Why Get Diagnosed?

Hi Boggart.

I don't know what other people are thinking, but for my part you've ticked, very strongly, some of the most indicative traits. You might think you're rambling, but what I'm reading is someone suffering in much the same ways that I ever did. The confusion, the 'lost' feeling, the frustration of not being able to make your mind up about anything - you might not understand how or why, but simply the way you write, let alone the things you write about, tell me a lot.

I think it's clear that you should be asessed from an AS point of view. I might have something better to say on my nest point, later today, but please let me say this.

I iunderstand completely how you feel about your doctor. I finally got a GP that made me feel the same way. We developed a lovely doctor/patient relationship, and I finally felt able to be more trusting of her and started to open up a bit, and yet every time I saw her I was apologising for taking her time up with my minor issues.

She is delighted that I got my diagnosis. Her concern was entirely for me, she always reassured me that 'the most important patient I'll see today is the one in front of [me}', and it was her who rejected my long-standing diagnosis of Bipolar (a common misdiagnosis for us) and initiated the reassessment.

This 'fear' of spoiling a relationship with your doctor is also common, and yet when it comes to people appraoching their doctor with this sort of enquiry, the younger ones seem to be responding in increasingly better ways, so perhaps their training is improving in these particular areas. Whatever the reason, it seems to be working, which is only right and proper. Getting AS people properly diagnosed, instead of leaving them to wallow in a sea of confusion, is very important.

Don't forget that there are other conditions that you could be suffering from too. Even having a couple of 'traits' might explain much both for you and your medical professionals, even if you don't tick all the boxes. We have some issues with the boxes they tick, but that's not relevant right now, it's part of the ongoing debate. We have to work with what we've got, not what we'd like!

I think that there's acceptance in the medical community that our overall wellness is linked to how we are at any particular time. Since I got my diagnosis, I actually 'easte' a lot less of her time. I can't explain this to you without a ramble, so please try to accept that this is so on my word alone.

Of course you can't see any benefit in getting a diagnosis, you have no idea what it might mean to you. Most people suffer such multiple symptoms, mental and physical, that it's a very tangled situation to unravel. For me, the key that started the unravelling process was my diagnosis, so much has fallen firmly from the 'unkown, unfathomable' section of my head into the 'ah, there's the real rpoblem' section, and I know myself better than I have in my life.

Please, even if you just show your doctor what you and the rest of us have written on here, do it. Lots of people go 'shy' in front of their doctor, it goes with AS to do that, and we often find that we've forgotten things, or downplay them, when we get there. I know I've walked out of an appointment and then berated myself for not saying what I really wanted to say, but it really is a huge thing.

So yes, in my opinion you've got a real issue there that's enough to start the dialogue with your doctor, and she won't be negative about it. We don't like to pass such opinions because we aren't qualified to, but for my part I'd say there's definitley enough there for you to take to your doctor and ask for a proper diagniosis. In the meantime, we're glad that you're on here and talking to us, and I only hope that it's helping you to have our support. Trust me, if you're on the spectrum, we all understand very well what you're going through right now because you're telling us, even if you don't understand how.

Hi Boggart.

I don't know what other people are thinking, but for my part you've ticked, very strongly, some of the most indicative traits. You might think you're rambling, but what I'm reading is someone suffering in much the same ways that I ever did. The confusion, the 'lost' feeling, the frustration of not being able to make your mind up about anything - you might not understand how or why, but simply the way you write, let alone the things you write about, tell me a lot.

I think it's clear that you should be asessed from an AS point of view. I might have something better to say on my nest point, later today, but please let me say this.

I iunderstand completely how you feel about your doctor. I finally got a GP that made me feel the same way. We developed a lovely doctor/patient relationship, and I finally felt able to be more trusting of her and started to open up a bit, and yet every time I saw her I was apologising for taking her time up with my minor issues.

She is delighted that I got my diagnosis. Her concern was entirely for me, she always reassured me that 'the most important patient I'll see today is the one in front of [me}', and it was her who rejected my long-standing diagnosis of Bipolar (a common misdiagnosis for us) and initiated the reassessment.

This 'fear' of spoiling a relationship with your doctor is also common, and yet when it comes to people appraoching their doctor with this sort of enquiry, the younger ones seem to be responding in increasingly better ways, so perhaps their training is improving in these particular areas. Whatever the reason, it seems to be working, which is only right and proper. Getting AS people properly diagnosed, instead of leaving them to wallow in a sea of confusion, is very important.

Don't forget that there are other conditions that you could be suffering from too. Even having a couple of 'traits' might explain much both for you and your medical professionals, even if you don't tick all the boxes. We have some issues with the boxes they tick, but that's not relevant right now, it's part of the ongoing debate. We have to work with what we've got, not what we'd like!

I think that there's acceptance in the medical community that our overall wellness is linked to how we are at any particular time. Since I got my diagnosis, I actually 'easte' a lot less of her time. I can't explain this to you without a ramble, so please try to accept that this is so on my word alone.

Of course you can't see any benefit in getting a diagnosis, you have no idea what it might mean to you. Most people suffer such multiple symptoms, mental and physical, that it's a very tangled situation to unravel. For me, the key that started the unravelling process was my diagnosis, so much has fallen firmly from the 'unkown, unfathomable' section of my head into the 'ah, there's the real rpoblem' section, and I know myself better than I have in my life.

Please, even if you just show your doctor what you and the rest of us have written on here, do it. Lots of people go 'shy' in front of their doctor, it goes with AS to do that, and we often find that we've forgotten things, or downplay them, when we get there. I know I've walked out of an appointment and then berated myself for not saying what I really wanted to say, but it really is a huge thing.

So yes, in my opinion you've got a real issue there that's enough to start the dialogue with your doctor, and she won't be negative about it. We don't like to pass such opinions because we aren't qualified to, but for my part I'd say there's definitley enough there for you to take to your doctor and ask for a proper diagniosis. In the meantime, we're glad that you're on here and talking to us, and I only hope that it's helping you to have our support. Trust me, if you're on the spectrum, we all understand very well what you're going through right now because you're telling us, even if you don't understand how.