What if I go for a Diagnosis, and find out im fine?

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Hello Everyone,

I recently joined this site last week after being recommended to it by my therapist. The idea of having a mental illness is a fairly new thing in my life. I just started seeking professional help a few months ago for high amounts of stress and anxiety that come from being uncomfortable in social environments. I have always had a hard time interacting with most other people and could never really understand how they could think differently than me or interpret my actions in social settings as something different than how I see them. As a result of this, I have always been confused by how people come to what they see as simple conclusions while I am over here constantly over-thinking and worrying about every aspect of my life and how I am portrayed and viewed in public. This leads to having a lot of constant anxiety and stress and because of it I do not often go out of my comfort zone with new social scenarios where I have to meet new people. However, when I do talk to people or try to interact, it is very hard for me. I tend not to catch on to a lot of social cues and ramble while the person just kind of stands there. One thing my therapist has brought up is that she considers me a possible candidate for being on the spectrum. Ever since then, I acknowledge that its just a possibility, but at the same time i just constantly keep acting and thinking that it is a sure fire thing that there is something wrong with me. Now I am trying to decide if going to get a diagnosis is what I should do because I am afraid that they might tell me I don't place on the spectrum, and for some reason that makes me very uneasy now that I have a potential reason for how I have interacted for all these years. I feel bad saying it, because it sounds selfish, but for some reason I am scared that if I decide to go get a diagnosis,they might tell me i dont have anything. And now I am not quite sure what the right move is or what to do.

Hey Nandrews356 welcome.

I say go for it. Either way it goes you will still be who you are now. I know I felt better knowing why I was so different from everyone I had ever met after my diagnoses. Good luck!

If aren't diagnosed with autism, it doesn't mean that you are "fine." It means that you likely don't have autism. If you are having problems with certain aspects of your life enough that you feel that you need to find out what's wrong, then you are not fine. I'd advise you to try to work on your problems even if it turns out that you don't have autism, just because it will help improve your life.

Hi Nandrews356, welcome to WP!

Yigeren is right, why not try to find out what kind of "problem" you have. Maybe it is autism or something else but it will give you insight and direction to improve your life. Knowledge is power, it really is.

Personally, finding out I had an ASD was a most empowering discovery for me.

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

Welcome

Are you worried that if you get told you are not on the autism spectrum, that it means you can't get help? You speak of "high amounts of stress and anxiety that come from being uncomfortable in social environments", which is the mental health issue you're trying to manage. Stress is a legitimate problem, regardless whether ASD is involved!

Based on your description of yourself, I don't think that's a problem you're going to encounter if you answer all the diagnostic questions with complete honesty. Welcome to Club ASD, please accept our condolences on your acceptance.

But what others have said is true-- you probably are just fine, but that doesn't mean you don't have some kind of disfavored divergence with letters attached to it. Which is causing you problems. So find out which letters, and get started either solving the problems or accepting them as insoluble and finding alternative strategies to enjoying life.

What's the worst that happens??? You turn up with something else instead??? Take it from a diagnosed long-time club member-- NO GREAT LOSS.