Diagnosed with personality disorder before autism.

Hi- this has been my experience as well.  I was first seeing a trauma therapist who was very helpful but after about 2 years we sort of hit a wall where she felt I possibly had BPD and I thought I was probably autistic (after much research and self-diagnoses) but my trauma therapist would not accept the autism- even after I was evaluated by my Psychiatrist and she confirmed the autism and said I did not meet qualifications for BPD- even with some symptom cross over such as abandonment issues. I then felt very sad and had a lot of imposter syndrome feelings around my belief that I may be autistic- because this therapist i had been working with for 2 years, who had been helpful with some trauma related issues etc- did not believe me and was accusing me of creating "stories" about my life (aka pattern recognition) and "distorted narratives" (she did not believe my feelings were actually what I said they were- she felt I was in denial). Anyway - after a lot of heartache, I decided to pursue a formal diagnoses  with an autism specialist and she basically told me that I can be confident in my Autism, and that a personality disorder is the number one mis-diagnosis for late diagnosed autistic women because therapists have been trained to look for this above Autism in women. She advised me to find a new therapist who would be supportive of my diagnosis and support the goals I have for myself- sadly not all health professionals recognize the wide array of autism presentations in adults and women. I would suggest you first find a mental health services provider that supports you and your Autism diagnoses and  then I would request they consult with the doctor that diagnosed you with BPD to try to have them remove the diagnosis. Or if that is too difficult perhaps the private evaluator you went to could write you a letter for other health professionals mentioning the prior diagnosis was inaccurate. IDK- it sucks to not be believed and I hope you are able to find someone who will help you and focus on the challenges you would like to work on. 

id like to know what percentage of females are diagnosed with eupd and its not correct for many.  it seems most females who see a psychiatrist are giving this diagnosis and it shouldnt be happening.  a high percentage are being treated for a diagnosis they havent got and arent getting the support they need.

NAS82892,

Reading what you wrote made me feel so angry and sad for you but relieved too because perhaps now as you research Autism more, you may find solace and understanding that wasn't evident before?

I'm not a medical professional myself but can see it'd be incredibly difficult to accurately diagnose someone with all the overlaps in various disorders and the minimal appointments given to work out a clients challenges.

I think the best people to really know a person is themselves and their family/partner/friends because of the length of time and depth of relationship they have with the person.

It seems from your post that you feel Autism is more accurate a fit for you and therefore you'd feel best going forward with that diagnosis as opposed to the previous one.  I'm not sure whether diagnoses stay for life or can be adjusted but I wish you well in your effort to feel what's more true to you.

Yes, I am. But still fragile. When I see those specialists being against self diagnosis, because for them self diagnosis = misdiagnosis, I think: ok, but why so many of them misdiagnose people with mental health issues? I guess it’s there: ego and also money! If we search the information by ourselves and work on ourselves without them, they are loosing money. Maybe not all of them think this way, but I feel like quite many. My experience with them was usually in a scale from  negative to appalling. Not listening to me, talking at me, gaslighting etc. The very recent one who told me it’s Asperger, she also gaslit me quite much and behaved like I’m exaggerating. That being bullied at school was not that bad and! This is really unbelievable! She said, why it’s a problem for me that I have no friends. Well… I really didn’t know what to say. My only friend I have for 20 years is living far away in other country and I have no friend here. And according to the doctor it’s not s problem. Especially when I told her it’s a problem. Long story… I’m still looking for some therapist, I think best neurodivergent. Maybe ND therapist would understand me better.

Dam, good on you Alienatedhuman!

So good to hear someone taking the "bull by the horns" & seeking out their own peace of mind. It's easy to fall into a pit of despair & wait for others to sort you out. But to stand tall & deal with it yourself, & to set your own path takes great strength of mind & character. You must be feeling quite happy/content in your journey now & through your own doing  

My GP referred me to the community mental health team for autism diagnosis, who then sent me to a charity as the waiting list was so long. Maybe different teams have different expertise, so you might just need a different one?

Does this page help? https://www.nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/about-the-nhs/your-choices-in-the-nhs/ Can you go down the 'let's try and meet the diagnostic criteria again now?' route? "Just to satisfy my curiosity"... ? I wonder...

Threaten to file a lawsuit to the original party? Is should be criminal how irresponsible therapists have been with dishing out a Dx. Even Freud would be irate about what the field looks like today. 

Me2, AH. We are home now!

I have diagnosed of depression, anxiety and Tourette. It’s interesting how easy it was for those psychiatrists in the past to give me these diagnosis and prescribe me awful meds after very short and honestly cursory interview. It’s so easy to get those diagnosis like this and so hard to get a diagnosis of autism. What’s the problem I don’t get it. Later it was proven that Tourette was wrong. Only recently my psychotherapist and psychiatrist said it’s not depression but Asperger (which I already suspected). But it’s not official diagnosis and honestly I’m not ready to pay high amount of money for just one paper. I’ve been struggling with mental health my whole life. Only recently I found peace, because I finally know why I’m different and got a “manual” to understand myself better and manage my life to be happier. And it’s working.

This diagnosis should have been added to your medical records so I would ask your doctor to challenge whoever said the diagnosis of autism was irrelevant and the personality disorder was the only one worth investigating.

Comparing the results of a panel of experts to an individual who may not even be qualified to the same level seems the way to go.

Possibly asking to see a psychiatrist with expertise in the field of neurodiversity is the best route forward as it is possible a combination or possibly poor diagnosis by one party or the other.

That would be my thoughts.

Both assessments were several appointments and with a panel of practitioners analysing my responses, my demeanour etc.  

Thank you.  That is helpful and worth exploring. 

Could the charity MIND advise you?

There's an NHS ombudsman you could speak to as well.

It sounds like you have been on a long and difficult journey, and it's incredibly frustrating when your concerns are not being fully acknowledged by the professionals who are supposed to help.

As autism is a developmental condition and not a mental health condition, the mental health team are unlikely to help with difficulties associated to your autism unless they are cause co-morbid conditions such as depression, and anxiety. This is why they are probably focusing more on your personality disorder diagnosis. If you feel it's a misdiagnosis, consider documenting specific examples of how your experiences align more closely with your autism rather than a personality disorder, and ask for a new mental health assessment to reconsider your PD diagnosis. 

Personally, I am diagnosed autistic recently but was diagnosed with EUPD/BPD 4 years ago. I know a lot of people are misdiagnosed first with EUPD/BPD when actually they are autistic, but I personally identify that I have an accurate diagnosis of both EUPD/BPD and autism. There are a lot of crossovers and I am still fully learning what is an autistic difficulty or personality disorder issue. Only you know yourself and it will mean exploring your difficulties further and learning if they align with autism or not. 

I found this advice on Embrace Autism really helpful, which you might want to check out: https://embrace-autism.com/its-not-bpd-its-autism/ 

I don't know you and your state of play, but, if you were misdiagnosed, as many of us were under the DSM3, 4, especially while presenting as female. ...

Direct them to the DSM5 revised edition from 2023. They sound like they are not well informed.

I was also misdiagnosed at first as an adult as I present as female. Autism was considered then ruled out when I was a small child as I was a "girl" child - in the '50s. Read my profile for more info.

Then educate yourself. The more you know and can relate to your helpers the better. Self advocacy is all I had for decades. Now there is help for the younger of us, but it is still important to not be held hostage to a mercurial world view right now - and to have enough arrows in the quiver to get yourself dinner when the snow falls - as it will. Things will get squirrely again.

Also read "Neurotribes" for a great history on autism, including misdiagnosis - And the new "Unmasking Autism" with a focus on women.

Also you might decide to get another opinion and/or ask for help from the the NAS directly. 

NAS82892 said:

I have had  private and nhs assessments which both conclude I am autistic. 

Did you have a full autism assessment (normally over an hour with lots of multiple choice tests) and a panel assessing you or was it a quick one on one meeting?

If it was the former then they should have given you a diagnosis and put it on your medical record,

If it was the latter then it is only an indication that you may need a full assessment so I would push your GP on booking one using the Right To Choose path to save waiting several years.

I would not expect them to offer much help post diagnosis however as this is not commonly done unless you have significant needs relating to it.

Post diagnosis support is largely down to you whether through learning about it yourself or seeking a private therapist.