Published on 12, July, 2020
Hello All.
This is my first post so please be kind.
I 46 year's old, and I was diagnosed with Autism in January this year, and I am still seeking help and support from the NHS.
I saw my Doctor for help, and they referred me to Talking Therapies. I 'talked' to Talking Therapies but received a letter saying that they cannot help me, and to try this website included in the letter . The website is for a course about Autism in another town - which is not what I'm looking for. Are they crazy? They want me to drive to a different town, and sit in a room full of people for 6 weeks to learn about Autism! Isn't that just going to make my anxieties much, much worse?
As you may imagine, I feel abandoned, and despondent, as it took me 5 months to get an appointment with my Dr.
I just feel as though I need guidance and support. I've been trying to survive as and Autistic person living in an non Autistic world for 46 year's - that's a lot of masking, and I'm completely exhausted.
I'm not asking for special treatment, just a little compassion and support.
Thank you for reading my post.
Faye
Hi Behind The Mask thanks for posting! WELCOME! I promise this is a really nice place to be.
I haven't had any advice from medical professionals either. The doctor who diagnosed me said he will send a report to my GP and myself in 2-3 weeks, and they would include some websites on there I can check out, but I have probably found them all already.
Behind The Mask said:I've been trying to survive as and Autistic person living in an non Autistic world for 46 year's - that's a lot of masking, and I'm completely exhausted.
I feel this in my bones. I'm over a decade younger than you so I haven't had to 'pretend' for anything like as long, but I feel it. I am exhausted too. I have a lot of mental health problems and it is hard now, with the knowledge that I'm autistic, to know which are genuine and which are a symptom of trying to live in a world that isn't designed for me.
If you work, can you get some special considerations? I personally have had to move to 100% home working because the office is too much for me and also recently have moved to part time work, due to becoming seriously burned out.
Here to listen/read/chat any time :)
Welcome to the community.
I have experienced similar negative feelings post diagnosis too. I was diagnosed 3 years ago at 50 and it has been an emotional rollercoaster that I was not expecting. The initial relief and elation was great. Finally I understood why I had experienced so many difficulties throughout my life, why standard therapies for my long standing anxiety had at best been unhelpful. Finally I thought I could be able to access some autism specific therapy for anxiety that would work.
Of course that was not to be and no such thing exists on the NHS. I tried repeatedly because my diagnosis letter stated that is what I needed. The referrals from my GP were all rejected by the mental health and talking therapy services. My initial elation and relief was replaced by despair, despondency and abandonment.
The sad reality is the NHS services do not have staff sufficiently trained in autism in the vast majority of areas. In theory they are supposed to adapt therapy to meet the needs of an autistic person, however in practice they often reject the referral because they simply do not know how to treat us.
The best (and only) source of post diagnosis support I have found is right here.
Some people on here have reported good results with private therapy but unfortunately that is not something I can afford. Personally I think it is wrong and discriminatory the way autistic people are denied access to talking therapies. If non autistic people can access such services then autistic people should be able to access similar services to meet their specific needs.
It may be worth you looking further into the autism course. If it is aimed at newly diagnosed autistic adults it may provide an opportunity to connect with your neurokin. Unfortunately offline autism support groups for adults tend to be few and far between. Most groups tend to be orientated towards supporting autistic children and their parents.
That is really kind. Thank you.
Looking at your username are you a fan of a certain band? I love Def Leppard too, and they're from my home city of Sheffield.
Music definitely keeps me going.
️
You have Friends Here. Everybody will support you.