indicators that aren't duplicated in other conditions - the AQ test I mention above tests for the Triad of Impairments. But things like eye contact, social isolation, sensory discomfort are confusable with other conditions and are not part of the triad. Another condition that does overlap a lot is Dyspraxia, which is mainly about coordination but has social impacts.

Finally remind yourself, at 23 you haven't been around a long time yet. If that sounds funny or patronising, it is not my intention, but time seems more pressing when young. The older you get this wears off a lot. What I'm saying is that the pressure and anxiety has plenty of time to resolve itself, and things don't need to be as immediate as they might seem now. It may be hard for you to take in what is good advice - give it time, don't rush, don't panic.

Good luck.

You seem to be analysing things a great deal - not surprising from what you say, but if I may venture to suggest, is not helping you sort things out.

People on the spectrum tend to worry a lot, not that that is exclusive or definitive. But if you are not getting the opportunity for social interchange, you don't have the options many people have to discuss life experiences and get a perspective over time.

Spiralling anxiety, negative thoughts, exploring every possible outcome is something that fuels itself. If you can try to break out of it - I'm not at all suggesting it is easy - just try to stop thinking negatively. You'll probably just manage to break the flow of thought for a few minutes before it starts again, but just doing it often enough will help in time. Something simple like snapping your finger (ie flick of forefinger against thumb) or flicking your ear lobe hard enough to feel it, just cuts the train of thought.

Try to write things down as much as possible. Carry a small notebook and write down what's bothering you so it is not in your head all the time, and you know it is written down somewhere.

It does take a long time to get a diagnosis, and it varies from one local authority to another. So be prepared for it to take a long time.

You can explore the possibility yourself. There is something termed the AQ test, which you should be able to access searching the NAS website. It can give you some idea of whether and to what degree you fit an autism/asperger profile. You can also get a book - perhaps from the library or buy one - that explains autism/aspergers, and explore whether any of it fits in with your experiences. It varies a lot between individuals, so no one person is alike in their experiences of it, and you might find most descriptions well adrift of your own experiences but you still match some of the pattern.

There are biographies. John  Elder Robison's "Look me in the Eye - my life with Aspergers" is a good one from an American perspective, fairly positive and up beat. For a UK life try Marc Fleisher "Making Sense of the Unfeasible" Jessica Kingsley Publishers 2003.

Bear in mind there are other conditions that might account for your difficulties. The diagnosis uses something called the Triad of Impairments (see NAS Website - About Autism - What is Autism  & What is Aspergers), which looks for indicators that aren't duplicated in other conditions - the AQ test I mention above tests for the Triad of Impairments. But things like eye contact, social isolation, sensory discomfort are confusable with other conditions and are not part of the triad. Another condition that does overlap a lot is Dyspraxia, which is mainly about coordination but has social impacts.

Finally remind yourself, at 23 you haven't been around a long time yet. If that sounds funny or patronising, it is not my intention, but time seems more pressing when young. The older you get this wears off a lot. What I'm saying is that the pressure and anxiety has plenty of time to resolve itself, and things don't need to be as immediate as they might seem now. It may be hard for you to take in what is good advice - give it time, don't rush, don't panic.

Good luck.