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Son did not meet threshold at 11 but struggling hugely at 20.

NAS87674

My son struggled through primary school until an excellent teacher recognised his difficulties and suggested assessment through the pathway.  The conclusion was that he did not meet the threshold for diagnosis.  Fast forward almost ten years,  and all the traits are still there and now what appears to be autistic burnout has resulted in him losing his job and struggling with all aspects of every day life.  Could he have been misdiagnosed? Could be re assessed or is a no always a no? Could he have been excellent at making? He passed his GCSEs and A Levels after a huge social struggle but is now just stuck.  Any one have a similar experience? 

Parents

  • Sometimes it's those transitions to adolescence and then adulthood that make us really struggle- that's certainly how it was for me, things became much more difficult after the age of about 13 even though I'd had autistic traits since I was very small.

    Given that your son's done A-levels, it sounds like he's pretty academically able- that can sometimes work against people if their assessors have a stereotypical view and/or limited understanding of autism, particularly if that ability has helped them learn how to mask.

    I would definitely look into re-assessment if possible. The first time I tried to get assessed I couldn't even get a referral because I was "coping fine" (I wasn't) but here I am several years later officially diagnosed. Since your son has already been assessed previously it might be a good idea to make a big list of his autistic traits and how they affect his life to provide some evidence of his struggles early on in the process- hopefully that will make sure he's taken seriously.

Reply

  • Sometimes it's those transitions to adolescence and then adulthood that make us really struggle- that's certainly how it was for me, things became much more difficult after the age of about 13 even though I'd had autistic traits since I was very small.

    Given that your son's done A-levels, it sounds like he's pretty academically able- that can sometimes work against people if their assessors have a stereotypical view and/or limited understanding of autism, particularly if that ability has helped them learn how to mask.

    I would definitely look into re-assessment if possible. The first time I tried to get assessed I couldn't even get a referral because I was "coping fine" (I wasn't) but here I am several years later officially diagnosed. Since your son has already been assessed previously it might be a good idea to make a big list of his autistic traits and how they affect his life to provide some evidence of his struggles early on in the process- hopefully that will make sure he's taken seriously.

Children