Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi I am Bert a 53 y/o male I was advised to seek an assessment for ASD 12 years ago by Nas but my doctor refused said I had to see Psychiatrist if he felt I should be assessed then He would see about it.
When I saw him he refused to look at any information from the Autistic Society or letters from employees & family & said he did not label people,so for 12 years I have floundered & went back to my doctors for 1 st time in 12 years asked for a referral to a Clinical Psychologist Specializing in Autism for a diagnosis 3 months ago this was granted,went in again this week to be told they do not label people so instead I have to go to local mental health unit see a psychologist if they think I need to be assessed for Autism then I will be referred elsewhere to be tested,is it always this difficult.
My experience was similar to asparagus'. I was referred to neuro-psychology for ASD assessment by a support worker, who I'd seen for 4 years. No one is going to argue with him. But GPs are in my experience useless. They were happy to keep refering me for depression & hand out pills. But they were of no real help. I didn't know what autism was, even though anyone who sees me will admit it's clear from looking at me that I'm not 'normal'. GPs still don't even have to view autism as a condition. My guess is they can make money from depression, but not autism.
My referral was only made when my benefit was ending & I intended to claim DLA. I think the support worker used this as the reason.
As they're using the word label, they're implying you have no need for a diagnosis. In order to get a referral you need to present a clinical need. For example you need it to aid communication with others, so they can understand you better. Which can help with medical treatment or with work. Or maybe you can't work & that's why you need it.
I would be very suspicious as it takes paper assessments & face to face assessments to diagnose ASD. There's no chance they're sending you to the right person. This is fobbing you off again. But worse, as the fact you could attend & communicate will even be used against you to dismiss your case. As they can easily be referring you to their partner who will claim you can get by well enough without a need for assessment.
You may be able to find a way to refer yourself for an autism assessment via your local autism service website. For example mine is www.autismberkshire.org.uk but you need to replace berkshire with your own county.
The suggestion I was Aspergers came from the community mental health team psychologist after I already had a year of CBT and referred myself again because i needed more help. I had no idea of Aspergers etc. It came from them and I am so thankful i followed it through because the road was long but wasn't aware of it in that I was only thinking of immediate help. It is always difficult - sadly., but I was lucky in that it was their suggestion. The hard part was waiting for the assessments. When they happend it was all quite quick.