Undiagnosed

yeah they wanted me to quit before the assessment. 

Hello. 

You may have complex ptsd as a result of things that you have exp while younger. The use of substances may have been used as a coping method to try and cope with the awful feelings you must be feeling. 

If you can, try to get yourself off the substance(s). While you are waiting for the autism assessment try and get help seeing a councilor. 

No one can say either way yes or no of you are autistic. The assessor will be the one to tell you if or not you are autistic. 

I have had some issues in my past which I found hard to cope with. I had no friends at school. I was always a loner, even now. I also suffer with suicidal thoughts and extreme mood changes, if things blow up and don't go as they should.... Planned. I have meltdowns a lot due to things being unexpected 

substance abuse usually ends up leading to schizophrenia so dont be surprised when they see your mention of substance abuse and then instead that train tracks them into thinking your giving yourself schizophrenia.

its called 'self soothing' and the doc should know all about it. 

Sorry to hear about your past trauma, self-harm and suicidal thoughts.  Life can be so cruel.

Please talk to your medical practitioner and be honest with them.  That will make it more likely for them to get a clearer picture of what’s going on and help them make a decision about whether you have autism or not.

Found i 'unmasked' much more after it was picked up during a mental health assessment......the self medicating aspect of it is quite common apparently as they tend to prescribe for 'chemical imbalance' at the g.p.......they dont work, so you go back to what helps you.

Thanks, i rang last month to make sure i was at least still on the system.  Usually i get lost lol.....still there and coping ok thanks

Hey, I've had a similar experience, currently awaiting a full diagnostic assessment and although currently not using any substances I did for a long time. My childhood was not particularly stable and featured it's fair share of trauma. In hindsight I now believe I was essentially "self-medicating" many of those years. Since I gave up that crutch the symptoms of suspected autism have become much more apparent. I couldn't say whether or not substance use would affect a diagnosis, I would just recommend being completely honest with your medical practitioner about it so they have the full picture.

I hope you're ok and coping well during the waiting. If you don't hear anything be sure to call them up so they don't forget. My mum had to do that twice where I'd somehow got lost in the system.

Im in the same boat waiting for an assessment....

Substance abuse, yup.....I've done it.  Substances actually make me less visably autistic.  More confident ect.......obviously alcohol gave me more confidence to talk to people, well....try.  They will be well aware of the self medicating aspect of autism....the need to fit in.

Age wont be a problem as, im sure substance abuse wont cause any autistic symptoms.....They should be able to access you from how you act and your history.

Hello, welcome to the community. I'm so sorry you are struggling. I understand a lot of your struggles, I self harm and have had suicide difficulties. I don't think this will affect your assessment/diagnosis. It didn't for piggy and my cousin who is older than me went through similar to us and this didn't get in the way of her diagnosis either -- so hopefully will be the same for you.

Oh and please do reach out if you need to.. Don't go through everything on your own. There's always help and someone to listen.

Hiya and welcome

i could be completely wrong but i don't think your substance use should affect the diagnostic process as it is seen as a coping mechanism.

To be honest, the first 7 years of my life were traumatic in many ways, and my doctor did choose to call me 'traumatised' and didn't want me to have the autism assessment. I also struggled with self harm and suicidal thoughts however that has not stopped me from getting my diagnosis. So hopefully it shouldn't stop you from getting yours

Good luck!

Alisha xx