Just diagnosed!

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I joined this forum some time ago but haven't introduce myself yet.
I am a 25 year old girl from Poland, surviving with undiagnosed Asperger my whole life. Struggling with social cues, sensory issues, being overfocused and the whole world I could never "fit in".
Till now.

I just returned from my successful Asperger diagnosis assessment!

It was my second meeting with the specialist (I know... it was a fast diagnosis...). As I assumed I got stuck with the first question: "Why do you think you have Asperger?" and couldn't say anything just like the last time. The answer is just too complex for me to describe accurately using just my voice. But I was prepared for this. I turned on my tablet, got my 12 standard Word pages of based on ICD-10 diagnostic criteria(official in my country) self-describing essay on the screen and handed it to the psychologist saying "Well. Since a few months I am obsessed with Asperger, I read about it everyday - you could call it special interest - and the more I read the more I think I have it.".
She read the essay and gave me additional questions. It was easy once she got specific and I realized I am allowed to speak about Asperger just the same way I do on the forum (long ago I learned I am not allowed speaking too much about my interests in real life since people were usually getting bored/angry with me for this).
After a while she told me: "I am pretty sure you know about Asperger more than I do (autism specialist!). You thought through the criteria very deeply. I don't have much more to ask you about... " and I enthusiastically told her: "Thats isn't everything!" and started to mess with my tablet. "I bet..." - she answered but it didn't stop me from showing her another essay - 8 pages of my from birth to adult experiences (gathered by my own memory and stories of my parents/grandma) divided by 3 years periods. I wanted to show her even more (I got another 6 pages essay of some other diagnostic criteria, a 44 points list of autistic traits I see in my current life, the results of all online Asperger/Autism related tests I could find on the net and quite a lot of my childhood photos - call it special interest, honestly...) but the time ended before I could.

"At first I was thinking you are one of those people who read about Asperger on the Internet and 'print it in themselves'. But from what I seen I am pretty sure you diagnosed yourself right. You should write a book using the essays you have shown me." - thats what she said in the end.

I am getting a "strategy meeting" with her soon to think of how I can get help. She said therapy wouldn't probably help much since I already got my own coping mechanisms that work but I might have a chance for getting some disability assistance.

Yay!
From now you can say I am a citizen of the Wrong Planet. Not a self-proclaimed immigrant.

Outstanding!

I am a little jealous that your diagnostician was so welcoming of your personal information. Mine wasn't as successful despite having mcuh of the same kind of personal-history notes.

Good luck with your "strategy meeting."

Congrats!

I'm glad you've done a lotta research and glad your counsellor was nice.

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

Congratulations! I wish it were that easy for me. Like you, I have actually had obsessed interests trying to figure out both what was going on with me for more than a decade now. I had the same trouble figuring out why my kids did things in certain ways and knew they were different like me but didn't know what until I stumbled on Asperger's. Most of my family and in-laws still think I'm wrong about my kids (didn't tell them I'm pretty positive I have it too) despite two out of three diagnoses, one informal and one that's about to be formal. I've started some similar essays (actually I am hoping they will turn into a book eventually but wonder if putting myself out there like that would be damaging to my self-esteem and/or my family). I wish you the best of luck now and in the future.

I don't want to sound mean but I don't understand why you are happy. Understanably that you can now know what you are dealing with is a positive thought but I personally would be sad to get that diagnosis. The psychiatrist I was sent to, to see if I was crazy, diagnosed me as an extreme stoic and I think I can hamdle that as opposed to aspergers.
But I am glad you are getting help. I am genuinely happy for you. Help doesn't always come in time so you are lucky.

Congratulations I remember what a great feeling it was when I found out I was no longer a "self-proclaimed immigrant" as well, almost exactly three months to the day before your diagnosis! I'm interested in hearing how your strategy meeting goes; my diagnostician put a lot of suggestions for ways by which I could help myself on my diagnostic report, but we never got back together to discuss how I might implement some of the ideas; hopefully you get some good ideas.

It's not like it is a surprise for me - I have known there is something wrong with me my whole life and it was a long time since I stopped considering "being normal" a good thing. The way "normal" people acted was so illogical, mean and pointless to me so I couldn't imagine myself being one of them. And Asperger itself is not a bad thing. I struggle with social cues and get some sensory issues but I also got logical mind, extreme ability to focus, I'm hardworking and I can really find fun in simple, everyday stuffs. It's not like I am worse than anyone else. And I am not crazy. I would be sad if they diagnosed for example BPD, Bipolar or Schizophrenia in me but Asperger is a disorder that makes you somehow gifted - you have what it takes to survive in this world your own way and noone has right to tell you it is all your own fault (since that's just how your brain works, you can't change it, there is no cure).

I really like your post, above. ^

As we say, in America, "You GO, girl!"