Is Anyone Willing to Help Me Figure Out if I Have Aspergers?

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Hello!
I am a teenage female and want help trying to figure out if I have Aspergers or not. I have a list which I can share if someone reaches out.
Thanks!

Tell you a really good thing to watch which gave me a rough idea. Before I came on this site, I saw "Ask An Autistic" on Youtube. The lady is brilliant at describing things. It may help you understand.

No one on this site is qualified to give you a professional diagnosis. There are some tests that can be taken on-line that can give you an approximation.

Autism Spectrum Quotient test

or

Take the online Asperger’s Test

Have you looked at 'checklist' type resources? I personally found those useful when undergoing diagnosis. I'm not sure how old you are but Tania Marshall has one for adult women, and there is also this one about pre-school https://taniaannmarshall.wordpress.com/2013/06/22/first-signs-of-asperger-syndrome-in-young-girls-pre-school/ (I know you're not this young it may be useful thinking back/asking a parent). A lot of people have also found the book 'Aspergirls' by Rudy Simone quite useful. And Youtube, as others have mentioned.

You would be better off to consult an appropriately-trained mental health professional than a bunch of strangers on a social website.

Hi kiwibird,

If you are just wanting to know for your own understanding of yourself then learn as much as you can. I found a utube channel called "aspergers from the inside" to be good to understand what aspergers is like from the lived experience.

If you decide to get an assessment from a professional, then make sure the assessor has lots of experience diagnosing autism in adults and women (try to get this by word of mouth, not from the assessors website). Women are harder to identify and need an experienced diagnostician.

I also do not think it is a good idea for a young person to seek important answers about themselves on the internet from strangers. Better I think to consult with someone with understanding, someone of good reputation, worthy of trust that knows you in Real Life. Mental health professional is a good answer, because they are compelled to adhere to certain standards by law.

If you just want to get an idea of who you are and how your mind works, then I would recommend you AspieQuiz:
http://rdos.net/eng/Aspie-quiz.php
I also found this unofficial list: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/02/ac/1f ... f38bb5.jpg helpful when first trying to figure things out for myself.

You are free to use autistic terms to describe your experiences - if you have sensory issues, meltdowns, shutdowns, stims - you don't need an official diagnosis to apply these terms to yourself.
You are free and welcome to contribute to WP as well, regardless weather you are autistic or not.

However, if you want a diagnosis, none of us and none of online resources would give you any answer. Even specialists may disagree about your case, which is particularily annoying but that's how it is.

Hello and welcome!

I totally agree that you need to see a professional to get a diagnosis. I am not AS, but my daughter, who is also 16, was just diagnosed last week. I had done a lot of online research and suspected it. And after being diagnosed, a few people in our family said they suspected it, too.

I would suggest finding an adult you can get help and support from, someone who can help you get a diagnosis and who can help advocate for you. Have you spoken with your parents or someone in your family about it? Are they supportive? I know this is not the case for everyone. If not, perhaps someone at school or your family doctor can help you.

Wishing you luck as you find your way

But maybe we "strangers on a social website" can help her find an "appropriately-trained mental health professional" who is also affordable? Such professionals are not exactly a dime a dozen, after all. Also, people are perfectly justified in doing their own research and taking preliminary screening tests like the AQ to help them decide whether arranging to see an adult autism specialist is worth the trouble and the long wait, and also to help them prepare for the appointment.

To kiwibird: If you would be willing to tell us what country you live in and what major city you live in or near, perhaps someone here can suggest local resources to help you find a local ASD specialist.

(By the way, if you can't afford such a specialist and your insurance doesn't cover it, you might want to look for a place where psychotherapy student "externs" work under the direction of a fully qualified psychotherapist who specializes in adult ASD. That would be much cheaper, by at least an order of magnitude, than being diagnosed directly by a fully qualified psychotherapist.)

Thank you for the advice. I have spoken to my parents about it before, but they are not sure that I have it. They also do not think it would be worth it.

Thanks for your input! I do not think that I would be able to get a diagnosis in person as I am not currently driving and my parents do not think I need one. A super cheap online person ($20 or less because that is all I have on a Visa gift card) would be best for me, I think.

Thank you for your input! Holy cow! I identified with 75% or more of what was in the graphic! That is really interesting. Thank you for the resource.

Unfortunately it can't be done online, because the single most important one of the tests involves observing various aspects of your in-person social behavior.