Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi everyone,
I would really appreciate your opinion please. I have had a therapist and GP say I have ASD, but no formal diagnosis. Apparently that's as elusive as matching socks. I've just been on a 3 day research binge and I no longer know which way is up. In your opinion is self- identifying acceptable? I honestly don't know if it would make me a fraud or others would see me as a fraud. All I've ever wanted is to just make sense of myself and find a place where I feel I belong. I would really appreciate your thoughts, right now I have too many of my own. Thank you
I don't know what I think about self diagnosis. I'm a social worker for adult social care and I know generally speaking, not just for ASD, a diagnosis is always taken more seriously than speculation. That being said, I don't always expect people to have received a diagnosis for every condition because sometimes the person themselves tells me enough in their experiences and behaviour to recognise things. I don't often work with autistic people but I think I'd not worry too much as an assessor about a formal diagnosis. Are many people claiming to be autistic when they aren't? I feel quite a stigma about it personally and I consider myself to be quite open-minded so not sure how common this would be?
I suspect neurotypical people may not readily accept a self-diagnosis but that is probably because I'm currently weighing up pros and cons of disclosing I'm waiting for an assessment.
Had my referral rejected because my IQ is too high, it has to be below 70 in my area. Pleased it's a lot easier for you, and the wait isn't too bad.
Is it definitely going to be a fight? Where I live you just self-refer for a diagnosis now. I've been told there is a 6 month wait but I'm only a month down so I cant yet confirm if this is true for me.
Thank you. 3 years is such a long time to wait for answers. I am considering the fight for a diagnosis but I'm just not sure I have it in me, at the same time I have question marks, I like full stops, a yes or a no, not a maybe. I've a feeling I'm going to drive myself even more off the rails.
i think maybe you can "try it on." particularly since you seem to be having trouble getting a diagnosis. for me, it was all way too confusing. i needed that diagnosis, which i got. it's been down the rabbit hole ever since. i guess i'm glad i got the diagnosis --- but it took almost three years to get to "i guess i'm glad...". prior to the three year mark, it was simply "this reeks. i don't seem much better off"