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Advice needed for 13yr old son reluctant for ASD assessment

NAS86537

Hi, after years of waiting for an ASD assessment for my now 13 yr old son, I had a phone call this week saying he’d met the criteria to be assessed in a clinic next week. On sharing this with my son, he said he doesn’t want to know if he is autistic or not. When I told the assistant on the phone, she said that he needs more time to process this so the appointment has been cancelled with a review phone call in a month. How do I speak about this with my son who is very reluctant to any sort of change? Any advice would be welcome as I’m feeling overwhelmed at the moment. Thank you. H

Parents

  • Point out that a diagnosis will not change who he is and that he can choose who he tells, or doesn't tell. He is at an age when the desire of fitting in with others is at its most acute. Being diagnosed will not affect his ability to fit in, it might even help in that he can create work arounds, once he knows what his difficulties are and why he has them.

    Pointing out that the one of the richest people in the world is autistic, Elon Musk, and that a number of others are suspected of being, might be useful. Isaac Newton, Michelangelo, Mozart, Charles Darwin, Picasso and Albert Einstein all showed autistic traits, so he would be in exalted company if he were autistic.

  • in reply to Martin

    Thanks for your reply. I really appreciate your feedback and suggestions.

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