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Mild Autism? Teenager

Crisps

Hello Everyone

Please accept my apologies for any use of the wrong terminology. 

My teenager daughter has recently expressed that she would like an autism assessment.

She has done a lot of research herself and strongly suspects she has. She is not necessarily looking for additional support as such but thinks that by knowing she may be able to access/learn more to support herself. 

She has taught herself coping mechanisms to her social and emotional barriers, and does incredibly well at school. I think recently it has been mostly bothering her as she doesn't understand when she appears rude and it is frustrating her.

Given that its likely mild and shes high-functioning (apologies again I understand these are outdated phrases) is this something the GP would still support assessment wise?

Many thanks

Parents

  • Hi,

    I am autistic, but I was actually diagnosed quite late at age 25. Like your daughter I actually did very well at school academically though I didn’t have any friends at school and struggled to fit in. I did make some friends at uni and fit in better there and also did well but I did increasingly struggle. I wish I had know I was autistic sooner- I think it could have avoided some of issues I face now and just helped me understand myself better. 
    It is perfectly fine to self identify of course but it can also be good to have a diagnosis especially if at later stage some reasonable adjustments at university or work are needed. even if at moment your daughter doesn’t require any (i didn’t at that age ) she might benefit from them in future- Life does become more complicated as we get older and there are more and more demands and I think as an autistic individual a lot of the smaller stressors and masking etc can add up over time. Mostly for me though the diagnosis has helped me understand myself better and figure out a way of living that works better for me. I didn’t have any adjustments at university or school - only now in my PhD my supervisor is aware and I am able to actually work more flexibly and can also work from home for any desk work as I cannot focus in the open plan office.

    in terms of approaching the GP (if you and your daughter decide to go ahead), I would suggest coming prepared- take some of the online autism tests (i can’t remember the names of the relevant ones now but it was mentioned in previous posts) and print out results and maybe also make a list of traits- the more evidence the better. Sadly a lot of professionals still aren’t very well trained about autism and especially about how it can manifest in women. 

    I’m not sure if any of this is helpful. I do think it is positive that your daughter is exploring this and whether you decide to pursue a diagnosis or not I think it is extremely helpful to better understand yourself 

Reply

  • Hi,

    I am autistic, but I was actually diagnosed quite late at age 25. Like your daughter I actually did very well at school academically though I didn’t have any friends at school and struggled to fit in. I did make some friends at uni and fit in better there and also did well but I did increasingly struggle. I wish I had know I was autistic sooner- I think it could have avoided some of issues I face now and just helped me understand myself better. 
    It is perfectly fine to self identify of course but it can also be good to have a diagnosis especially if at later stage some reasonable adjustments at university or work are needed. even if at moment your daughter doesn’t require any (i didn’t at that age ) she might benefit from them in future- Life does become more complicated as we get older and there are more and more demands and I think as an autistic individual a lot of the smaller stressors and masking etc can add up over time. Mostly for me though the diagnosis has helped me understand myself better and figure out a way of living that works better for me. I didn’t have any adjustments at university or school - only now in my PhD my supervisor is aware and I am able to actually work more flexibly and can also work from home for any desk work as I cannot focus in the open plan office.

    in terms of approaching the GP (if you and your daughter decide to go ahead), I would suggest coming prepared- take some of the online autism tests (i can’t remember the names of the relevant ones now but it was mentioned in previous posts) and print out results and maybe also make a list of traits- the more evidence the better. Sadly a lot of professionals still aren’t very well trained about autism and especially about how it can manifest in women. 

    I’m not sure if any of this is helpful. I do think it is positive that your daughter is exploring this and whether you decide to pursue a diagnosis or not I think it is extremely helpful to better understand yourself 

Children
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